Josta Berry Jam

A couple years ago I was looking through a local nursery at the end of a season and noticed a group of berry plants that were on clearance.   At the time I had never even heard of a josta berry before but the tag said that they were a cross between a goose berry and a black current.  I always love a good deal and I knew I wanted to put a bunch of different berries varieties in at the farm so I thought I might as well give them a try.  I am glad I did because I really enjoy the taste.  A unique thing about these berries is that you can start to eat them once they are a reddish colour and they taste more like a goose berry and by the time they are black they taste like a black current.  Last summer we ate them all before they even got to their full ripeness but this year we are trying to restrain ourselves a bit with a least a couple of the bushes.
Unfortunately, these wonderful berries are not commercially available because they are not suitable for machine picking.  If you want to try these berries you will have to get your own bush, find someone who has one, or if you are lucky you may be able to find them at a farmers market.
Josta berries make a great jam and jelly.  Like the current they have a high pectin content so it is just equal parts sugar and berries.  If you prefer a spread without skins and seeds I suggest you run it through a jelly bag.
If you would like more information about the josta berry click here.

Josta Berry Jam

equal parts josta berries and sugar

    (if you have 4 cups josta berries uses 4 cups of sugar)

1. Gently was the berries.
2. In a heavy bottomed pot heat the berries until they reach the boiling point.
3. Remove the pot from the heat and add the sugar,  gently stir until the sugar dissolves completely.
4. Return the mixture to the heat, bring it up to a rolling boil that cannot be stirred down.  Stir frequently as it continues to boil until it reaches the setting point.
5. Skim off any foam and ladle into serialized jars.  Leave 1/4 inch of headspace.  Seal with warm liquids and process for 10 minutes at a rolling boil for 250 mL jars and 15 minutes for 500 mL jars.