3cups(22.5 ounces) granulated sugar ** (see notes)
1teaspoonfresh lemon zest (approx. 1 lemon)
1Tablespoonfresh lemon juice (approx. 1/2 lemon)
3ounces(1 pouch) Ball® Liquid Fruit Pectin *** (see notes)
Instructions
Properly wash and sterilize all jars, bands, and lids before you begin.
Rinse blueberries; sort to pick out any stems or debris, then set in a colander to drain.
Fill an 8 or 10-quart stock pot 3/4 full with water and place on burner over medium-high heat to bring water to a simmer.
Meanwhile, transfer berries to a 6-quart enameled Dutch oven or heavy bottomed stainless steel pot. Use a potato masher or spoon to lightly crush berries, just to split the skins. Don't mash them completely, because you want some pieces of fruit in your sauce.
Add sugar, lemon zest, and lemon juice to the berries. Stir to combine. Turn heat to high, then stirring constantly, bring contents to a full, rolling boil that cannot be stirred down.
Immediately squeeze entire contents of liquid pectin from pouch into the boiling pot. Continue hard boil for one minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and skim off any foam, if necessary.
Ladle hot mixture into hot jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Remove air bubbles, wipe rims of jars, then center a lid onto each jar. Apply metal band over each lid and adjust so lids are fingertip-tight. Do not over tighten.
By now, your water bath should be at a simmer (small bubbles at the bottom and just barely along the edges of the pot). Carefully lower jars into the water bath canner, making sure that the water covers the jars by at least 1 inch.
Place lid on pot and process jars for 10 minutes, adjusting temperature for altitude as necessary. Turn off heat, remove lid, and allow jars to stand in water for 5 minutes.
Carefully remove jars from water bath canner and cool for at least 12 hours.
Notes
**The original recipe in the Ball Book of Canning and Preserving calls for 3 1/2 cups of sugar.
*** Liquid pectin and powdered pectin are NOT interchangeable. Some recipes explain that the liquid version is always added after boiling the fruit. Powdered versions must be added then boiled again for some period of time to activate the gel process.