Every June we have a huge abundance of strawberries from our extensive strawberry plants we have as ground cover.  We often pig out on our strawberries fresh with a chocolate dip  I make by adding milk with chocolate chips melted in the microwave.  What we don't eat fresh we freeze and use in smoothies and preserves.  So I make jam once a year.  My husband has peanut butter jelly sandwiches for lunch every day, so we go through a lot of jam!

I've tried my low sugar strawberry jam next to Trader Joe's low sugar jam we had open last time I made this recipe, and I'm glad to say my was clearly much better.  After having tried my strawberry jam and then trying Trader Joe's (what we usually get), you could tell that the Trader Joe's jam tasted more of sugar than fruit compared to mine.  And that's quit a feat considering consumer reports in their Best Jams and Jellies Report, said that Trader Joe's strawberry jam, " have big fruit flavor and big strawberry pieces".  Way worth the effort of making my own jam!   If only I could make jam easier I would make it year round.  Well now I can, because I found an easier way and it even makes it healthier!

So you probably guessed my secret by the title of this recipe it's, chia seeds.  I discovered the idea of using chia seeds to make jam while researching and developing my banana cream chia seed pudding recipe (which is totally addicting by the way and a great healthy breakfast).  I had seen chia seed jams on Pinterest a while back and had just forgotten about it, so it was perfect timing to be reminded of chia seed jams since I actually had to make jam to make space in my freezer from all of our frozen strawberries from our harvest.  

Chia seeds are so jam packed with nutrition, (fiber, omega fatty acids, calcium, antioxidants and even protein), it's considered a super food.  Add that to the nutritional value of strawberries and you get a jam that not only taste great but is packed with nutrition. Even better the fiber and protein in the chia seeds combined with the lower sugar in this recipe should make this jam lower GI (glycemic index), because protein and fiber makes your blood sugar spike less.  Not only do chia seeds have great nutrition but they also are amazing at thickening liquids, because chia seeds can hold more than 10 times their weight in water. 

Prep your strawberries (wash, hull, and chop)  if using fresh   Image via Oh My Veggies

I'm proud to say it turned out great! It only takes 30 minutes to make and their is no canning involved.  You can also make smaller batches since it's so easy.  It taste just as good as my low sugar pectin jam, although the texture was better in my pectin jam.  I felt as though my chia seed jam was less thinner than my pectin version.  I believe it would have been a closer texture to my pectin if I had cooked it longer and to a higher temperature or added a little bit more chia seeds.

You can add your chia seed strawberry jam to your oatmeal image credit Cookie and Kate

There are so many great ways to use jam.  You could buy plain yogurt and add in a swirl of jam, (that way you have less sugar and more nutrition), add it to oatmeal like Cookie and Kate did (pictured above), spread onto bread of course, add to a cheese plate, add to a vinaigrette, grilled cheese (spread cream cheese and jam onto bread),filling for crepes or french toast, top cheese cake waffles panckes and ice cream, fill in between cake layers, fill pastries, you could even add it to sweeten drinks like tea or cocktails, etc.  The possibilities are endless, which is good since you can now make as much jam as you want!

Strawberry Chia Seed Jam Recipe (low sugar)