Gifts: jam making

[Jasminty]

Hi I am fairly new to this and wanted your opinion on if I can make jam for my family for christmas. Give them the jars and ask when finished if I can have them back so I can make more for next time.

They're quite expensive. I know I could look cheap asking for them back but ..... what do think would it be so bad?

"MN is a parallel universe sometimes."

I'm not fussed about jam. It takes us several months to get through a jar of jam unless I am using it in baking.

I hope people's replies haven't put you off. I think making something is really thoughtful.

I did chutney for gifts last year and a couple of people actually asked if I wanted the jar back for next year, and I said 'OK then'. It was a compliment because it means they must have liked it!

If it goes off quickly it wasn't prepared or stored properly.

It was me who said I find that the homemade jams I have been given in the past go off more quickly. Sorry if this is a silly question, but why would it need to be stored in a different way to shop-bought? It's just sugar and fruit (and decent shop bought jam doesn't have any 'nasty' preservatives in it either - I can read labels). Possibly the people who have very kindly made it for me haven't sterilised as thoroughly as they think meant to. Anyway, jam isn't a treat no matter how long it lasts IMHO. It's lovely that people take the time to make it and I really appreciate that, but do I like the end product? Not really if I'm honest - sorry.

SteviebunsBottrittrundle Sometimes with homemade jam the proportion of sugar to fruit is less. This means it tastes better and is better for you, but it won't keep as long. I would expect anything I make to keep at least a year (I store in a cool dark cupboard). But sometimes I use a recipe that I know won't because we prefer the taste. In that case I'd warn anyone who I was giving it to and put a 'best before' date on the labels.

OP You might not need to ask for your jars back. I find that a lot of them make their way back to me anyway. Not all of them but as many as 70% some years. (I make up hampers of jam, chutney and mincemeat for Christmas most years).

Seeing as the jar is not part of the gift, why don't you save them the trouble of washing it by dispensing with the jar altogether & spooning the jam directly into their hands?

I would think a nice jar would be part of the gift. Wouldn't occur for me to give it back as it was a Christmas gift.

However, MIL brings over chutney and I do make sure she gets the jar back as she is always short.

Poundland are selling kilner jars quite cheap at the moment

As a pp said, you need to know your audience. I make chutney and am happy to give this away to people, but only if I know they like it, otherwise I'll just keep it and eat it myself, because it's so much better than mass-produced shop-bought stuff.

I think it's okay to ask for the jar back if it otherwise would be thrown away.

I'm very happy to get things like homemade jam as a gift, but it would be odd to ask for the jars back when it is a proper Christmas gift. Bit like asking for the gift bag and ribbon back.

Only ok, done right, if it was a small ad hoc (not Xmas, birthday etc) gift to local friends/family/neighbours. Though better to put out a general request to local friends to save jars for you than to ask for one specific jar back.

What kind of jam are you making OP?

People at home won't generally be sterilising the jars as well as a factory either, that'll make all the difference.

No don't ask for the jar back! If the jar isn't part of the gift why not just ask your friends/relatives to give you a jar and you'll fill it with jam for them!!

To be really honest, I'm sure jam is a lovely gift if you eat jam. So if just be sure they do eat it- I don't, I probably have jam once a year, so if you gave me a jar of jam I'd be pretty annoyed if you then asked for the jar back - for me the jar would be the best bit of the gift!

And when you asked for it back I inevitably wouldn't have eaten the jam, but wouldn't want to be rude and say that so I'd end up having to decant the jam or bin it anyway.

lostoldlogin2 loving the idea of your DPs home made marmite!

Last year I made chilli jam, apple chutney, and mincemeat. It was a small batch as I didnt want to inflict unwanted jars on people or get left with a stockpile of it. Happily everyone who got some, loved them and are dropping hints for more this year. This year I'll be adding some Dulce du leche, some jams and hopefully green tomato chutney too.

I ordered 48 small square jars for about twenty quid. I used about half and used the other half for my herbs and spices - I got rid of all the little mismatched jars and tubs and packets and now have them all uniformly shelved beside my cooker

This is the site but I'm sure the UK would have a similar site and its much cheaper than Ikea or lakeland for bulk jar buying:
epackaging.ie/product-category/food/jamspreservesmarinades/

Ask people now to start saving jamjars for you. By the time you get round to giving them the jam, and they've eaten it, then they'll be quite used to saving the jars for you, so you'll get them back.
I make jams, chutneys, sloe gin and raspberry vodkas as gifts for people I know will appreciate them - others get a bottle of bought wine, or some other off the shelf stuff - unless I really love them, and I've knitted or sewn something for them.

1- my family appreciate jam and home made gifts so that's not an issue
2- once you have bought jam sugar, jars, fruit (big cost) eg

4 jams of 190ml strawberry jam costs me about 12.00 in total.

I've actually spoken to them since and they are more than happy to give me them back so problem solved

Jesus, 12 quid for a jar of jam? That would need to be some outstanding jam.

I make homemade strawberry jam, and it usually costs less than $1 per jar to make.

I think she is saying 4 jars are £12.

To lower cost, you may be able to use regular sugar. I find this is okay for raspberry, but strawberry needs a bit of extra pictin.

To lower costs on fruit, by basics range or frozen or go to a PYO farm. Even buying not the "taste the difference" ranges, you can so taste the difference with homemade jam. Glad you have a lovely family who appreciates it. Am always at people who don't like homemade gifts.

I wouldn't ask, but I made some (very well-received) rhubarb vodka for presents last year and several people presented me with the empty bottles asking for a refill!

I feel dreadful about the year I gave my poor family homemade gift hampers. I blame Nigella.

Bit like asking for the gift bag and ribbon back
irregular that would be my MIL It is so so awkward.

stevie I store homemade jam the same as shop-bought (once opened, keep in the fridge, etc). Homemade jam could go off quickly if the fruit used was going off, or the jars were damp or not sterilised correctly, or if he lids were damaged.

HTH

Going downstairs now to have some tea and toast with jam.

£4 is still cheap for a present.

All of the homemade jam I've received has either been too runny, too thick or not very nice.

Not jam, but I gave several family members home made biscotti last year (it was only part of a present, they all got other things as well.) I packaged the biscotti in some kilner-type jars I got cheap from B &M and fancied them all up with bits of fabric and ribbon.

It never occurred to me to ask for the jars back but a couple of people offered anyway.