Healthy blackberry jam - with chia seeds!

Any excuse to chuck those calorie low, nutrient dense chia seeds into something, especially when they do such a fantastic job of binding too (as you’ll remember from egg-free baking)! This blackberry jam takes little effort and has a beautiful consistency.

Jam doesn’t have to be packed full of sugar.

I’m sure you’ve looked at the label of jams you’ve bought before and been slightly horrified by the amount of sugar. Berries are tasty! We don’t have to dull down the taste of them by adding so much sugar that that’s the only flavour left. I don’t mind a bit of tartness from my fruit or berries - but of course, you can add as much sweetener as you like. However, there are alternatives to refined sugar; maple syrup being a great one for jams. This blackberry jam does not use any preservatives, but you can safely store this in the fridge for a couple of weeks and of course much longer in the freezer. You’ll love it so much that it’ll disappear anyway! A brilliant gift to give to someone, too -you can store it in a pretty glass jar and give them out to friends and family.

The addition of chia seeds is a great one that I came across a couple of places online; not only does it help create a natural gel-like consistency that is perfect for jam, it also adds lots of nutrients to your jam and makes it a much more helpful thing to eat at breakfast on your toast or with your pancakes, for example. Suddenly you’ve added magnesium, fibre, omega 3 and more to your simple toast and jam!

Healthy Blackberry Jam

Prep time: 5 minutes | Cook time: 20 minutes

• 500g blackberry - fresh or frozen

• 4 tbsp maple syrup (agave/date syrup or similar works too!)

• 5 tbsp chia seeds

Instructions

Bring the berries to a boil in a pan with a little bit of water and reduce the heat, let them simmer for about 10 minutes. Mash the berries up as much as you like (depending on what texture you prefer).

Add the maple syrup and chia seeds and keep stirring for another 10 minutes roughly, until the mixture thickens. Take it off the heat and let it cool down completely before you transfer to jars and store in your fridge (or freezer).

Did you make my blackberry chia jam? Or did you try the same recipe with a different berry? Share on Instagram and tag @TheFromScratchBody and hashtag #TheFromScratchBody so I don’t miss it!