Ingredients for 4 cups:

12 ounce bag fresh cranberries

1/2 cup cool water, divided

2 large ripe Bartlett pears (1 1/2 pounds)

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

Fill a kettle fitted with a slotted insert or rack on the bottom with 4 quarts cool water . Add enough clean preserving jars to hold 4 cups jam. Cover the pot, bring water to a boil and simmer for 15 minutes.

Rinse, drain and pick over the cranberries removing all spoiled ones. Place in a 4 quart saucepan with 1/4 cup water. Cover and bring to a simmer, uncover and simmer slowly for 10 minutes.

Peel, quarter, core and dice the pears. Add them and the remaining 1/4 cup water to the cranberries. Cover and bring mixture back to the simmer over medium low heat. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring regularly to avoid sticking. Begin adding the sugar, 1/2 cup at a time, allowing the jam to return to the simmer before adding more. Once all the sugar is added, continue cooking another 3 -5 minutes until jam falls in thick drops from a spoon.

Off the heat, transfer the hot jam into a quart container. Let the mixture sit 2 -3 minutes stirring the contents to distribute the pear pieces throughout. Remove the sterilized jars to a cooling rack. Dip jar lids into the hot water and remove to the rack sealing side up. Dip a funnel into the hot water and insert it into the mouth of one of the jars. Pour the hot jam through the funnel until it reaches the point where the funnel widens. Slip off the funnel and check to see that there is no moisture or jam on the lip of the jar. Place on the lids on the jar. Screw on a clean cap tightly and invert the jar for 15 seconds to sterilize the air in the small pocket at the top of the jar. Turn upright and place the jar on the rack to cool.

Ingredients for 3 cups:

1 12 ounce bag fresh cranberries

1/2 cup cool water

2 slices fresh ginger root

2 Granny Smith apples, peeled and diced

1 1/2 cups sugar

• Rinse and pick over the berries, discarding the bruised ones. Combine berries in a 4 quart saucepan with water and ginger root slices. Cover the pan and bring to a simmer, uncover and cook slowly for 10 minutes. Add the apple pieces and continue simmering another 10 minutes adding small amounts of water if the berries begin to stick.

• Add the sugar, one-half cup at a time, allowing the fruit to return to the simmer before adding more. Cook an additional minute or two until the jam has thickened noticeably. Off the heat, remove the ginger slices.

• Ladle the jam into preserving jars that are dishwasher clean or have been boiled in a pasta pot with a slotted insert for 10 minutes, drained and cooled. Fill jars to within one-half inch of the rim. Wipe the lip clean if jam has spilled on it. Attach a new, clean lid with a heat-sealing gasket. Screw on the cap and invert the jar for 15 seconds. Right the jar and cool on a rack. Label and store in a cool, dark spot.

Ingredients:

1 - 2 pounds fresh cherries

1/2 cup cool water

Sugar

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

1/8 teaspoon almond extract

Rinse the cherries well, discarding debris and blemished fruit. Place cherries in a heavy 4 quart pot with one-half cup cool water, cover and bring to a simmer. Cook slowly with the lid ajar for 30 minutes, or until the fruit is soft.  Separate the cherry pits and stems from the pulp using a food mill or Kitchen Aid mixer fitted with a fruit strainer (the model pictured in ChezM Blog has been discontinued).

Measure the cherry pulp and set aside half that volume of sugar. Bring the cherry mixture to a simmer in a heavy four quart saucepan. Add the sugar one-half cup at a time, allowing the liquid to regain the boil before adding more. Add the lemon juice and continue cooking and stirring checking to see how the jam coats and falls from the spoon. When your finger leaves a clean trail on the coated spoon and the mixture falls in thick drops from it, the jam is thickened. If the jam begins to stick to the bottom of the pan, it's over-reduced.

Pour the hot jam into a measuring cup to cool for 5 minutes. Stir in the almond extract. Use a preserving funnel to fill hot, sterilized jars to one-quarter inch of the rim. Cover with a new lid and screw on the cap. Invert the jar for fifteen seconds to sterilize the air above the jam, return to upright and set on a rack to cool completely. Store in a cool, dark place and consume within six months for the best flavor. Refrigerate after unsealing the jar.

Ingredients for 2 cups jam:

2 pints fresh blueberries (1 1/4 pounds)

1/2 cup sugar, divided

1/4 cup cool water

1 cinnamon stick

• Combine blueberries, 1/2 cup sugar, water and cinnamon stick in a non-reactive* saucepan. Cover the pan, bring to a simmer, uncover and simmer for 10 minutes.

• Strain the jam through a sieve, return the liquid to the pan and simmer for 1 -2 minutes on medium high. Reduced juices will coat a metal spoon.

• Return the berries to the pan. Stir them into the juices and let the jame stand for 15 minutes. Return the mixture to a boil and stir until the jam is so thick the bottom of the pan is exposed when you pull a spatula across it.

• Off the heat, remove the cinnamon stick and pour the hot jam into sterilized jars** to within 1/2 inch of the rim. Wipe the lip iclean of any drips. Attach a new lid and screw on the cap. Invert the jar for 15 seconds. Turn upright and allow the jars to cool on a rack. Store in a cool place in the kitchen away from direct light.

* Avoid uncoated aluminum pans and stainless steel that does not have a heavy alloy base to improve conduction.

** Submerge jars in a pot fitted with a rack so the jars don't rest on the bottom. A pasta pot with a slotted insert is perfect for this job.