Plum & Apple Jam is the perfect autumn jam. Delicate in flavour with a beautiful pinkish red colour it’s perfect for breakfast or teatime!
Today I’m rejuvenating my very popular Plum & Apple Jam recipe with some new photography and a few tweaks to the copy!
After receiving a glut of plums from my mum and having windfall Bramley apples in the fridge, it didn’t take me long to decide to make Plum & Apple Jam. After tasting it my husband paid me the biggest compliment telling me I really was a jam expert.
I’m not sure about that but I just love making jam and like anything, the more you do something the better you get! To anyone who’s never made jam before it really is just a matter of washing jars, sterilising them in the oven, dissolving your sugar in the fruit and then boiling and stirring. Please do give it a go and I’m sure you’ll get hooked too!
I must say this Plum & Apple Jam has become a firm favourite and is just fab for breakfast, the apple gives it a lovely delicate flavour. Better still my ultra fussy daughter even likes it as she’ll usually only ever eat Strawberry Jam, she also likes its pretty colour.
What steps do you need to take before making Plum & Apple Jam?
Before you start you’ll need to sterilise about 10 – 12 jam jars (see notes in recipe) and place 3 saucers/plates in the freezer.
Is the weight of the fruit before or after preparing?
The weights given are for the whole fruits.
How should I store this jam and how long will it keep?
All my jams are best kept in a cool, dark, dry place and eaten within 12 months for the optimum quality. However, jam will be safe to eat after many years as the sugar acts as a preservative. Once open, store in the fridge and use within a few months (always using a clean spoon to serve).
How do you make Plum & Apple Jam?
- Weigh and prepare the plums and apple, quarter the plums and peel and chop the apple.
- Put the chopped plum and apple into a preserving pan (or similar) with 600 mls of water.
- Simmer the fruit for about 15 minutes until soft.
- Add the granulated sugar.
- Heat gently to dissolve.
- Bring to a rolling boil for 12 minutes, whilst stirring,
- Test for set on a chilled saucer (jam will crinkle when a finger is pushed through it).
- Skim any foam off the surface with a spoon.
- Ladle jam into sterilised jars using a jam funnel (if you have one).
- Place lids on immediately.
More Jam Recipes using Plums & Apples
I do hope you make my glorious jam! For more jam inspiration you might also like:
- Mirabelle Plum Jam
- Greeengage Jam
- Damson Jam
- Sloe & Apple Jam
- Christmas Jam
- Easy Plum Jam
- Blackberry & Apple Jam
- Gooseberry & Apple Jam
- Fig, Apple & Pomegranate Jam
Do let me know if you make my Plum & Apple Jam by leaving a comment and rating. You can also share your creations with me on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook, just tag @fabfood4all – I love seeing my recipes come to life!
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Plum & Apple Jam
Equipment
- Digital scales
- Preserving pan (or similar)
- Wooden spoon
- ladle
- jam funnel
- 10 - 12 jam jars & lids
Ingredients
- 1 Kg plums stoned & quartered (I used Marjorie)
- 1 Kg Bramley apples cooking apples, peeled cored and roughly chopped
- 1.8 Kg granulated sugar
- 600 mls water
Instructions
- Place water, plums and apples into a preserving pan and simmer until fruit is softened (about 15 minutes).
- Add sugar over a low heat and stir until dissolved (do not simmer).
- Bring to a rolling boil and time for 12 minutes, stirring constantly.
- Take off the heat and test on a chilled plate (place in fridge for 30 seconds), if it crinkles (is jelly like) when you drag your finger through it, it’s ready.
- If not boil for another couple of minutes at a time and repeat test.
- Skim off any foam from the surface with a spoon.
- Ladle the jam into the hot sterilised jars using a jam funnel if you have one (it makes it much easier) and screw the lids on immediately..
- Will make 10 - 12 small to average sized jars, about 1.68 litres.
