Homemade Blackberry Pie Filling Canning Recipe
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Outside of dry pack canning all my berries, including blackberries and making lemonade concentrates, I really enjoy putting together fruit pie fillings when home canning. Â This blackberry pie filling recipe preserves the delicious flavor of perfectly sun kissed ripened blackberries right off the stems into jars on your pantry shelf. Â I really enjoy a homemade blackberry pie in the dead of winter because there’s just something special about that flavor when we can’t be outside picking them! Â
This easy recipe uses a few ingredients that you’ll definitely have on hand or easily source like fresh blackberries, lemon juice, sugar, and clear jel (or a cook type thickener of your choice!) Â My recipe uses the blanching water used to heat the blackberries in as the base for the pie filling to preserve every ounce of delicious flavor and that gorgeous dark purple color they give off! Â Once blanched, blackberries tend to turn toward the burgundy-red color, so using the blanching liquid keeps that color intact and makes for an overall prettier jar of pie filling. Â Put this pie filling together and have the most delicious pie filling later on!
Tips For Canning Pie Filling
The biggest tip I’ll give you is when canning with a thickener, like clear jel, you need to be sure and add EXTRA headspace. Â Since it is a cook type, it continues to thicken and “grows” during the water bath canning process when heated. Â If you don’t leave about 1 1/2 inches of headspace, you run a big risk of either having some horrible siphoning to clean up or the lids blowing off due to the expansion. Â Believe me. Â I’ve done it because of my absent mindedness! Â
Fill the jars to about the shoulder if they’re quarts or small mouth pints. Â For wide mouth pints, measure it and fill them. Â I find it to be about the freezer safe line on them which is marked on most new Ball jars… not the antique guys though. Â In this instance too much headspace is better than not enough. Â Wanna learn more about my opinion on headspace? Â Read it here.
The second tip is if you don’t have exactly the weight of fruit, but you’re close to it, that is specified in the recipe, don’t sweat. Just use that and it’ll be fine!
Pie filling is a high acid food so it is safe for water-bath canning or steam canning, whichever you choose. The times for both are interchangeable.
Clear Jel
Lots of folks as me what even is clear jel. Â They’ve never seen it in stores and can’t find it. Â Clear jel is the only canning approved thickener. Â It is a modified food starch that has been exclusively tested by the NCHFP and others for safety. Â It also gives you a nice clear gelling… lol…. I’m serious. Â The pie fillings aren’t cloudy, they’re clear. Â When I use something like a cook type thermflo or cornstarch, it’s cloudy. Â I don’t actually care about that and I usually grab whatever is cheapest and easiest to snag at my local Amish bulk food stores. Â I have never seen clear jel in a regular ole grocery store but the bulk food stores always have it. Â
I have also linked to a brand I use and trust in the printable recipe that isn’t a terrible price for how much you get and it comes in a good container with a screw top lid instead of a bag. Â Because once you’ve worked with clear jel, you’ll appreciate the container it’s in. Â I buy it and bags to refill my jars and it poofs into the air everywhere and makes such a mess when I use it!! Â Just know that using anything outside of clear jel is rebel canning. Â And if you’re using it for canning buy COOK TYPE clear jel or thickener. Â The instant will seize in seconds once you add it and then turn to liquid after the canning process. Â Don’t ask me how I knowwwwwwwwww.
Equipment You Might Want:
- Steam canner
- Medium stock pot
- Slotted spoon
- Large pot
- Whisk
- Pint or quart canning jars
- Lids & screw bands
- Jar funnel
- Jar lifter
Ingredients:
- 2 lbs fresh blackberries
- 2 cups water
- 1/2 cup + 2 Tbs clear jel
- 1/4-1 cup sugar (or sweetener of choice, see notes)
- 2 Tbs bottled lemon juice
Step 1: Prep Fresh Berries
Rinse berries in cold water and set aside to drain.
In a stock pot, add 2 cups of water and place over medium-high heat and bring to a boil.
Working in batches, blanch the blackberries for 1 minute then remove with a slotted spoon to a large bowl and cover to keep warm. Allow the water to come back to a boil between batches.
Once you’re done blanching the berries, remove the pan from the heat and keep the water in the pan. DO NOT discard.
