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One Hundred Dollars a Month

I am your typical housewife living in high maintenance suburbia. I have a handsome husband, 2 kids and a flock of pet chickens. I try and feed my family with $100 a month. With the help of coupons, gardening and bartering I am able to squeeze the most out of our grocery budget and still manage to have a little fun along the way.

Carrot Cake Jam Recipe

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By on · 74 Comments


If you’ve been itching to get your canner out, this recipe for carrot cake jam is da’ bomb.  I made several batches last fall and it was a major hit. Not only is it super easy to make, but this carrot cake jam would make a great hostess gift.

Great on toast, as an unusual topping over ice cream {seriously, it’s that good!} or mixed into your favorite batch of pancakes, this recipe is a winner!

 

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Carrot Cake Jam Recipe

Ingredients

  • 1 can {20 ounces} unsweetened crushed pineapple , undrained
  • 1-1/2 cups shredded carrots
  • 1-1/2 cups chopped peeled ripe pears
  • 3 tablespoons lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1 package {1-3/4 ounces} powdered fruit pectin
  • 6-1/2 cups sugar

Instructions

  1. Bring a boiling-water canner, 3/4 full with water, to simmer. Wash jars and screw bands in hot soapy water; rinse with warm water. Pour boiling water over flat lids in saucepan off the heat. Let stand in hot water until ready to use. Drain well before filling.
  2. In a 6 – 8 quart sauce pot, combine the first seven ingredients. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 15 minutes or until the pears are tender. Stir occasionally so nothing sticks to the pan. Remove from the sauce pan from the heat, and stir in pectin.
  3. Bring mixture to a full rolling boil, stirring constantly. Slowly stir in the sugar and return to a full rolling for 1 minute, making sure to stir constantly to avoid boiling over. Remove from heat and skim off any foam with metal spoon.
  4. Ladle immediately into prepared jars, filling to within 1/4 inch of tops. Wipe jar rims and threads. Cover with two-piece lids. Screw bands tightly. Place jars on elevated rack in canner. Lower rack into canner. {Water must cover jars by 1 to 2 inches. Add boiling water, if necessary.} Cover; bring water to gentle boil. Process 10 min. Remove jars and place upright on towel to cool completely. After jars cool, check seals by pressing middles of lids with finger. If lids spring back, lids are not sealed and refrigeration is necessary}.

Recipe Notes

Yields {7} 1/2 pints.

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Comments

  3. I made this jam last fall and it was really good. I also made your recipe for the Vanilla Pear Jam and Plum jam. Vanilla Pear did come out a little soft so I like to use it on pancakes. I have to say thatthe Plum jam was my favorite. With the plums that I used it came out a bit tart. Other jams/jellies I made were Habenaro/Apricot jam, Pomegranite jelly, apple butter, Berry syrup which jelled up a bit too much so use it as jam. I am looking forward to making more unusual jams this coming year. I like to share my bounty with friends. I am anxious to see what new recipes you find this year. Thank you for all the recipes you share with us. Your blog always makes me smile!

    Reply

  4. just have a Question about this part of the Recipe you Posted..

    ” Remove from the sauce pan from the heat, and stir in pectin.”

    You are meaning to take the pan off the stove and then stir in the Pectin? After you stire the Pectin in then you return it to the stove and bring it back to a boil then you add your sugar boil it again for 1 min then you are done. Just get the foam off before you add the jam to the jars. I am hoping to start my first adventure into canning this year. I found a pressure cooker and I just need to check the seal on the pressure cooker before I use it. B

    For the water bath canner I have a big blue pot like i see being sold in stores for water canning mine just does not have a rack that sits in it. Can I use a round wire cake rack for cooling your cakes on, or a folded up towel on the bottom. Just something were my jars are not touching the bottom of the Pan?

    Reply

    • Deana, In respect of using the pot you are asking about…. I use my water pot with a lid that I use for making soups Its large enough in height to cover jars of water and using a thick round rack…. that is all I ever use…. and my canning turns out great… Just be careful pulling your jars out of the hot water… You may want to pick up some canning clamps for grabbing the hot jars…. Good luck it you haven’t tried already with what you have on hand…….

      Reply

    • Deana, make sure you are using a pressure CANNER for your pressure canning. You can’t use a pressure COOKER for that. You will not process your food correctly and you’ll end up disappointed with your efforts…

      Reply

  5. this sounds so good – I think I’ll try it soon -would smell like summer in the house! Loved your apple pie jam also

    Reply

  6. I made a batch before Christmas and sent a jar cross-country to my son and daughter-in-law. My d-in-law said she got exactly one spoonful of the jam before it disappeared, and I DON’T think it was the dogs who ate the rest…

    Thanks for the great recipe, Mavis!

