Making preserves at home- the ultimate in frugality!

At the grocery store recently I looked at the price of jam- OY VEY! Most jams, jellies and preserves sell for between $3.99-$7.00 PER JAR!!

That's crazy! Now, occasionally there are coupons for preserves, but not too often.

Making preserves can seem expensive at first glance, but let's break down my recipe:

1 6 lb. can of tomatoes (I strained off some of the juice, so it's about 9 cups of tomatoes) $5.00



2 packages of  frozen chopped onions (roughly 5 cups) $2.50

3 tablespoons of butter (about .50 worth)

9 cups of white sugar (next time I'll use less, maybe 7 cups) $2.99

1 whole lemon, chopped .50

1 tablespoon Italian Seasoning (about .10 worth)

1 case of 1 cup Mason Jars with lids $5.50 for 12, but I only used 8. I used 2 2 cup jars, I had laying around the house from the last time I canned, so let's say $4.00

[caption id="attachment_402" align="alignleft" width="225" caption="The jars- cleaned!"][/caption]

Carmelize the onions in the butter.  This will take about an hour. During this time, wash the jars and lids in hot, soapy water and dry the jars.  They jars will need to be hit when you fill them.  Put them in the dishwasher on plate heating. when the jam is almost ready to jar. The flat parts of the lid need to be hot too, so drop them in a bowl of boiling water.

[caption id="attachment_392" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Carmelizing the onions!"][/caption]

Once the onions are carmelized, add the tomatoes.

Bring to a boil, add the sugar.  Stir occasionally and lower the heater to medium.  Allow the mixture to cook down (about 2 hours).

My jam didn't get too thick even after 2 1/2 hours of simmering, so I brought it up to a rolling boil, added a little more lemon juice and an envelope of liquid Certo Pectin (per the box directions on what to do when your jam doesn't set up- I didn't add any more sugar, it was sweet enough).



Ladle the hot jam into the hot jars, clean off the mouth of the jar with a clean, damp rag, securely put on the lid, and process for 20 minutes in a hot water bath.

I removed the jars and set them on a clean dish towel inverted on the counter to ensure that they would vacuum seal.

I got 8 1 cup jars and 2 2 cup jars of tomato jam.



It is great on roasted meat and cream cheese and crackers.

The 1 cup jars of jam cost $1.72 each and the larger jars of jam cost $3.43 each.  The larger jars I will keep for my families use, the remaining jars will be given as gifts.

Making preserves is a fun, easy way to make gifts.  It is relatively inexpensive and is pretty impressive.



To make preserves the most frugal way, buy fruit when it is on sale at the peak of it's growing season, or in the winter, buy frozen fruit (sugar free not in syrup). I buy frozen fruit at Costco or Everything 99 Cents Stores.  Here in San Diego, most Everything .99 Stores have pectin available for sale, either liquid or powder form.

Jars can be purchased at Wal*mart or most grocery stores. I have also heard that Lowe's sells canning jars.

Canning jars and their lids can be re-used, provided they are in good shape and the lids are intact.