Most summers I make freezer jam with my favorite fruits -- strawberries, peaches, blackberries. The process is almost effortless and involves no cooking, making it ideal for hot days when I don't want to heat up the kitchen. It's also a great way to preserve fruit while maintaining its bright, fresh flavor. The drawback of freezer jam is you have to use it immediately or store it in the freezer. And freezer space at my house is often limited.

So this year I decided to make cooked jam with the bounty of beautiful locally grown strawberries my mother gave me. Plain, unadulterated strawberry jam is great, but I wanted to do something a little different. And even though Arkansas blackberries aren't in season yet, the sweet-tart, juicy berry (thanks to growers farther south) was just the partner for the Arkansas strawberries.

The jam is plenty sweet, but is made using slightly less sugar than most traditional recipes.

I processed my jam using Ball's new Freshtech Automatic Home Canner (freshpreserving.com/autocanner.aspx). Disclosure: Ball sent the newspaper a unit to test and review. Because the unit works for a variety of preserved foods, I want to try it again with other things (marinara sauce, salsa, pickles) before forming an opinion and writing a full review, but so far so good. The canning system was easy to use and took a lot of guesswork out of the process: It heated the jars and held them at the proper temperature while I prepared the jam; it automatically calculated the processing time and temperature (based on a recipe code I selected); and an alarm let me know processing was complete.

Mixed Berry Jam

2 pounds fresh, ripe strawberries

18 ounces blackberries

4 1/2 tablespoons classic fruit pectin

1/2 teaspoon butter

3 cups granulated sugar

Prepare canner, jars and lids according to manufacturer's instructions.

Gently wash berries and pat dry with paper towels.

Cap and halve or quarter strawberries, trimming away any blemishes or bruises. Working in batches, mash berries in a single layer using a potato masher.

Combine the mashed berries in a large, heavy pot such as a Dutch oven. Gradually stir in the pectin, then add the butter. Stirring constantly, bring mixture to a full boil that cannot be stirred down, over medium-high heat. Add the sugar all at once and continue cooking and stirring until mixture returns to a full rolling boil. Boil hard for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Skim off any foam.

Ladle jam into hot jars, leaving 1/4-inch head space. Wipe rims with a damp cloth. Center lids on jars. Twist bands to fingertip tight. Process in a hot water bath for 10 minutes or according to manufacturer's instructions. Allow jars to cool, undisturbed, for 12 to 24 hours before checking seals and storing. Any jars that do not seal should be refrigerated and used within a few weeks.

Makes 6 half-pints.

Recipe adapted from Ball.

Food on 05/14/2014