    Reply

  8. I made a batch and sent some cross-country to my son & daughter-in-law. My d-in-law said she wasn’t fast enough, and she only got one bite from the whole jar. Guess I’ll have to a) scold my son for hogging the jam and b) send some more.

    BTW, we LOVE this on bagels or English muffins, with cream cheese!

    Reply

  9. Oops – sorry, I duplicated my comment about the son & d-in-law. Anyhow, we DO love the jam with cream cheese…it’s like carrot cake for breakfast!

    Reply

    • Just cut the sugar in half, I do it with all my jams all the time, and they still taste wonderful with less calories 🙂

      Reply

  14. How long does this take to set? i made a batch this morning and granted its still hot in the jars but very liquidy still, it set okay on a spoon but im worried.

    Reply

  16. Just a bit of advice in case you didn’t know.When i bought my smooth top range i didn’t know you couldn’t can with it. If you put the water and filled jars into your canner it is away too much weight on the glass cook top and it will crack! So if your stove is a glass cook top you will need to get another stove for canning. Just thought i would share to stop any heart break before it happens. I would just die if i broke my beautiful stove top.

    Reply

    • I’ve canned using my glass top stove with no problems. Even in oversized pots.

      The recipe sounds great. Can’t wait to try it.

      Reply

    • Actually, you can use most glass tops to can on now. The original ones you could not and there may still be some being made that you cannot use. Read the manual to check whether individual ones can be used or not. The manual to mine (slightly older model) allows for canners to be used but suggests you switch burner spots after each batch. I have canned with mine for years now doing it the way the manual says.

      Reply

    • A big thing though is that if you are using a pressure canner, you want to make sure you use the Presto brand or one like it so that the canner bottom is not too wide and that it has a flat bottom (unless your stove does not say to keep the pot size within one inch bigger than the burner like mine does).

      Reply

    • I have a smooth top Jenn-Aire cooktop and can on it all the time. You have to be sure to have a flat bottomed pot, you cannot use the standard water bath canner as it has ripples on the bottom. I do not can over a pint, no quarts or gallons, they might be too heavy, but pints, 1/2 and 1/4 pints do just fine.

      Reply

      • I don’t do water bath canning of quarts on mine for to the extra water weight, but pressure can quarts often.

        Reply

  17. My mom use to make something similiar to this. She used zucchini instead of the carrots. We use to eat it over ice cream. This brings back wonderful memories.

    Reply

  18. Has anyone tried substituting at least half the sugar with Splenda? I know my husband would love this but he’s diabetic……

    Reply

    • Debbie ~ NO! Don’t use Splenda! That’s awful stuff! Especially if your husband is diabetic! Use Stevia! Stevia is NOT chemicals & poisons! It’s a plant and it’s 2-3X as sweet as sugar! Please use it instead! It will NOT spike blood sugar levels! Please do some research and change over to Stevia! Stevia in the raw is almost like powder (think powdered sugar) and it is fantastic! It’s all natural (plant leaves) and use can use it for everything in place of sugar! Yes, it is more expensive than sugar, but then again, you’ll use less of it because it’s so sweet, with no funny lingering after taste! I use it in canning all my jams, making tea & coffee…. we don’t use artificial (poison chemicals) for anything and we don’t use sugar anymore either. Sorry… I’ll get off my soap box now 🙂

      Reply

  19. I tried this at an open market today. I did buy some but came to the Internet to find the recipe. Yours is the best one I found. I do a lot of juicing fruits and vegetables so this is a fantastic way to use the pulp from the carrots (sorry to my chickens) as well as the mush pulp from pineapples and pears. It will make for a less textured jam for sure, but I can’t do the texture of cooked carrots. This “mash” will make for a nice, spreadable jam.
    I’m also opting to use evaporated cane juice as we do not eat refined white sugar.

    Reply

  20. Made this today. It was very easy to make but I find it to be very, very sweet. I have subsequently looked at other similar recipes and some of the comments say they cut down on the sugar (5 cups single batch, 9 cups double batch) I will definitely make this agan but I’ll use less sugar.

    Reply

  21. Is there something else you can use instead of pears? My mom isn’t a fan of pears so I was wondering if there was something else that can be a substitute for it??

