A few summers ago, my guy and I planned a vacation to Disneyland. I grew up visiting the park nearly every year, especially since we passed right by it on the freeway when driving to my grandparents’ house in southern California. When I found out that my guy had only gone once throughout his entire childhood, as a 5-year-old, I decided it was my job to change that.
I wanted to show him both Disneyland and California Adventure: Main Street, Thunder Mountain, the Matterhorn, Splash Mountain, the Haunted Mansion, Space Mountain, Indiana Jones, Pirates of the Caribbean, Soarin’ Over California, California Screamin’, Grizzly River Run… And even more of my favorite rides, so we settled on two-day park hopper passes to fit everything in.
We booked a room at a hotel a little way down the road from the Disneyland with a free shuttle service that transported guests to the theme parks and back. Even better, I accidentally stumbled upon a special when making our reservation—our room came with a complementary breakfast every morning during our stay!
I love free food.
So after showering each morning, I phoned in an order to go and wandered down to the lobby while my night-owl guy slowly eased out of bed. With eggs, sausage, fresh fruit, and toast, each gigantic meal actually served both of us, despite being meant for just one person!
When I opened up the paper bag back in our hotel room, I pulled out the boxes of food… Followed by an assortment of tiny jam jars for the toast! Strawberry, raspberry, apricot, grape, and orange marmalade. Because of the hotel restaurant’s generosity, we came home with quite a collection, and I loved how quick and easy they were to use whenever I got a craving.
And they partially inspired today’s recipe: 10 Minute Raspberry Jam! This healthier fruit spread comes together in less time than it took me to ride the elevator down to the lobby and back, and it contains two of my favorite superfoods!
The first one is fairly obvious, seeing as the jam has “raspberries” in the title… But the second superfood is the secret ingredient that actually helps the jam thicken in just 10 minutes. It’s full of fiber, antioxidants, and omega-3s too! Can you guess what it is?
It’s chia seeds! These itty bitty seeds look similar to poppy seeds in color and size, but they’re really absorbent and can soak up huge amounts of liquids, which helps this fruit spread thicken so quickly.
As for a quick recipe run-down, either fresh or frozen and thawed raspberries will both work. I tend to use the latter since they’re usually cheaper and readily available year-round. Purée those, add the chia seeds and stevia (a no-calorie, clean eating, plant-based sweetener!), and cook the mixture on the stove for a few minutes. Cooking evaporates some of the water from the raspberries, and the chia seeds absorb the rest.
I started out making small batches since I only occasionally ate jam before, but… Those jam jars act like magnets for my spoon and empty themselves much too quickly!
| 10 Minute Raspberry Jam | | Print |
- 1 cup (140g) raspberries (fresh or frozen, thawed and drained)
- 1 tbsp (12g) chia seeds
- ⅛ tsp vanilla crème liquid stevia (I used Sweet Drops, about 20 drops)
- Purée the raspberries in a food processor or blender. Transfer the purée to a small pot, and stir in the chia seeds and stevia. Cook for 4-5 minutes over medium-low heat, or until thickened and reduced by about half. Transfer the jam to a jar to cool.
{gluten-free, vegan, clean eating, low fat, low calorie, sugar-free}
More chia seed jam recipes from other food bloggers…
♥ Strawberry and Rhubarb Chia Seed Jam by Healthy Nibbles & Bits
♥ Strawberry Chia Seed Jam by Running With Spoons
♥ Blackberry Chia Seed Jam by Two Peas and Their Pod
♥ Peach Chia Jam by Diet Taste
I made a very similar thing with psyllium husks a while ago – the consistency it yields is a lot like chia gel, and it’s good for your gut too 🙂 not to mention that they don’t add as much calories as Chia seeds.
Thanks for sharing!
I love how simple this is to make, Amy! The idea to use chia seeds is just genius. I need to try it!
Thanks Jen! Chia seeds are so fun to play with. I hope you enjoy the jam if you try it!
AMY!! Thank you SO much for linking up to my jam! Your raspberry chia one looks fantastic!
You’re welcome Lisa! I loved your version — I need to work with rhubarb more often! Aka at least once… Can you believe I’ve never baked with it??
Free food is basically what I look for when choosing a hotel, even if I don’t eat most of what is offered. HAHA. I now have an OVERWHELMING urge to visit DLAND.
We should go!!! I miss Disneyland… I haven’t been in 3 years now, and that makes me SO sad!
Hiya,
That recipe looks delicious and I can’t wait to try it but I have one tiny question: Should I prepare the chia seeds to gel before I use them in the jam or do they work their magic while cooking? Sorry if that was already clarified in the recipe and I didn’t see it 😀
No need to apologize! Don’t make a gel with the chia seeds; just add them directly to the purée right before cooking. They’ll continue to thicken the jam while it cools too. 🙂 I hope you enjoy the jam!
These photos are ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL, Amy! I think this needs to go on our breakfast date menu … maybe on some toast? A scone? I’ll let you pick. 😉
Thank you so much Justine! We can definitely add it to the list… It’s getting so long; we need to make this happen SOON!
Beautiful! Think I might have this on toast for breakfast tomorrow 🙂
I really hope you enjoy the jam Sarah!
Yummy. I imagine this would go great with crepes with a bit of whip cream on top. Now that strawberries are in season, I may try this to see how it turns out . Brilliant tip regarding chia seeds.
Thanks Aida! I’d love to hear how a strawberry version turns out for you!
Hi Amy, I was just wondering if this could be “canned”… It would make a nice addition to a Christmas gift basket.
Yes, it can! I think that’s a wonderful idea. I hope you enjoy the jam Candee! 🙂
What other berries or fruit can be made with the 10 minute method?
I just answered your same question on the 10 Minute Cranberry Jam recipe post Leela! 🙂