Cranberry-Orange Jam (with Cinnamon)

It’s Christmas Eve! After a relaxed morning here in Cambridge, I got in the mood to make some jam. After trying a range of non-traditional jam fruits, I decided to go back to the basics by trying a berry. Since cranberries are the only berries I could find this time of year, I decided to create a cranberry jam with a very different flavor profile from the one I created in the Cranberry Pomegranate Port Jam. I decided to go with oranges and cinnamon. A jam that tastes entirely of Christmas!

I began by grating the rind of seven large California oranges.

I then put three pounds of cranberries in a pot and covered the berries with water. When the berries started cooking down, I added the rind. I peeled the seven oranges, blended them and strained the juice. I poured the juice into the cooking cranberries.

I added two whole cinnamon sticks to the mixture. I put four cups of sugar and two tablespoons of pectin into a bowl and made sure they were well integrated. I then poured the sugar into the pot and mixed continually for about 20 minutes at high heat.

This is a lovely winter jam. It has a Christmasy red color. The texture is a very traditionally thick but spreadable jam texture. The cinnamon adds just a bit of complexity to the jam.

I’m about to put labels on these to give as gifts to friends. Merry Christmas everyone!

Ingredients:

• 7 large california oranges, rind grated
• 3 pounds of cranberries
• 2 sticks of cinnamon
• 4 cups of sugar
• 2 tablespoons of powdered pectin