Raspberry-Blackberry Freezer Jam

My raspberry-blackberry freezer jam won a Blue Ribbon at the 2012 Tillamook County Fair!  Unfortunately - for those wanting to make it - it never turns out the same way twice. :)

Raspberry-Blackberry Freezer Jam

Enough crushed raspberries and blackberries to make 3 1/4 cups crushed berries  (see how scientific I am? lol)
1/4 cup lemon juice
4 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup light corn syrup
1 box MCP pectin (my favorite)

Measure exact amount of fruit in large bowl.  Add in lemon juice.  Mix well.  Gradually stir in 1 box pectin.  Mix thoroughly.  Set aside 30 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes to dissolve pectin thoroughly.

Pour in 1 cup corn syrup.  Mix well.  This prevents sugar crystallization during freezer storage.  Stir in sugar gradually.  Stir until sugar dissolves completely.  Pour into prepared jars or containers.  I use both.  Leave 1/2 inch headspace for freezer expansion.  Let stand at room temperature 24 hours until set.  Place containers in freezer.

Blackberry Pies for the freezer.

Blackberry season isn't a very long one. I thought I might be out of luck this year. The area we usually go to was mowed down and sprayed. As luck would have it....we found some bushes farther back and picked enough so far for 3 freezer pies.

First: pick your berries.

Next you need to rinse them off. Make sure they are well drained.

For Blackberry pie filling you need:

4-5 cups of blackberries (I went closer to 5 - personal preference)

1/4 cup flour

3/4 - 1 cup sugar

A dash of cinnamon if desired

Mix gently until combined.

Now for the tricky part...this was the first time I did it myself - saw the idea and went for it.

Line a pie plate with saran wrap. It would be a good idea to spray it with vegetable spray.

Pour your blackberry mixture into the pie plate. Put in your freezer overnight.

The next day take out the pie plate. With saran wrap - you will probably have to wait for a few minutes before it will loosen enough from the pie plate to lift out the entire "pie." This was my experience.

So - I am trying alternative number two. I did foil today with vegetable spray. I will let you know how it turns out tomorrow. I think it will be better. Well with this method I still had to let it sit for a little bit for the foil to loosen from the pie plate. Maybe because it's glass? Not really sure. So....keep that in mind.

Okay. Third time is a charm. I did it this way...

first line your pie plate with foil. Then with saran wrap. Spray the saran wrap. When the berries are frozen - the "pie" will slip right out of the pie plate! Bingo - I knew it would work out sooner or later!

I put foil over the tops of the frozen saran wrapped "pies" and put one pie each in a gallon ziploc bag. Back into the freezer they went. Now when I want a blackberry pie all I need to do is make the crust, add the berries and bake!