Step 2: Mix Filling
In a small mixing bowl, combine sugar and clear jel by whisking.
Add clear gel mixture to the leftover hot water from blanching in the previous step and whisk to dissolve.
Place pan over medium heat and heat until it thickens and is bubbly, whisking constantly. This should take a few minutes.
Once thickened, add in 2 Tbs lemon juice (or the juice of one fresh lemon) and cook for 1 additional minutes.
Once done remove pan from heat and add blackberries. Fold them in gently to combine.
Step 3: Canning
Wash jars and lids in hot soapy water, rinse well, and set aside.
Ladle blackberry filling into prepared jars, leaving generous 1 1/2 inch headspace.
Wipe rims of your jars well and add a lid and secure with a screw band.
Process pints and quarts for 30 minutes, adjusting time for elevation if needed, in a boiling water bath canner or steam canner.
Once processing time is complete, shut off heat and remove lid from the canner and allow the jars to rest this was for 10-15 minutes before removing completely from the water to cool. This helps prevent any siphoning.
Allow jars to cool undisturbed for 18-24 hours before removing bands, testing seals, washing jars, labeling, and storing in a cool dark place away form direct sunlight. Room temperature is fine, just keep jars away from extreme temperatures.
Any unsealed jars can be refrigerated to use soon or frozen for later. I don’t recommend reprocessing pie fillings.
Shelf life is til you eat it. Aim to rotate jars out every 2 years or so for best nutritional value and flavor, but they last much longer than that if needed.
Step 4: To Use
Pie: Add 2 pints/1 quart for a homemade 9-inch pie crust, add top crust, and bake at 375F for about 45 minutes, or til the crust is golden brown and done. I prefer my pies mounded and extra full so I normally end up adding 1 quart +1 pint or 2 quarts to mine. Serve with vanilla ice cream or fresh raw whipped cream.
Other uses: yogurt topping, ice cream topping or churned into ice cream, cobbler, fruit crisp, french toast topping, danish filling, cheesecake, etc!
Notes:
You can use any canning approved sweetener, or unapproved sweetener based on personal preferences. If you use a liquid sweetener (maple syrup, honey), whisk into blanching liquid before adding the clear jel.
If you have other berries, you can absolutely make this recipe with a mixture, like half raspberries half blackberries and such. It’s really good and occasionally what I do when I have a bucket of mixed berries we harvested! This makes for a more flavorful pie filling that’s pretty and interesting!
Equipment
- pint canning jars
- lids and screw bands
- jar lifter
Ingredients
- 2 pounds blackberries
- 2 cups water
- 1/2 cup + 2 Tbsp clear jel
- 1/4-1 cup sugar adjusted to preference
- 2 Tbs lemon juice
Instructions
- Wash and rinse blackberries. Drain.
- In a pot, bring 2 cups of water to a boil.
- Working in batches, blanch blackberries in boiling water for 1 minute, removing with a slotted spoon to a bowl, and covering to keep warm. Allow the water to return to a boil between batches. Once blanching is finished, remove pot from heat.
- In a large bowl, measure out clear jel and sugar and whisk together. Add less or more sugar depending on sweetness of the blackberries and your taste preference. To a medium size pot, whisk together blanching liquid and clear jel/sugar mixture.
- Return stock pot to medium-low heat, stirring constantly and cook until thick and bubbling.
- Add in lemon juice and allow to cook for an additional 1 minute.
- Remove stock pot from heat and gently fold in warm blackberries.
- Ladle into prepared quart or pint jars, leaving a generous 1 1/4-1 1/2 inch headspace (fill to about the shoulder of the jar), de-bubbling as needed, and adding more to maintain headspace.
- Process in a boiling water bath or steam canner for 30 minutes, adjusting time for elevation, for both quarts and pints.
- Once time is up, turn off heat and allow jars to cool for 10 minutes, then remove lid and allow to cool another 10 minutes before removing from pot entirely. This helps prevent siphoning.
- Remove jars from canner to a heat proof surface and allow to cool 18-24 hours before removing bands, testing seals, washing jars, labeling, and storing in a cool dark place away from direct sunlight.
