Strawberry Freezer Jam (lower sugar)

I used to make strawberry jam and it always turned out. I'm not sure what has happened, but I have lost the touch and have not been able to obtain a good set lately. So I started trying different types of pectins and followed the instructions to the T. The jams were still coming out very soft. So I just decided to play around one night with a different kind of pectin and I got it right the first time! I tried it again to test it, and it set very nicely the second time. Here are the instructions for my fool proof strawberry freezer jam.

2 cups blended strawberries
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
1/3 cup instant pectin (see picture below)

1- Blend your strawberries on the ice crush. This makes it so there is less air incorporated and will yield less froth.

2- In a bowl combine the strawberries and sugar. Mix it up and let it sit for about 5 minutes or so.

3- Add water and pectin to a pan and bring to boil. Let it boil for about 1 minute.

4- While on the stove top on your lowest medium heat, add about 1 cup of the strawberry mixture to the pectin and mix it until there are no lumps. Then pour the pectin mixture into the rest of the strawberries. Mix it well.

5- Pour into freezer containers and let sit on counter uncovered until it is cooled down. I waited until I could see the jam setting up, then I put them in the freezer.

This stays in the fridge for a couple of weeks, and in the freezer for probably up to 6 months. It never lasts that long in my house.

OIL PULLING AND RASPBERRY JAM

Tonight I was online watching youtube videos and I came across an oil pulling segment. Let me preface my next statement by saying that I am not one of those people who put much stock in the "there is an oil for that" mentality. If it works for you, great. I'm not willing to pay extremely overpriced product unless I know it is going to work. So, back to youtube. I watched the video and thought, what the heck! I am making raspberry jam tonight and it will probably take as much time to make the jam as is will to oil pull. So I tried it.
I thought I would document the pulling and perhaps try it for about 1-2 weeks (if I can make it that long) and see if there were any noticeable results.

Night 1 (3/29/14)

THE PULLING

I used about 2 tsp of Trader Joes coconut oil because I had it in the pantry. I swished it while I made my jam. The timing worked out perfectly. About 20 minutes to do both.

RESULTS

I read online that people found immediate results. While I don't think that my mouth felt more fresh than a visit to the dentist could ever provide (yes, that was one story), I did notice a slight whitening in my teeth. Now perhaps this is all mental. Maybe I should try taking a pre and post picture next time.

One thing that I was apprehensive about prior to trying this is having a oily residue left in my mouth after spitting the oil out. This was not the case. It felt just like spitting water out.

More to come.




Night 2 3/30/14

Doesn't my jam look yummy. It set up so nicely. I am so excited to have a almond butter and raspberry jam sandwich.








THE PULLING

I used the same amount of oil as last night. I did swish less because I was doing a face mask at the same time and it kind of hurt to move my face. I think it is better to pull while doing something (like making jam or doing a facial), otherwise it is kind of gross swishing oil around in my mouth for 15-20 minutes

RESULTS

After expectorating the oil out in the garbage, I swished tap water around in my mouth. Then I brushed my teeth with my regular toothpaste.  My teeth do appear to be whiter. My plan is to have my husband take a sniff of my breath tomorrow morning and to access if I've got morning breath. I saw on one website that oil pulling cures bad breath. We will see about that.