At the beginning of the summer I found myself in an awful place y’all…without my bestfriend and no Green Tomato Jam for comfort!
This weekend, I had to let my childhood bestie and co-writer, Rebekah Faubion, move to LA to pursue screenwriting. Here we are at Texas Book Fest with my literary agent, Dennis, and prolific Texas author, John De Mers.
T’was a simpler time. (Le sigh)
Rebekah worked on my cookbook, taught me to write, and has essentially been my drinkin’ buddy from tea parties to Tito’s.
On her final Sunday Funday, surrounded by friends and family, we descended upon our favorite park for pizza, watermelon, and heartfelt companionship.
Times they are a changing and we’re all moving forward. I love new beginnings, but why do they have to sting so much?
I sat chatting with Rebekah’s mother in law, nibbling pizza crust, as she told me about her life traveling the world as a missionary, growing up in the rural south, and finally her favorite comfort foods.
COMFORT FOOD IS SOMETHING I COULD REALLY GET INTO RIGHT NOW, I pouted.
As she explained, freshly-hulled purple peas, and green tomato jam with homemade cornbread was her End all. Be all. Cure-it-all.
I was feeling pretty beat up, so I reckoned it was worth a shot.
I hit up the Coppell Farmer’s Market the following Saturday and scored everything on my list including the ingredients to make this fine, Green Tomato Jam recipe.
HOT DANG! It is delicious and goes on everything!
I had to meddle with the recipe to get it just right, removing a bit of a sugar, and adding some allspice and ginger for more three dimensional flavor, but I still can’t believe the stuff isn’t everywhere… Two weeks later, I slipped Rebekah’s mother in law her own little jar after church, and she rewarded me with a squeal of delight!
This green tomato jam certainly won’t cure a broken heart, but it will remind you to slow down and enjoy the easy things in life. Like friendship, and quiet Sunday evenings eating fresh watermelon with the ones you love. 🙂
Enjoy this Green Tomato Jam with a slice of hot buttered cornbread or a bowl of black-eyed peas. We find it’s tasty with everything from cornmeal battered catfish to buttered cabbage.
If you make this recipe for Green Tomato Jam, TAG @UrbanCowgirl on Instagram
I’d love to see how it turns out! 🙂
Green Tomato Jam
This classic green tomato jam is simple and delicious--just like grandma used to make. I serve it with buttered cornbread, atop cream cheese and crackers, or with a hot bowl of black-eyed peas. It's a great way to use leftover green tomatoes at the end of the season and enjoy that tart and tasty flavor year-round.
Ingredients
- 52 green tomatoes (3-4 lbs)
- 28 oz. sugar, by weight
- 1 large lemon, zest and juice
- 1 t. cinnamon (or more if you like)
- 2 inch piece of fresh ginger, minced
- 1/4 t. allspice
- salt to taste
- 3 pint jars for canning, plus an 8oz. jar for the refrigerator.
Instructions
- If you're going to can this recipe, sterilize the jars according to standard procedure.
- Rough chop the green tomatoes and ginger, just so they will fit into a food processor or blender. Process or blend into a puree.
- Pour the puree and sugar into a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the lemon zest and juice, cinnamon, and allspice and salt well.
- Bring to a low boil, and simmer steadily for 30 min to an hour. It should be thick and the flavor should be well blended. Season to taste with salt and lemon juice. Add additional spices, if you like.
- The jam is now done. If you prefer to can, take the mixture to 220 degrees and ladle into sterile jars. Wipe rims clean, and place lids and rings on the jars. Place in hot water, making sure the jars are fully covered and process for 10 minutes.
- Remove and place on countertop... you may hear a pop as they seal. Tighten the seals after cooling. Any jars that do not seal need to be used immediately and kept in the refrigerator.
- Give to friends and family! Enjoy!
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 50 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 94Total Fat: 0gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 31mgCarbohydrates: 23gFiber: 1gSugar: 22gProtein: 2g
These nutritional values are an estimate only and provided as a courtesy. Different brands of ingredients may result in different calorie counts, and the software does not account for these differences. Consult with your dietician or doctor for precise nutritional values.
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Wow! Phenomenal! Just cooked it for the first time and tried it on a cracker with cream cheese. Never knew that green tomatoes could be so good!
I wasn’t sure if my jam would stiffen up and didn’t want to overcook it, so I added some pectin (the quantity for 3 pounds of fruit for 6 pounds of tomatoes) and the jam has a nice, soft consistency.
Greetings from the Netherlands,
Evi
Hi Evi! So glad to connect with someone in the Netherlands. We’re happy our jam recipe made it that far across the earth! 🙂 – Chef Sarah
Regarding the allspice … do you use whole or ground ?
Thank you.
Ground! Happy Cooking!
This sounds so good. And, I have lots of green San Marzanos. Here is my question. We are not fans of ginger. Any substitutes? What if I just leave it out? Thank you for a very interesting recipe. (and I’ve looked at loads of them)
I would just leave it out! – Sarah
I am making this jam today for the first time ever will post again later how it turned out and how it tastes
I did make this but….two things….it took much much longer to get the purée to jam consistency (2 hour simmer) before putting into jars AND if you add the allspice and or cinnamon, it ruins the pretty green color….its still vERY yummy mind you…and will be perfect for a charcuterie board on a thin slice of dubliner cheese…..(I also threw in a sliced jalapeño and left it in there while simmering for only about 15 mins….whoooooo weee!…..
Thanks for the tips Annie! Glad it turned out good for you! 🙂
Oh my goodness, this is DEVINE!! Thank you for this gorgeous recipe…we LOVE it!
I’m so happy to hear that you love it as much as we do! 🙂
Could you freeze this jam, instead of canning?
Like an icebox jam? Sure you could. It won’t last as long. Freezer jams last 4-6 months until they start getting freezer burn, but you certainly can freeze it. Happy cooking! – Sarah
I never had green tomato jam before, but it sounded like a good use for the almost 3 lbs. pre-frost yet unripe tomatoes still on my vines. Adjusting ingredients for my smaller quantity and subbing in powdered ginger (no fresh on hand), it was not only good, but excellent! On cornbread yes, but maybe also an accompaniment to ham? Can’t wait to try it with cream cheese on townhouse crackers. Thank you for another outstanding recipe!
Using this on ham never occurred to me but you’re right! That would be delish and unconventional! I’ll have to try that out for the holidays. 🙂
Any thoughts on whether or not substituting a pound of tomatoes with hot peppers would be a tasty and viable addition?
Did you try this? I think that would be fine because you would still include some green tomatoes. It might be a little more like red pepper jelly but I LOVE pepper jelly too.
Im going to add some hot peppers to a batch. It will be like hot pepper jelly.
This jam makes basically 4 pints. If you’re a little shy of filling the last jar, just keep it in the refrigerator as your first jar and process the others. Favorite jam with cream cheese and crackers on a cheese board!
Approximately, how many oz of jam does this recipe yield? It sounds delicious and I can’t wait to make some!!
Hi Katie! I think this recipe makes between 7-8 cups depending on how much you reduce it. I filled 3 16 oz. jam jars, 1 8 oz. jar for my friend’s MIL, and had half a jar leftover that I did not process, but kept in the fridge. If you just use measurements by weight, you should have excellent success. Also, don’t be afraid to season to taste at the end with more cinnamon or allspice. Tag me on social if you make it! I’d LOVE to see. 🙂