How to Make Strawberry “Sun” Jam

You might already know a thing or two about making homemade strawberry jam. The most popular method involves mashing up berries, combining with them sugar and lemon juice and boiling them on the stove until they reach their setting point.

But what if we told you there was an entirely different way to make jam?

“Sun” jam doesn’t require pectin or canning, and it’s naturally lower in sugar than traditional jams. That might be reason enough to make you hop on board, but the best part is that the process of making it is almost entirely hands-off. All you need are a few basic ingredients and a sunny day to get started.

Curious to try it? Here’s how.

How to Make Strawberry “Sun” Jam

Recipe credit to Whole Fed Homestead

Ingredients

• 12 cups of strawberries
• 3 cups of sugar
• 1 cup of honey
• 2 tablespoons of lemon juice
• ¼ teaspoon of salt

Directions

1. Wash and remove the stems from your strawberries.
2. Finely chop your strawberries, or use a potato masher to crush them.
3. Combine all ingredients in a saucepan over medium heat. Bring the mixture to a boil and allow it to simmer for 5 minutes.
4. Pour the mixture onto two half sheet pans. Spread a towel across the dashboard of your car and place filled sheet pans on top. (Make sure the car is parked with the dash in the sun, and keep the windows rolled up to avoid bugs and debris getting into the jam.)
5. Stir the jam every 90 minutes.
6. Check for doneness after 4 to 5 hours, depending on the day’s cloud cover.

You can also place the baking sheets directly in the sun instead of inside the car, but this method takes longer (about 8 to 24 hours depending on the intensity of the sun). Simply your baking sheets on a table in the sun, cover with a layer of cheesecloth tucked under each and leave the jam to evaporate in the sun until thick.

See more: 30 Strawberry Recipes to Make This Spring

When Is It Done?

Unlike jam made on the stove, you can’t tell if sun jam is finished based on its temperature. Instead, you want to keep an eye on the texture and consistency. Once it has a glossy appearance and reaches the thickness you prefer (you can aim for thicker or thinner), you can remove the sheet pans from the car and bring them back inside.

Preserving Sun Jam

Sun jam will keep in your refrigerator like ordinary jam, or you can store it in glass jars in the freezer for up to 12 months. Use it however you would use regular jam. Slather it on toast, stir it into a bowl of warm oatmeal or eat it, guilt-free, straight from the jar.