Home made Chia Seed Jam on our Winter Menu

Amazing health home made food for the children at Little Scholars

Put away your canning equipment and bags of sugar, my friends. There’s a new jam in town at Little Scholars and its name is chia. Yes, by using the gelling power of these tiny little seeds we can transform a few cups of ripe fruit into a low-sugar, spreadable, spoonable jam in about 20 minutes.

Here is what to do!

If anything is a superfood, it’s chia seeds. They’re packed with omega-3 fatty acids, rich in fiber and protein, and — most important for our jam-making purposes — they turn any liquid into a thick gel. That’s right — chia seeds will absorb several times their mass in liquid, creating a jelly-like substance in the process.

Making Jam with Chia Seeds

When making fruit jam with chia seeds, the seeds do all the work. Instead of cooking fruit down, relying on pectin, and adding sugar to help it set, like traditional jam, all we need to do is mash up some fruit and stir in a few tablespoons of chia seeds.

 

What You Need – Little Scholars Chia Seed Jam Recipe

 

Ingredients

•  1 pkt of frozen mixed berries
• ½ cup of water
• 1 tblsp coconut sugar

Instructions

1. Prepare the fruit as needed: Remove stems, pits, seeds, and skin, as needed. Chop large fruits into small pieces. Berries can be left whole.

2. Cook the fruit until it starts to break down: Transfer the fruit to a saucepan and set over medium heat. Cook until the fruit breaks down and becomes syrupy, 5 to 10 minutes. Mash the fruit with the back of a spatula or a potato masher, leaving it as smooth or as lumpy as you like.

3. Stir in the chia seeds.

4. Let stand 5 minutes, until thickened: This won’t quite reach the firm consistency of regular jam, but it will noticeably thicken. If you’d like a thicker consistency, especially with very juicy fruits, stir in more chia seeds 1 teaspoon at a time.

5. Transfer to a jar or other storage container: Once the jam has cooled to room temperature, transfer it to a jar or other storage container. Store in the fridge for about 2 weeks. The jam will thicken further and become more set once completely chilled. The jam can also be frozen for up to 3 months; thaw in the fridge before using.

Getting rid of visible chia seeds: If you’d prefer not to have visible chia seeds in your finished jam, puree the jam in a blender or with an immersion blender. If you’d like to keep a somewhat chunky texture, blend just a portion of the jam with the chia seeds, then stir it back in with the rest of the jam.