Video
Notes
- Sterilise jars by washing in hot soapy water (or take straight from dishwasher), fill with boiling water, empty and then place in oven for 20 minutes at 140°C where you leave them until the jam is ready. Washed lids should be sterilised with boiling water and then left to drain (if they don’t dry in time I pop them in the oven once the jars have finished “cooking” and just run the fan to dry them off for a few minutes).
- Place 3 saucers in the freezer for testing set.
Tanya Boggs
The plums I have been given were already stoned, should I use 1.2 kilos of plums for this recipe?
Camilla
Hi Tanya, no if anything you’d need slightly less weight as the recipe calls for 1kg of plums that you then remove the stones from. Just use 1kg, it’s not going to matter as its such a negligible amount the difference.
Jane
Jumped in without reading the instructions properly, I used 1.3kg of each prepated fruit. So only used 2.35kg of sugar, it has set ok but not sure if it’s enough to preserve it ok, it seems to taste ok but maybe a bit apple saucy.
Camilla
That proportion of sugar to fruit should be absolutely fine.
Shirley Strong
Just made a batch off this jam so pleased with the result I’ll make this again next year providing my friends give me plums again as I have an apple tree
Camilla
One of my favourites Shirley, so glad you like it:-)
Amber
Perfect set. An easy to follow recipe. Tastes delicious.
Camilla
So glad you like it Amber, it is a special jam:-)
Magi
Hi. Made plum jam. It’s runny. It’s also very sour. How do I go about adding sweet apples to the ready made jam. Thanks
Camilla
Hi Magi, the fruits need to be cooked together in the first place so I wouldn’t advise trying to add at this stage. You could try adding more sugar (to taste) to the jam in a pan and dissolving it gently and then reboiling until the jam sets on a chilled plate, drips slowly off a wooden spoon, reaches 104 – 105.5C on a digital thermometer. Perhaps not enough sugar was the issue with it not setting as plum jam should never taste sour. You could look at my Mirabelle Plum Jam for reference: https://www.fabfood4all.co.uk/mirabelle-plum-jam/ Good luck! PS: stick with my recipes, they work:-)
Joy
Do you nees to peel the plums first for this recipe?
Camilla
Hi Joy, no no peeling of plums.
Shelagh Robertson
Hi Camilla,
I made this jam today, I bought a punnet of “ripen at home” plums and one large Bramley apple, then popped in to your place to see if there was a recipe and voila, 4 jars of delicious jam.
I started making jam with your “One Punnet Strawberry Jam”, last year, using my new copper pan, Having gained experience and courage I have now made quite a variety of jams having titrated down the weights as in this one.
When we were on holiday up north, our Airbnb host provided a very famous Scottish brand of jam. My husband said, “it’s good, but not as good as your jam darling” My granddaughter also loves the homemade jams.
Thank you for giving me the opportunity to explore a new skill, this year I explored making Rowan Jelly which is now waiting in the pantry to be given to family at Christmas.
Camilla
Aaw, that’s so wonderful to hear. So happy to have inspired you to gain a new culinary skill, it’s highly addictive isn’t it:-)
Chris
how long will jam keep please
Camilla
Hi Chris, for best quality, keep in a cool, dark, dry place and use within a year but jam is safe to eat after many years as the sugar preserves it. I rarely use up my preserves within a year.
Cheryl A Silva
This recipe sounds wonderful! Do we need to process the jam in a water bath, if so, how long? Thank you.
Camilla
Hi Cheryl, we don’t water bath jams in Europe so the recipe is as stated.
Tim Schofield
Excellent recipe.
Total success.
Delicious
Camilla
Yay Tim, so pleased to hear that:-)
Katie Whittle
How long should you wait before you open a jar? Just made a batch love the taste. It really reminds me of Strawberry Jam.
Camilla
Thanks Katie, you can open it as soon as it’s has cooled down, so I usually wait until the following day:-)