Spicy jalapeños and sweet raspberries join forces to create this easy but elegant sugar free raspberry jalapeño jam.
One day, my oldest son decided out of the blue that he wanted to try some French cheese. So we went to the grocery store (this is pre-COVID so no judging for bringing my kid to the store!) and browsed the specialty cheeses case. The lady behind the counter overheard our conversation about “French cheese” so she pointed out the comté cheese and offered to prepare a sample for us. I said sure so she handed us each a piece. It was yummy by itself, but she had a way to up it a notch.
First, she grabbed a cracker (it looked like a Wheat Thin). Then she placed a little chunk of comté cheese on it. And, finally, a smear of some sort of jam.
My son and I each tried this appetizery cracker thing and it was REALLY good. So much so that we wound up buying not only a chunk of comté cheese, but also a box of Wheat Thins and a jar of raspberry jalapeño jam.
My son had a blast (this and several other times) creating these simple but tasty appetizers. I, however, would only enjoy one or two of them because, while the cheese was on plan, the cracker and the sugar-laden jam most definitely were not.
Trim Healthy Mama is coming out with crackers soon (can’t wait!!!) and Whisps exist, so the cracker side of this appetizer was covered. The cheese was already on plan, so no worries there. But obviously the raspberry jalapeño jam required a THM overhaul.
This recipe is the fruit of that THM overhaul!
About the Pectin
In this recipe, I used Pomona’s Universal Pectin. This stuff is awesome! You can make low to no sugar preserves with it.
The “odd” thing that makes Pomona’s pectin work is the calcium water. A little packet of calcium powder comes with each box of pectin. You mix it in water to create the calcium water. This is the extra preservative that makes low or no sugar food preservation work.
About the Sweetener
In this recipe, I used allulose. Why allulose? Because it is the sugar free sweetener that is closest to sugar. When it dissolves, it acquires that sticky texture like sugar does, which is important in a jam recipe.
If you’d like to use a different kind of sweetener (you can see on plan recommended sweeteners and a conversion chart here), you are welcome to do so. Just be sure to powder it first (how to powder sweetener) because the sweetener may be grainy otherwise.
Serving Ideas for This Raspberry Jalapeño Jam
Here are some yummy serving ideas for this Raspberry Jalapeño Jam:
- Cracker Appetizer. Take a THM cracker (coming soon!) or a Whisp, put a small chunk of comté cheese or a smear of cream cheese, and a smear of this jam. For an E version (since this jam is FP!), you can take an on plan Wasa cracker then spread on some Laughing Cow cheese and this jam.
- Turkey Wrap. Spread some of this jam over a low carb tortilla (a regular tortilla or a spinach one are both good) then add sliced cheese (sliced gouda is yummy here) and sliced turkey. Sounds different, but, trust me, it’s delicious! For an E version, you can use 2 sliced sprouted or true sourdough bread instead of a tortilla and Laughing Cow cheese instead of regular sliced cheese.
- Meat Glaze. Melt some jam and brush over chicken, pork chops, ham or fish for a tasty glaze.
- Glazed Meatballs. Add some on plan meatballs of choice (E or S ones work) plus some of this jam in a crock pot and cook on low for 8 hours or high for 4 hours.
- Bread or Toast. Spread over sprouted or true sourdough bread for breakfast (just don’t forget a source of protein!).
- Egg Roll in a Bowl. Make some egg roll in a bowl (page 62 of the Trim Healthy Mama Cookbook) and drizzle some of this jam, melted, over the top.
- Hot Wings. Make hot wings following these directions, but instead of the sauce recommended there, melt some of this jam and use as the sauce.
- Stir Fry. Make some veggie and chicken breast stir fry and melt some of this in it for an amazing sauce.
- Vinaigrette. Whisk together 1/2 cup olive oil, 1/2 cup of this jam, 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, and salt and pepper to taste.
Sugar Free Raspberry Jalapeño Jam
Ingredients
- ⅔ cup
allulose - 1¾ teaspoons
Pomona's Universal Pectin - ⅛ teaspoon mineral salt
- 3 cups raspberries (fresh or frozen)
- 3 red mini sweet peppers, chopped small
- 2 jalapeños, chopped small (for hotter, leave the seeds; for milder, remove the seeds)
- 3 tablespoons white vinegar
- 1 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1¾ teaspoons calcium water (comes with Pomona's Pectin, including directions for making it)
- ½ teaspoon unsalted butter, optional (helps keep foaming down)
Instructions
- Sterilize 2 pint canning jars, lids, and rings.
- Fill a small boiling water bath canner or a large pot halfway with water and bring to a boil; add the 2 jars, turn off the heat, and leave the jars in there so they stay hot.
- Fill a small saucepan with water. Add rings and new (never before used) jar lids to this water. Bring to a boil then turn off the heat and let sit so they remain hot.
- In a small bowl, stir together the allulose, pectin, and salt; set aside.
- In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, add the raspberries, sweet peppers, jalapeños, vinegar, lemon juice, calcium water, and butter. When the raspberries get soft, mash them thoroughly with a potato masher or a fork. Bring to a hard-rolling boil (that's a boil that you can't stir down), stirring constantly to prevent the bottom from burning.
- Still stirring constantly, stir in the pectin-allulose mixture. Bring back to a hard rolling boil and boil for at least 2 minutes (stirring constantly), more if the pectin or sweetener haven't yet fully dissolved.
- At this point, you can taste the jam and add more sweetener if you so desire.
- Empty the hot water from the jars carefully using a jar lifter. Fill each jar with the jam, leaving ¼ inch headspace.
- Put on the lids and screw on the rings. Process the jars in a boiling water bath following the directions provided by your state's FDA guidelines. Where I live, that is 10 minutes plus 1 additional minute per 1,000 feet above sea level.*
- Remove from the boiling water bath and set on towels to cool. As they cool, the lids should "pop" and seal (repeat the boiling water bath process with new lids if they do not seal). These jars should be fine for about 6 months unopened and stored in a cool, dark place. They'll last longer if refrigerated unopened.
Can you substitute with a different sweetener- erythritol or stevia?
You can try it and see! Here is my sweetener conversions page: https://tjstaste.com/sweeteners/
Loved it. Good on burgers.
could strawberries or even blueberries be subbed for the raspberries…I’m not a big fan of the seeds:_ but this recipe looks so inviting!!! thanks tj
Yes, you can sub alternate berries. I can’t guarantee they’ll taste as awesome, but feel free to give it a go if you like. 🙂
Really easy and tasty.