The perfect gift to share with friends and family during the holiday season! Christmas jam includes frozen strawberries, cranberries, fresh orange zest, and warm spices.
Table of Contents
If you’re looking for even more Christmas jams and preserves recipes, be sure to try this spiced apple pear jam, a batch of Crockpot apple butter, strawberry freezer jam, and this cherry jam, too!
This jam is so delicious! The recipe is perfect just as it is and its super easy!
– Betsy
How to Make Christmas Jam | 1-Minute Video
During the months of November and December, Yoder’s, the little country market near our house, sells “Christmas Jam.” I always scoop up a few jars of the traditional Amish jam, since I love the sweet-tart combination of strawberries and cranberries paired with bright orange zest and warm spices. The jam has a sweet-tart flavor, with a touch of citrus, and subtle warm spices in the background. It’s not overpowering, but just tastes (and smells) like the holiday season! Best of all, it’s easy to make on your own at home, too!
What to Know Before You Get Started
- Perhaps one of the best aspects of this recipe is that it can be made with fresh or frozen fruit. That’s right — grab the berries from your grocer’s freezer case in the middle of winter — there’s no need to seek out fresh fruit in December! You can also prepare the jam without the orange zest or without the spices. Tweak it to make it your own!
- Weigh the berries, or use package weight measurements. In canning, the ratio of sugar to acid is important to create a safe product that properly sets. To account for differences in produce size, I always recommend weighing your strawberries and cranberries to make sure that you have the proper amount.
- Thaw the frozen fruit in the fridge overnight, or use partially-thawed fruit. I find that the partially-thawed fruit is best for chopping in a high-power processor without as much juicy mess.
- Do not purée the fruit. Just pulse the berries to chop them into smaller pieces. If you have some larger chunks left, you can always mash them in the pot with a potato masher or wooden spoon as they cook.
- The zest is the outer layer of the orange peel, which holds all of the flavorful essential oils. Be careful not to grate off any of the white pith underneath, which has a bitter taste.
- This recipe yields enough for about 10 (8-ounce) jars of jam. I like the half-pint jars because it’s just the right amount of jam to keep in the fridge after it’s opened, but smaller 4-ounce jars are also a great option. Check out our top picks for the best canning jars and other canning equipment if you’re in need of supplies!
How to Make this Christmas Jam Recipe
This recipe is incredibly simple — it’s just important to get all of your ingredients and equipment prepared in advance because the process moves quickly. In less than an hour, you can have a counter full of jars of Amish Christmas jam canned and ready for the pantry. There’s nothing more satisfying than hearing that “pop” as the lids seal!
- Sterilize the jars and lids before canning in order to kill any bacteria, fungi, or yeast. There are a variety of ways to sterilize the jars. I typically use the dishwasher, or just boil them for 10 minutes in the same big pot of water that I’ll use for processing.
- Chop the strawberries and cranberries in a food processor. You can also do this by hand, if you don’t have a food processor.
- Combine the fruit, orange zest, cinnamon, cloves, allspice and sugar in a large Dutch oven.
- Boil for 1 minute. If you overcook the pectin, it may break down and fail to gel.
- Stir in the pectin, then boil for exactly 1 more minute.
- Cool for 5 minutes, skim off the foam, and ladle into sterilized jars. A sterilized funnel makes it easier to get the jam inside the jar without spilling; however, it’s fine if you don’t have a funnel — you can carefully spoon the jam into the jars instead. Leave ¼-inch of headspace in each jar. The proper amount of headspace is important to ensure a vacuum seal. If there’s too little headspace, the jam may expand and bubble out when air is being forced out from under the lid during processing.
- Secure the lids.
- Process the jars in a boiling-water bath for 10 minutes. Canning tongs are incredibly helpful when taking the jars in and out of the boiling water. Check out our recommendations for the best water bath canners if you’re in the market!
- Rest at room temperature for about 12 hours. The jam will not set immediately, so it’s important to allow the jars to sit undisturbed until cool (or overnight).
Storage Tips
- Once the jam has had a chance to cool, you can check the seals on your jars. The lids should be down in the center or stay down when pressed.
- Unsealed jars should be refrigerated and used within 3 weeks.
- Properly sealed and processed jars of Christmas jam should be stored in a cool, dark, dry place (such as a pantry). The homemade jam will last for at least 8 months, and probably longer.
Always delicious! Makes for great neighborhood gifts, for friends, and family members! Even my dog groomer said it is the best jam she has ever had. Thanks for such a great recipe!
– Bev
More Homemade Christmas Gifts
4-Ingredient Graham Cracker Toffee Bars
2 hours hrs 15 minutes mins
Mom’s Easy Candied Pecans
30 minutes mins
Soft Cut Out Sugar Cookies
1 hour hr 25 minutes mins
Did you make this recipe?
