3 cups fresh strawberries, crushed

5 cups sugar

1 package powdered pectin

1 cup water

Sort and wash fully ripened berries.  Drain.  Remove caps and stems.  Crush berries and place into a large mixing bowl.  Add sugar, mix well, and let stand for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Dissolve the pectin in the water, bring to a boil for 1 minute.  Add pectin solution to the fruit and sugar mixture and stir for 2 minutes.  Ladle the jam into jelly jars or suitable freezer containers, leaving 1/2 inch headspace.  Cover the containers and let stand for 24 hours or until jam is set.  Yield: nine 6-ounce jars.  Jam can be held in the refrigerator for three weeks and frozen up to one year.

Nutritional analysis (per 1 Tbsp.): 45 calories, 0 g fat, 0 g protein, 11 g carbohydrate, 0 mg cholesterol, o mg sodium.

Prepared by Sarah Ball Brandl, Family and Consumer Sciences, Limited Resource Audience Coordinator.  Adapted from Kentucky Strawberries (FSHE-2)