Super Easy Strawberry Jam and Strawberry Compound Butter

     I LOVE making strawberry jam. In my opinion, it tastes SO much better than any store bought jam and you can watch the sugar. (It DOES take quite a bit of sugar, but I have lowered it without any problems) It really doesn't take all that long, so there's no excuse not to give it a try! ;) (Sorry for the blurry pic, I will try to get a better shot when my camera charges. DOH!)

Strawberry Jam: 

• 2lbs fresh strawberries, rinsed, dried and hulled
• 4 cups white sugar (I used 3 cups)
• 1/4 cup lemon juice (fresh squeezed is always best)

1. In a wide bowl, mash batches of strawberries until you have about 4 cups of smashed up berry.
2. In a HEAVY BOTTOMED saucepan, (and it should be a large one, because this will bubble up. A LOT) mix together the berries, sugar and lemon juice. Stir over low heat just until the sugar dissolves.
3. Turn heat up to high and bring to a nice strong rolling boil. You want to boil this, stirring often, until the temp reaches 220 degrees F. (I never check the temp as I don't have a thermometer. I boil it for 12-14 minutes. (how to test if it is done: keep a small glass plate in the freezer. After 10 minutes of boiling the jam, take the plate out and place about 1 tsp of jam onto the plate. Place it back in the freezer for a minute. GO STIR YOUR JAM! Take plate out and swipe your finger through to make a line. If the jam runs back together, boil for another 2 minutes. If it stays parted like the Red Sea, it's done!)
4. Now, if you are going to can this, you need to transfer it to hot sterile jars, leaving about 1/2 to 1/4 inch between jam and top of jar. Seal, and process in water bath for 10-15 minutes.
5. If the jam is going to be eaten right away, you don't need to process it. Just put it into your sterilized jars, place lids on and turn jar upside down on the counter for 10 minutes. After which, turn right side up and let cool a bit longer and then store in the fridge. (Unprocessed jars of this jam will not last very long, because there are no preservatives  to keep it. So eat it up!)

     Now for the Butter!

     I used to buy a brand of butter that had strawberries in it. I haven't been able to find the strawberry one in years, so I was SUPER happy to make this. I only used one stick of butter just to experiment with, so you can use more if you want. But this is what I used:

• 1 stick of butter, room temp, NOT melted
• 3-4 Tbsp of strawberry jam (you could use your homemade jam or you could even process some fresh strawberries into small pieces in a food processor and use those with the jam)

1. Place your butter into a bowl and with a mixer on low speed, whip it til nice and fluffy. If your butter was room temp this should only take a minute.
2. Add your strawberry jam (or your strawberry pieces and jam) and mix with mixer for a few seconds, just until incorporated.
3. Place on plastic wrap and form into a log. Roll it up, smoothing out log as you go. Wrap it up, pop in the freezer for an hour or so. Then keep it in the fridge. 

See? Told you it was simple! :D