If you enjoyed this recipe, please leave a comment with a 5-star review at the bottom of the post. Thank you!
Watch How to Make It
Christmas Jam
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 1 hour
Resting Time 12 hours
Total: 13 hours 10 minutes
The combination of strawberries, cranberries, orange zest and cinnamon makes this jam the perfect gift to share with friends during the holiday season!
Ingredients
- 40 ounces frozen unsweetened strawberries, thawed or partially thawed (or sub with 2-½ quarts fresh strawberries, hulled)
- 1 lb. fresh or frozen cranberries, thawed or partially thawed
- Zest from 2 oranges (about 2 tablespoons)
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground cloves
- ¼ teaspoon allspice
- 4 lbs. granulated sugar
- 2 pouches (3 ounces each) liquid fruit pectin
Instructions
- Coarsely chop the strawberries and cranberries in a food processor or grinder (do not puree). It’s fine if you still have some larger chunks of fruit – you can mash them with a potato masher or a wooden spoon while they’re cooking. You don’t want the fruit totally pureed, because this is jam (not syrup or jelly!) – and it should have some chunky pieces of fruit throughout.
- Transfer the fruit to a large Dutch oven. Add orange zest, cinnamon, cloves, allspice and sugar. Bring the mixture to a full rolling boil, stirring occasionally. Once the mixture comes to a full rolling boil, continue the boil for exactly 1 minute. Remove from the heat; stir in pectin and return to a full rolling boil. Once the mixture returns to a full rolling boil, set a timer and boil for exactly 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat.
- Cool for 5 minutes; skim off the foam. At this point, the mixture will still be quite thin – it will not look like a thick jam. That’s fine! It will thicken and set as it cools. Carefully ladle the hot mixture into hot, sterilized half-pint jars, leaving ¼-inch of headspace. Wipe the rims clean with a damp cloth; secure the lids.
- Process in a water bath for 10 minutes. Carefully remove the jars to a towel on the counter.
- Let stand, undisturbed, for 12 hours at room temperature. Check the seals after 12 hours by pressing the center of the lids. If the lid gives or the center button remains popped up, store in the refrigerator for up to 1 month. Properly sealed jars will keep in a cool, dark place for up to 8 months. Refrigerate after opening.
Notes
A jar of jam and a thoughtful holiday card make a great gift for friends, family, and neighbors throughout the holiday season. If you want to assemble a larger gift basket, try pairing the jam with some freshly-baked biscuits and country ham, or with a loaf of Dutch oven bread.
Since this strawberry and cranberry jam is also delicious on a charcuterie board for party appetizers throughout the holiday season, create a hostess gift basket with the jam, a bottle of wine, gourmet crackers, a batch of homemade pimento cheese, or some candied pecans.
How to Decorate Jam Jars for Christmas: I stick with simple, festive decorations on my jars of jam. Just a red and white gingham ribbon tied around the top is my favorite! You can also add a sprig of fresh greens, tie on little gold jingle bells, or create Christmas jam labels. I have these wreath labels that work great!
Nutrition
Serving: 1tablespoonCalories: 47kcalCarbohydrates: 12gProtein: 1gFat: 1gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 1gSodium: 1mgPotassium: 14mgFiber: 1gSugar: 12gVitamin A: 3IUVitamin C: 5mgCalcium: 2mgIron: 1mg
Christmas Jam Recipe Variations
- If you don’t have a food processor, you can coarsely chop the fruit by hand — it just takes longer.
- Swap out the frozen strawberries and frozen cranberries for fresh fruit instead. Those measurements are included in the instructions.
- I know that a 4-lb. bag of sugar sounds like a lot (and it is), but that is the correct measurement for this recipe. It might be tempting to try to create a lower-sugar jam, but do so at your own risk. Stick with regular granulated sugar (instead of sugar substitutes like Splenda or stevia) and do not decrease the quantity called for in the recipe. Jam making is an exact science, so measuring the correct quantities of fruit, sugar and pectin are essential to a successful batch.
- For a smaller batch of jam, cut all of the ingredients in half. Just be sure to keep all of the ratios exactly the same so that the jam sets.
- If you don’t want to bother with canning the jars in a water bath, no problem! Just transfer the jam to jars, let them cool completely at room temperature, and then store in the refrigerator for up to 3 weeks.
This recipe was originally published in November, 2021. It was updated in November, 2024.
Do you measure the ingredients BEFORE you chop them or after? I feel like this makes a huge difference in whether the jam will set….?
After they’re chopped! We hope you enjoy, Victoria.