Carrot Cake Jam Made for Water Bath Canning
Carrot cake jam is one of our family’s and friends’ favorite homemade jams. My eldest daughter requests it continuously and is typically the first to be eaten first, so I always double the batch when I am able. It is also are a go-to gift jam. Friends rave about it when they receive it and always ask for more. The second favorite is my homemade apple butter.
Unfortunately for my family, I only make it in the winter months, January and February. Fresh pineapples go on sale during this time for $0.99 per pineapple in our area. The regular cost is usually about $4-5 per pineapple. That is one heck of a deal, so I stock up, buying around 15-20 pineapples at a time.
I usually have a fair amount of carrots, apples, and pears from the fall months or can buy relatively cheap at the farmer’s markets or stores. So, saving this canning jam for the winter is perfect.
Safely change up the recipe.
You can make this recipe even more unique and authentic to the actual cake by making it a conserve. Conserves are jams that have added nuts and fruit stirred into them. To do this, add 1/4 cup of pecans or walnuts chopped small and 1/4 cup of golden raisins. Stir these two ingredients in immediately after the one-minute hard boil.
The coconut flakes and vanilla extract are also optional ingredients. You can omit both, and this carrot cake jam will still be safe to water bath can. You can substitute almond extract for the vanilla extract or use unsweetened coconut for the sweetened.
Many people may not get their hands on fresh pineapples for a reasonable price, so you can use canned pineapples.
Canning Equipment
Are you new to canning? Or do you need more materials? You can get everything you need to make this recipe all right here and through Amazon.
Cost of this recipe.
If you look at purchasing all the ingredients at full price, then you are probably looking at one batch of jam (or seven half-pints) costing around $10.55 or $1.51 per half-pint. This homesteader can reduce the cost immensely. Like I stated above, I purchase pineapples for a dollar and grow all the remaining fruit and vegetables. That gives my total cost around $7 for one batch or $1 per half-pint.
I love this price because you can’t find this actual recipe in the stores. And you certainly can’t buy jam for under a dollar or even under two if you pay full price for ingredients. This jam is a win all the way around.
Similar jam to preserve
Bonus Recipe Crepes with Jam and Cream Cheese Spread
Cream Cheese Spread
- 8 oz cream cheese, room temp
- 1 tablespoon white sugar (alternative sugar works)
- 1 tablespoon milk
Cook crepes as the recipe shows. Either fold or roll the cooked crepes and set them on a plate.
Whip together all cream cheese spread ingredients.
Serve crepes with a dollop of cream cheese and a spoon full of carrot cake jam.
Recipe adapted
This canning recipe is a mixture from both Ball’s Fresh Preserving. All images and text are original to Vintage Homestead. Click here for our home food preservation disclaimer information.
Carrot Cake Jam
Ingredients
- 1½ cups carrots grated (about 2-3 carrots)…[$0.30]
- 1½ cups apple or pear grated…[$0.45]
- 2 cups pineapple minced (about 1 whole pineapple)…[$4.00]
- 3 tbsp lemon juice …[$0.12]
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon …[$0.04]
- ½ tsp apple pie spice …[$0.20]
- 6 tbsp fruit pectin …[$3.00]
- 6½ cups white granulated sugar …[$1.89]
- ¼ cup sweetened shredded coconut optional…[$0.20]
- ½ tsp. vanilla extract optional…[$0.35]
Instructions
- Prep all water bath canning equipment, mason jars, lids, and rings.
- Clean and grate carrots and apples or pears. Finely chop pineapple. Prep all other ingredients.
- In a large stockpot, add carrots, apples/pears, pineapple, lemon juice, and all spices together. Bring pot to a rolling boiling on medium/high heat for about 20 minutes. Stir often to eliminate scorching. Fruit juices should release during cooking, giving you a more syrupy bubbly mixture.
- Remove from heat and stir in pectin. Bring back to heat and return to a boil.
- Take off heat again. Stir in all sugar, coconut, and vanilla extract. Mixture will be thick to stir.
- Bring back to boil and stir for sugar to all dissolve. Taste with a clean small spoon to ensure sugar has dissolved. Jam should loosen as it heats. Set a hard boil for one minute.
- Ladle jam into clean mason jars leaving a ¼ inch headspace and process in water bath canner for 10 minutes. Let jars sit to cool undisturbed for 24 hours.
Carrot Cake Jam
Cooking Methods
- Water Bath Canner
- Mason Jars, Lids, and Rings
Ingredients
- 1½ cups carrots, grated (about 2-3 carrots)…[$0.30]
- 1½ cups apple or pear, grated…[$0.45]
- 2 cups pineapple, minced (about 1 whole pineapple)…[$4.00]
- 3 tbsp lemon juice, …[$0.12]
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon, …[$0.04]
- ½ tsp Apple pie spice, …[$0.20]
- 6 tbsp fruit pectin, …[$3.00]
- 6½ cups white granulated sugar, …[$1.89]
- ¼ cup sweetened shredded coconut, optional…[$0.20]
- ½ tsp. vanilla extract, optional…[$0.35]
Instructions
- Prep all water bath canning equipment, mason jars, lids, and rings.
- Clean and grate 1½ cups carrots and 1½ cups apple or pear. Finely chop 2 cups pineapple. Prep all other ingredients.
- In a large stockpot, add 1½ cups carrots, 1½ cups apple or pear, 2 cups pineapple, 3 tbsp lemon juice, 1 tsp ground cinnamon,½ tsp Apple pie spice. Bring pot to a rolling boiling on medium/high heat for about 20 minutes. Stir often to eliminate scorching. Fruit juices should begin to release and give a syrupy-bubbly mixture.
- Remove from heat and stir in 6 tbsp fruit pectin. Bring back to heat and return to a boil.
- Take off the heat again. Stir in 6½ cups white granulated sugar, ¼ cup sweetened shredded coconut, and ½ tsp. vanilla extract. Bring back to boil and stir for sugar to all dissolve. The jam will be thick to stir but will loosen as it heats back up. Set a hard boil for one minute. Taste jam to ensure the sugar has dissolved with a clean spoon.
- Ladle into clean mason jars leaving a ¼ inch headspace and process in water bath canner for 10 minutes. Let jars sit to cool undisturbed for 24 hours.