How to Make Crabapple Jam

Most people consider crabapples simply apples that do not grow on an apple orchard. But there's a difference between wild apples and crabapples. Crabapples are typically about the size of a marble and are usually quite sour. They're grown primarily for ornamental purposes because they are also beautiful flowering trees. Wild apple trees on the other hand are regular apple trees that not tended for cultivation. They taste more like regular apples but are typically smaller; slightly larger than the size of a golf ball. Both of these trees produced edible fruit but wild apples are certainly tasier and easier to work with. I came across a wild apple tree near a secret swimming hole up Vermont over the weekend. I collected a 5 gallon pail full of apples to make jam. I decided to call this crabapple jam, even though these are really wild apples. I realize that I'm contributing to the confusion over what a crabapple is, but the mistake is so common and the distinction in actual wild trees is somewhat blurred. Plus these wild apples were quite sour, a classic characteristic of crabapples.
When making jam, you need to start with pectin. Pectin is naturally found in fruit and is what makes the jam "jell". It's important to follow the recipe on the box specifically for the type of fruit you are using. If you use less sugar or increase the recipe, you risk the jam failing to "set". Crabapples have a lot of natural pectin, so this is less likely than with other fruits, like my blueberries!

You'll also need Ball jars which you can buy at the grocery store. You can save these jars from year to year; you only need to replace the lids. I like to use half pint jars for making jam but quarts are useful when you want a lot of jam- plus they are a better value. You can also freeze the jam. This takes up space in the freezer and doesn't look as nice, but allows you to skip the canning step.

Start by cutting up the apples into small chunks. Wild apples will have a lot more brown and rotten parts than standard apples because they are not sprayed with pesticides to keep away bugs. The brown parts aren't bad for you but they taste terrible. Throwing some apple chunks in the compost bin is a small price to pay for pesticide free apples!
Measure the apple chucks as per the recipe. Heat in a large pot, stirring regularly to prevent scorching the pan. The apples will cook down into a soupy mixture of appley goodness. When only a few large chunks remain, add the sugar and pectin as per the ratios detailed on the box. Have a boiling pot also ready on the stove. Heat the jars in the hot water and then ladle the jam into the jars. Wipe the rim clean and attach the lids (after also dipping them in the boiling water) and screw on the bands.

Next you need to boil the jars. If you don't have specialized canning equipment, you can boil the jars in a large pot with a steamer or colander in the bottom to prevent the jars from touching the bottom of the pot. Make sure the water if one inch above the lid of the jar. Boil for 10 minutes (longer with altitude) and set aside to cool. The lids of the jars will pop in when cooled indicating that you have a good seal. Read more about canning here.

This jam turned out great! The apples tasted sour by themselves, but cooked down with some sugar they tasted incredible! You cant buy anything like this in stores. True wild apple/crabapple jam!

This being wild fruit, this cost about $4 for sugar and ball jar lids for the equivilent of 12 half pint jars of jam. I'm not counting the cost of the jars because I'll be able to use them again and again.