Strawberry Summer

Back in April, I visited a strawberry farm owned by a family I grew up with back in Alabama. The gallon of freshly picked, deliciously fragrant berries seemed like a great idea in the moment ... then I realized I could never eat that many berries on my own before they went bad!

The solution: strawberry freezer jam. Even easier than pie, all this jam requires is strawberries, fruit pectin, sugar, water, and jars. No canning equipment or burnt fingers. I used the recipe on the Sure-Jell box, doubled it, and got five and a half 16-ounce jars of jammy goodness.

The best part of this jam is that you don't cook the fruit at all, so it tastes amazingly fresh and has a beautiful bright red color even after it's been frozen. I highly recommend it on top of vanilla bean ice cream.

I reserved a few fresh berries for on top of French toast, then flash-froze the rest and used them later on top of pancakes. Mmm ... have to say I'd do it again next year. Maybe I'll get even more ambitious and go for two gallons.