Peach season is the best season! Fresh peach jam is the best way to capture the end of Summer flavors. This easy peach jam recipe is made with fresh peaches and, unlike traditional jam, it's not loaded with sugar.
Making jam is the perfect way to preserve summer's bounty for long after Summer ends. This is a small batch recipe with no water bath canning required. Stick it in your fridge and enjoy on your morning toast.
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🍑 Why you'll love this low sugar peach jam recipe
This homemade peach jam recipe could not be any easier to prepare. Here are just a few reasons why you'll love it:
- Perfect recipe to allows you to preserve your ripe, juicy peaches in a delicious way for a taste of Summer fruit anytime
- The natural pectin in peaches helps create a jam consistency without the need for added commercial pectin
- This no pectin peach jam recipe keeps really well in the freezer so you don't have to worry about using a water bath canner. And you can still enjoy peach freezer jam even as the weather starts to get cooler
- This delicious homemade peach jam is made with coconut sugar making it refined sugar free and Paleo friendly
🧾 Ingredients & substitutions
This delicious peach jam recipe contains just a few simple ingredients:
- Fresh fruit: you want to look for sweet peaches that are ripe and juicy. If you are buying farmers market or grocery store peaches, look for peaches that were grown locally. Locally grown peaches are picked when they're ripe and since they don't have to travel far, you're able to purchase them at the perfect ripeness. Peaches that are not local may be picked when they're underripe since they need to hold up when handled and when they travel. These peaches may not have ripened by the time they reached you. Look for peaches that have vibrant colors and smell fragrant. You'll need about 2-3 medium ripe peaches. Frozen peaches may be substituted, however, they are not ideal in terms of flavor or texture
- Lemon juice: freshly squeezed lemon juice is best although bottled lemon juice will work as well in a pinch
- Coconut sugar: While it's color and texture are more similar to brown sugar than granulated white sugar, coconut sugar is very similar to cane sugar or granulated sugar. Coconut sugar also tends to cause less blood sugar spiking. It's also natural with no artificial ingredients, unlike other sugar alternatives. Granulated sugar can be substituted in equal amounts
Things you will not need for this recipe: lots of cups of sugar, hot jars and a jar lifter for processing in a boiling water bath. This recipe make for a small batch peach jam that can be kept in the fridge or freezer without the hassle of canning for such a small quantity.
Typically in canned jam recipes, sugar is added for sweetness but also to act as a preservative. Because we aren't canning this jam, sugar in large quantities is not necessary.
If you're interested less sugar breakfast or snack recipe, check out my easy recipe for Granola - it's gluten-free and nut-free!
🥄 How to make peach jam without pectin
Step 1
Start by removing the skin from the peaches. The best way to do this is by blanching them in hot water. If you are unsure how to blanch peaches, follow these instructions: Bring a medium pot of water to a boil and gently lower the washed peaches into the water.
Alternatively, place the peaches in a large bowl and pour boiling water over top. Boil for 60 seconds then drain and transfer the peaches to an ice bath (a large bowl of cold water and ice cubes). Once the peaches are cool enough to handle, peel the skin off. It should remove very easily, leaving the fruit intact. Discard the peach skin
Step 2
Chop the peaches into small pieces. Discard the pits. Place the chopped peaches, lemon juice and coconut sugar in a medium saucepan and heat over medium-high heat. Using a potato masher, press down on the fruit to break down the peaches.
Step 3
Continue to cook over medium heat about 20-30 minutes until the consistency is thick and jam-like. If mixture begins to burn or stick to the bottom of the pot, add a bit of water, about 1 tablespoon.
Step 4
Allow the hot jam to cool. It will thicken more as it cools to room temperature. Place in clean jars and in the fridge for up to 3 weeks or in the freezer for up to one year. Spread on your favorite toast or eat by the spoonful!
👩🍳 Pro tips for peach jam recipe (low sugar)
- This recipe can be easily doubled or tripled if you have lots of peaches
- Jam can be stored in the fridge for 2-3 weeks or frozen. If freezing, be sure to leave about ½ -1 inch headspace when filling your jars to allow for expansion. Jam will keep in the freezer for about a year
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❓FAQs
The biggest difference between jelly, jam, and preserves is how much of the original fruit is used to make them. Jelly has the smoothest consistency and is made by crushing a fruit and discarding the solid chunky leftovers. This leaves only the fruit juice, which is then mixed with pectin and heated to form the gelatinous spread.
Jam is similarly made by crushing a fruit, but this spread leaves in most of the solid pieces of the fruit’s fibers and seeds (if they’re small enough and safe to consume) to give it a spreadable consistency. Of the three, preserves use the most of the fruit and are simply chopped smaller pieces of fruit that are mixed with sugar to keep them fresh and combined with a syrup or jam to contain them.
There are several fruits that have the classification of medium pectin and peaches as well as rhubarb and strawberries fall into that category. Because peaches have a moderate amount of pectin in them already, this makes them ideal for jam recipes without pectin.
This is why we add lemon juice as well. The lemon juice contains pectin and helps in attaining the jam consistency in this recipe. For other types of fruit, cornstarch can be added instead of pectin to help thicken the jam.
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Ingredients
- 2 cups peaches ripe, about 2-3 medium peaches
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice freshly squeezed
- 3 tablespoons coconut sugar
Instructions
- Start by removing the skin from the peaches. The best way to do this is by blanching them in hot water. If you are unsure how to blanch peaches, follow these instructions: Bring a medium pot of water to a boil and gently lower the washed peaches into the water. Alternatively, place the peaches in a large bowl and pour boiling water over top. Boil for 60 seconds then drain and transfer the peaches to an ice bath (a large bowl of cold water and ice cubes). Once the peaches are cool enough to handle, peel the skin off. It should remove very easily, leaving the fruit intact. Discard the peach skin
- Chop the peaches into small pieces. Discard the pits. Place the chopped peaches, lemon juice and coconut sugar in a medium saucepan and heat over medium-high heat. Using a potato masher, press down on the fruit to break down the peaches.
- Continue to cook over medium heat about 20-30 minutes until the consistency is thick and jam-like. If mixture begins to burn or stick to the bottom of the pot, add a bit of water, about 1 tablespoon.
- Allow the hot jam to cool. It will thicken more as it cools to room temperature. Place in clean jars and in the fridge for up to 3 weeks or in the freezer for up to one year. Spread on your favorite toast or eat by the spoonf
Notes
- This recipe can be easily doubled or tripled
- Jam can be stored in the fridge for 2-3 weeks or frozen. If freezing, be sure to leave about ½ -1 inch headspace to allow for expansion. Jam will keep in the freezer for about a year
- Adapted from Paleo Running Momma
Nutrition
Comments
Shelly
Hi there! I love how simple this recipe is. I’d love to try it but I hate peaches.... like loathe peaches. Can’t stand ‘em. Do you have a Kickass alternative for me?
Kim
You can definitely substitute the peaches for another seasonal fruit! Give it a try and let me know how it comes out 🙂
Bambi
Used organic peaches and left the skins on. Really yummy! Thank you for the recipe. 😊
Kimberlee Ho
Sounds perfect!