Lemon Pear Jam

**LOWER SUGAR OPTION**

Months of work went into this one…

The taste?  Amazing, light, and surprisingly complex… The aroma?  INCREDIBLE.  Is it everything I hoped for?  It’s close…

Let me explain — In response to many questions and requests, I have been experimenting with developing, and offering a few ‘lower sugar’ options.  When I decided to do this, there were a couple of ground rules that I put in place for myself:

1. That I would not use any chemicals… that includes the ‘low or no sugar’ pectins that you can find on the market these days; those products achieve their goal by using chemical additives.  I was taught the natural way, which I embrace and respect.  Chemically created or enhanced jams and jellies can be found in the grocery store.
2. That I would offer up what I come up for the public to try, so that could get feedback on the product…
3. That if it doesn’t go as planned, I would step back, re-evaluate, and then approach again, armed with the feedback from my customers.
4. And that, if I’m not ultimately successful in the end, AT LEAST I TRIED!!

Now, a note about this jam… This jam took months to develop.  For this jam, like the Orange/Cranberry Preserves, I didn’t use any pectin.  For this one, all of the gelling comes from cooking the jam with the pips, pith, and rind of the lemons, and then removing it at the end of the process, to provide the jam with the natural pectin from the lemons.  It is a delicate balance to derive enough pectin to gel, without having the lemons overpower with bitterness from the pith, especially since the amount of sugar used has been drastically reduced.

Since the sugar has been dramatically reduced, you will notice a softer set with this jam, versus other jams you may get from me.  It will set — I’ll just take it’s sweet time getting there; yet it won’t be as firm as other preserves or jams that you get from this site — that is the price of reducing the sugar; sugar is a required part of the jelling process… take too much of it away, and it will affect the final result.  So, those of you looking for a flavor that is LOW SUGAR — THIS IS THE ONE FOR YOU!!  If you want a firmer set sooner, then just store it in the refrigerator and you see a firmer set within 24 hours.

In the hopes of getting feedback from my customers, I am offering both the Lemon Pear Jam, and the Orange/Cranberry Preserves at a discounted rate.  So, if you’re looking for a lower sugar option, try one or both of them, and let me know what you think!  😀

Enjoy!!