Strawberry Chia Jam - Sugar Free

Over the last few months, I've experimented with a few different variations of Strawberry Chia Jam. I've made it raw (pureed the berries without cooking) as well as a version where I cooked it for about 10 to 15 minutes to hasten thickening. I've used regular black chia seeds and white chia seeds; this version photographed used the white chia seeds, but both work nicely. I finally found the method I prefer best which is somewhere in between the raw and cooked versions where it still retains the "fresh strawberry" taste.

I quarter the strawberries, add a bit of lemon juice and cook them a little until they heat up, then use a potato masher to start pressing and mashing the berries until they begin releasing juices. I prefer my jam somewhat chunky for texture; I like to bite into pieces of strawberry in my jam. As soon as the juices are released and it's the chunkiness that I like, I add sweetener, to taste (I used stevia), and then stir in the chia seeds. I increase the heat and bring it to a boil and then reduce the heat and simmer between 4 to 5 minutes before removing from the heat to cool down. As it cools it thickens and after you refrigerate it, it thickens even more. It initially loses it's bright red color after heating up and appears a bit pinkish but as it cools off, the red color brightens back up again. I snapped a couple photos below and included the easy peasy recipe. It keeps nicely for at least a week (possibly longer) in the refrigerator. It's great spread on biscuits or as a topping for ice cream or stirred into Greek yogurt. I used it as a delicious topping when I made ----> Panna Cotta a few months ago. You can sweeten as much or as little as you like, depending on personal preference and the sweetness of your berries. Enjoy!

Strawberry Chia Jam

Ingredients:

16 ounces fresh ripe strawberries, quartered
2 teaspoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons chia seeds (I used white chia seeds)
Sweetener, to taste (I used stevia)

Directions:

In a medium sauce pan, heat strawberries and lemon juice over medium heat. As the berries begin to heat, begin mashing with a potato masher until the juices release and you reach the desired chunkiness (if a smoother jam is desired, puree berries in a food processor or with a stick type blender). Add chia seeds and sweetener, to taste. Bring to a boil; immediately reduce heat and simmer about 4 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat to cool and thicken; refrigerate to complete thickening and to store.