Strawberry season is here! how does the say goes? If life gives you strawberries….. make Strawberry preserve!

Since I must stay away from sugars, I did some variations over the traditional preserve recipe. Strawberries are naturally rich in pectin, that’s why I don’t add any additional commercial pectin. Not that there’s nothing wrong with pectin itself, I just don’t needed in this recipe.

This recipe produces thick, yet slightly runny, soft jam that you can easily spread on your toast, biscuits, waffles or pancakes. And if you want it more Marmalade like just add some chia seeds at the end and wait for 1 hour. that’ll work  awesome.  For reference, see the photo below. 

I used Allulose as I love the way it caramelizes and preserve as well as the similar result to sugar it brings without the carbs, glucose or even the Glycemic impact sugar has, and without the cooling sensation from erythritol or after taste other sweeteners have. Feel free to sub Allulose for the sweetener of your choice and let me know how it went. Just keep in mind that any substitution might darkens the color and and some sweeteners shouldn’t be cooked at high temperatures as they change properties or flavor.

Don’t skip lemon juice, as acidity combined with the pectin in fruit and allulose is crucial for proper set.

Mashing the strawberries upfront helps release the natural pectin. Mash the fruits to the consistency you like or just smash a bit like I do if you like bigger chunks in your preserve!

Ingredients: 

• 3 cups fresh strawberries
• 1 ½ cup powdered allulose
• ½ cup water
• ½ lemon
• 1 tbsp chia seeds (optional)

Preparation:

Place washed and sliced strawberries in a pan, mix in allulose, add water and mix again.

Place over high heat and boil until fully bubbly,

-now you could smash the strawberries if you want it more creamy less chunky- lower the heat, cover and let it simmer about 30 min.

Retire from heat, squeeze the lemon all over and let it cool at room temperature. If you want to thicken your preserve more, just add a tablespoon of chia seeds and mix well.

Keep this delicious Preserve in a Glass Jar in fridge and enjoy it the way you like better! it works also awesome as a Cheesecake topping or Strawberry Shortcake filling. Stay tuned I will be sharing those two recipes soon….

Love and share

Lili