    Reply

  23. I just made this jam and it looks so beautiful and taste is amazing. I wish I could show you a picture of my jars! I made it because I has some beautiful 1/2 pint & some 2 oz jars and wanted something that would look nice in them. I will be making A LOT more for holiday gifts. It will be delicious on an English muffin or toast. Maybe with some cream cheese too! I think it will be so good on top of Brie served with crackers. Or better yet…brie topped with carrot cake jam, sprinkled with slivered almonds, wrapped in puff pastry and baked. What a great appetizer for company! I can’t thank you enough for sharing this recipe. It’s a keeper for sure.

    Reply

  24. Marvelous Mavis,
    What an inspiration you are to me! I’m dying to try this recipe. My only problem with it is finding ripe pears. Not easy to find in my area, and expensive when I find good ones. Canned pears are not my favorite, but we have great apples, and plenty of them. What do you think of using them for a substitute?
    Love love love, Libby

    Reply

      • Libby, I should think you’d be able to use canned pears – but since they’re already tender when they’re canned, I wouldn’t add them into the mix that you’re simmering until the last couple of minutes. In fact, you could tenderize the shredded carrots in the microwave (on high, covered, for a couple of minutes), and then just mix all the first seven ingredients in the pot and bring them to a simmer long enough to heat through. Then remove from heat, stir in pectin and proceed with the rest of the instructions.

        Seems like it’s worth a try!

        Reply

  25. This recipe is my family’s favorite. I send it all over the country and everyone wants more. I gave a jar to a friend at work and she ate half the jar with a spoon before she even got home from work. This is the jam to make for gifts.

    Reply

  26. Hi Mavis, This recipe sounds wonderful and I intend to make a couple of batches. I want to put a bottle in each of the Christmas baskets we make at the church to sell at our Christmas Quiche Luncheon and Bake Sale in December. I’m sure it will be a huge “hit” with people!!
    I’m just wondering why we have to use the water bath?? When we make other fruit jams we don’t have to use that step…we just ladle the HOT jam into the jam jars and put the two-piece lids on and let them cool. Has anyone tried to make this jam without using the water bath step??
    Curious in Canada…..Thanks

    Reply

  27. I am making this at a canning party tomorrow. Is there a certain type of pear you recommend? Thanks, excited about trying this recipe.

    Reply

  28. I have never canned, but would love to try this. Could I make without canning and just give my jars away so they are used fast enough? Thanks. Love your sight!!!

    Reply

  29. I just made some of the carrot cake jam. I had a couple of spoons left over that I just put into a cup and it has set already, but when I was processing, either my timer did not ring or I did not hear it ring and it processed longer than 5 minutes, will this make the jam not turn out? Thanks

    Reply

  31. I lost this and just now found it again, so happy! I must tell you I made this as gifts for my family last year and it was success! Thank you!

    Reply

  32. I made this recipe because I’ve never heard of such a thing as possible. I used only 4 cups of sugar and found it was still really sweet. However, this may have affected the chemistry with the pectin because even a night in the fridge couldn’t get it to fully set. It was the first time I’ve used powdered pectin, so would liquid pectin work? Consistency aside, the members of my military unit declared it tasted like apple pie and also Christmas. My house smelled like apple pie the night I made it. Thank you for sharing!

    Reply

  33. I made this recipe using a low sugar pectin (Pomonas) and used only 1 cup brown sugar. It is plenty sweet for us with just that amount and it was very good. I subsituted apples for pears because thats what I had on hand. It will be served tonight along with warmed Brie and strong cheddar…and wine of course 🙂

    Reply

    • I wanted to make this with Pomona Pectin, but am not confident in my converting abilities yet. How much Pomona pectin did you use? and you just used the 1 cup of brown sugar? Thanks for sharing your info and answers!
      Claire

      Reply

  34. I made this a few years ago (and need to make more again). The jars did not last long. I think my nephew and his wife polished off a jar in one weekend!

    Tastes just like carrot cake!

    Reply

  35. Fun recipe, very unique. My family loves it. I will definitely cute the sugar in half next time – way to set for me. But I will be making it again!

    Reply

  36. I would like to make sugar free jams and jellies for my husband he is a dietetic. I have Reyes to make some with no success,hoping you could help

    Reply

    • Nina, you can cut out the sugar altogether if you use No-Sugar pectin. I think it’s by Sure-jell, and can probably order it from Amazon if you can’t find it in your local grocery. Just use your favorite artificial sweetener.

      Reply

  37. Help. There are a lot of comments re: jelly not setting. I read to never boil past one minute once pectin added and the product comes to a full rolling boil. Yet, sometimes this doesn’t allow the jelly to set. Anyone out there that knows the best way to get jelly to set. I have a recipe for strawberry rhubarb jelly (that all love) but have had problems with it (setting). Thanks.

    Reply

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