strawberry vanilla bean jam . . . remembering my dad

We had our Annual Family Dinner over the weekend. 

My family gathers every year to celebrate and remember my dad. We enjoy a big dinner together at Buca di Beppos, and share memories, eat and laugh, and laugh and eat . . . and enjoy one another's company. There are only a few times a year when we ALL get together, and this is one of those occasions.

One of the ways I celebrate/remember my dad is by sharing a piece of him that I fondly remember. Last year I brought everyone a mini angel food cake. It was his favorite cake! And the year before, I brought everyone home-made divinity candy . . . his favorite candy.

This year marks 8 years since he returned Home; so  needless to say, I've prepared many things over the years, from desserts to CDs to 'fun bags' that were all intended to stir happy and loving memories of our Dad.

If you knew my dad well, then you knew how much he loved anything STRAWBERRY!  He loved strawberry shakes, strawberry jam, strawberry & rhubarb pies, strawberry syrups, fresh strawberries, strawberry ice cream, and Sees strawberry cream candies.

I felt inspired to make home-made strawberry jam in honor of him this year.  And because of how my brain naturally works, I couldn't resist adding a twist to the traditional strawberry jam recipe.

          I added vanilla!  The resulting jam is enhanced with subtle yet distinct vanilla overtones.

I think my dad would've been proud of my canning accomplishment . . . and he would've loved this traditional strawberry jam, with a vanilla twist.

                       We miss you, Dad. 

Ingredients

5 cups mashed strawberries, hulled and sliced

4 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice

7 cups granulated sugar
( holy cow! That's a lot of sugar! )

1/2 vanilla bean, split

Preparation

Being a canning novice, I highly recommend this link.

It provides an easy-to-follow pictorial on how to make the jam, step by step.
I chose not to use Pectin, because I remember my dad sharing with me that his mother (my grandma) didn't add it to her jam recipes.

And this link provides an easy to follow pictorial, step by step, on how to sterilize your jars.

Strawberry Vanilla Bean Jam
Add half a vanilla bean, split in half lengthwise, to the crushed strawberries.
Cook as directed, and remove vanilla bean before ladling jam into jars.

I studied the tutorial link I shared with you above a few times before attempting to make the jam. 

For years, I thought that canning was going to be too difficult to try . . . but it's not. It's quite enjoyable . . . and I love that canning possibilities and combinations are endless. Our oldest daughter, Charley, and I are huge fans of blackberries . . . so that will be our next canning adventure. Until then . . . 

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Simply Suzannes at Home 

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