We get more fruit in right now than at any other time of the year. My mom and I make jam at the end of every summer, but you have to start collecting the fruit now.

Hurry, hurry, hurry! The strawberries are super cheap right now, and they are almost done. You can find them in bulk at places like Costco, and they are 2 for 1 containers at just about every grocery store I go into. The raspberries are also in their peak right now, and will continue to be right through July.

Apricots and Peaches are better towards the middle to the end of July – or just look for great sales on stone fruit. There are also plums and cherries if you are really patient, and don’t mind pitting them all!

And of course, my very favorite, the blackberries. Waiting until the middle to the end of August for the blackberries is what puts off “jam week” until the end of August. All summer I collect these fruits, and freeze them, (you have to pit and slice the stone fruit first) to save them for jam. The best way to do this is not to put wet fruit in the bags, and to limit each gallon Ziploc to just a few cups of fruit each. I also save Ziplocs full of berries and nectarine slices for those times in the middle of the winter when I want to bake with fruit that has flavor, or make a smoothie.

So, at the end of the summer, my mom and I go out and buy and prepare gobs of mason jars, and make a different flavor of jam every day. It is so great. The house smells like heaven, and at the end of the week we have enough jam to fill both of our homes for the rest of the year, as well as extras for gifts.

So, stay tuned for the very exciting jam week in August! But start collecting and freezing the fruit now.