Holiday Jam (Pectin-Free)

This time of year I’m always seeing cranberry recipes, one of them being Christmas jam. I loved the idea of making a jam with cranberries, but wanted to do one that lets the cranberry stand more on its own instead of adding in other berries. This is the exact reason why I made this pectin-free holiday jam. My recipe for this focuses on the cranberries themselves with some flavor enhancers. I plan to use these as holiday gift additions, but these could be an appetizer ingredient too. I’ve seen people do a quick and easy snack of cream cheese with a cranberry jam spread on top for a hint of sweet. I think this sounds like an easy but delicious party snack!

To limit waste, I actually used the cranberry “mush” (the most elegant word I can come up with) from my steam juicer cranberry juice recipe. However, you could easily make this holiday jam with fresh berries too. It might also be possible to use canned cranberries of some sort, but I’ve only been working with fresh ones. I also had some mandarin oranges I previously canned when they were on sale. These delicious holiday fruit flavors combined with some spices made a really tasty jam.

Why pectin-free?

Cranberries are very high in pectin! I always try to avoid using pectin if possible since it saves a little money and also keeps the ingredients as clean as possible. Sometimes it can be hard to tell how clean certain brands of pectin can be, and why use it if it’s not needed? I can say that without pectin, this is definitely one of the thickest jams I’ve ever made. I may not be a jam expert, but I’m very proud of this one.

Do I have to use home-canned oranges?

Nope! I just happened to have these on hand and wanted to add some citrus flavor. You could always substitute with canned oranges from the store, or just use fresh. I’ve seen many people use just orange zest, but I thought the sweet slices of oranges would be delicious. Some people use fresh orange instead. All of this is totally up to you! I just think the stronger hint of citrus complements the cranberries beautifully.

I don’t have fresh vanilla beans. What should I do?

You can easily substitute with vanilla bean paste. I only have fresh vanilla beans on hand because I grab some each time I see them in the Costco baking section. I can be a bit of a nut when it comes to spices. It looks like Azure Standard also has some vanilla beans linked here. I haven’t tried them, but I’ve been thoroughly happy with all products I’ve ordered from Azure. If you don’t have either of these, you can always use some vanilla extract. The whole point is to just add an extra hint of flavor, not to overpower the recipe.

I hope that you enjoy this recipe as much as I have!