Breakfast Jams

Freshly made from the Philippines' best fruits, these spreads are special but not too heavy—a great way to start a busy day!

Makes 2 to 3 cups per jam  Prep Time 15 minutes  Cooking Time 20 to 30 minutes (per recipe) Good For 2 weeks, refrigerated

For the Banana-Mango Jam
4 cups sugar
1 1/4 cups water
1 kilo bananas and mangoes (combined), peeled and sliced

For the Dalandan Jam
1 kilo dalandan, peeled and skin removed
3 to 4 cups sugar    
juice from 4 pieces calamansi

1  Prepare a syrup by cooking sugar with water until the soft ball stage.  

2  Add the sliced fruits and cook to 227ºF to 230ºF.

3  Strain and bottle into sterilized jars. Serve with whole-wheat bread or with breakfast muffins and cheese.

4  Make the dalandan jam: Cut the ends of the dalandan. Cut each into thin rounds or segment them. Remove the pits.

5  Place dalandan slices in a pot. Sprinkle with sugar and calamansi juice. Cook mixture on medium-low heat until it reaches soft-ball stage while stirring occasionally.

6  Bottle into sterilized jars. Serve with whole-wheat bread or with breakfast muffins and cheese.

What is soft-ball? When you spoon a small amount of the boiling sugar misture into a bowl of tap water and you are able to gather the strands of sugar and form them into a ball in the water, you have reached soft ball stage. If you are using a candy thermometer, soft ball stage is at 235ºF.

Photography by David Hanson | Styling by Paulynn Chang Afable | Props from Saizen