The kids picked two large containers of prunes, and then my work began.
First I had to pit the fruit, and then chop it into quarters. When I was done I had 7 pints of chopped Italian prunes, with about 1/2 a container of fresh fruit left over.
My recipe called for 2 quarts of italian prunes, 6 cups of sugar, 1/4 cup lemon juice and 1 1/2 cups of water. I increased it to allow for my larger amount of prunes. It took almost an hour for my jam to reach it's setting point (it was supposed to be 220F, but I only bought it to 215F because I was doubtful on the accuracy of my thermometer and it passed the "setting" test of putting a small amount on a cold plate).
Elizabeth was fascinated with how the color changed from yellow to a deep red.
The final step was processing my jam. I filled my warm jars with hot jam, and then put them in a water bath for 5 minutes. Some websites recommended completely covering the jars, while others said to only cover 1-2 inches. I went with the second option, although I have since read that this is no longer recommended. The purpose of a water bath is to remove the oxygen remaining in the jars and to kill any bacteria which may be in the food. If you want further information about water baths, here is a good site: http://pubs.ext.vt.edu/348/348-594/348-594.html
And finally, I have 12 jars of Italian prune jam. Tomorrow will be the true test though, as that's when we get to try it.
In case you ever have a tree full of Italian prunes, or come across some at the markets - here is the recipe I used http://nchfp.uga.edu/how/can_07/plum_jam.html
