June is over. The honeysuckle is ripe; there's plenty of it this year.
I froze part of the harvest as whole berries without sugar, ground the rest into puree, added a little sugar and also put it in the freezer.
And today I made jam. I make this jam every year for myself. Other family members don't eat it, saying it's too bitter. But that's not true; honeysuckle jam is delicious, sweet and sour with a slight bitterness. It's very aromatic and beautiful, a rich burgundy color. And very healthy.
I had one kilogram of berries.
When making jam, the usual amount of sugar used per kilogram of berries is 1 kilogram of sugar. This year, the berries were more tart than usual, as June was cold and rainy, so they produced less sugar, so I decided to add a little more granulated sugar to the jam. For every kilogram of berries, I used 1.2 kilograms of sugar.
I sorted the berries, removing the leaves and any bruised fruit. I rinsed them in clean water and placed them in a colander to drain. I make the jam in a wide saucepan. I poured the honeysuckle into it and added sugar a little at a time. Shake the saucepan gently to ensure the sugar evenly coats the berries. You can leave it for a few hours to allow the berries to release their juice. I didn't wait for the berries to release their juice; instead, I added about a cup of water. I stirred it gently with a wooden spoon and put it back on the stove.
When the jam boiled, I removed the foam and reduced the heat.
Boil for five minutes and turn off the stove. Leave the jam on the stove to cool, allowing the berries to soak in the syrup. When the jam has cooled, you'll know whether it's ready or needs to simmer for a while. You can also tell if it's thick or thin; if it's thin, add sugar and boil some more. If the jam doesn't have enough sugar, it can turn sour in winter.
After a while, I turned the stove back on, brought the jam to a boil, reduced the heat, and simmered for another five minutes. My jam turned out thick. I poured it hot into sterilized jars and sealed them with clean, sterilized lids. I ended up with four small jars of jam.
I poured water over the foam from the jam and got a very tasty, refreshing fruit drink, which I drank with pleasure.
I'm planning to make some honeysuckle compote for the winter in the next few days; I've never made it before. I think it will be delicious and beautiful.