I Tried Small Batch Canning with Ball®!

Summer is here and that means it’s time to do all those fun activities you missed! Swimming, gardening, and one I have always wanted to try: canning! I really wanted to learn how to do small batch canning with Ball® Mason Jars this summer so I can create gifts for my friends and family. I personally love receiving handmade gifts, and I truly believe that gifting someone handmade jam or a handmade sauce is so great!

Small batch canning can be an amazing way to save money (and time in the future!). It’s sustainable and a great way to use less packaging and products at the store since you’ll be reusing your jars! You can have a canning party where you’ll invite your girlfriends over to can, you can do this with your little ones or even with your partner! I am going to can today to get ahead of the gift-giving season! This post is sponsored by Ball®; however, all thoughts and opinions are 100% my own.

Mixed Berry Jam

Today we’re going to be doing the Ball®-approved Mixed Berry Jam recipe! You can’t go wrong with berry jam as a gift! We’re going to need:

4 cups of crushed berries (I decided to use strawberries, blackberries, and raspberries)
4-1/2 tbsp Ball® Real Fruit Classic Pectin
3 cups of sugar

Seems easy enough! I’m honestly nervous! I always get nervous when I start something new in the kitchen. However, I have always wanted to be one of those friends that always makes you handmade gifts and you feel super special, so I’m determined to make this work! I highly suggest canning for any Summer occasion or for the Holiday season!

I have this amazing Ball® Canning Kit to get me started!

Here’s a list of tools you’ll need to get started:

Let’s get started!

Prepare boiling water canner. You’ll need to heat your jars in simmering water until ready for use. (DO NOT BOIL)
Combine crushed berries in an 8-quart saucepan and slowly stir in pectin. Bring to a boil and stir constantly!
Add all of the sugar while stirring to dissolve. Return this mixture now to a boil. Once boiling, let it hard boil for 1 minute and continue stirring. Now you can remove from the heat!
Remove a jar from the canner and ladle the hot jam in leaving about a 1/4 inch of space from the top. Center lid on the jar and apply band. Place the jar back in the boiling water canner and repeat to each jar.
Process jars for 10 minutes, adjusting for altitude. Turn off the heat, remove lids and let jars stand for about 5 minutes. Remove jars and cool 12-24 hours.

YOU DID IT! I DID IT! WE ALL DID IT! These are honestly so cute, and I feel so proud that I made these myself! I definitely felt like quite a process because it was my very first time canning! Now that I know how to prepare everything before I start the recipe, it will be so much easier!

This is definitely a hobby I want to continue! It’s so easy, it’s amazing quality, AND it’s fresh! Once you get started, you honestly don’t want to stop! I seriously keep thinking about how I want to make so many for and gift them to people! Check out this book found at Walmart, Target or Amazon! You can also click here for more Ball® recipes and canning ideas!