Before we left for our trip, I found myself with a couple pints of blueberries and a few spotted bananas to use up. I’ve been meaning to make my strawberry chia seed jam for a while now, so I ended up adapting my recipe using blueberries, all-natural sweetener, and a touch of vanilla. It turned out lovely and was ready in 20 minutes flat!
This is the strawberry chia seed jam that I made a couple years ago:
Chia seeds are magic. I love using them as thickeners in all kinds of foods from homemade jam to vegan overnight oats to pasta sauces.
This strawberry chia seed “jam” is a tasty filling for my Healthy Strawberry Oat Squares! You can use any kind of filling that you like in these oat squares. They remind me a lot of a healthy nutri-grain bar.
This is not a traditional jam recipe by any means, but then again I’m not one for following traditions all that often when it comes to food. Instead of using white sugar, I used maple syrup to lightly sweeten the berries. The maple and vanilla extract do a great job of bringing out the flavours in the blueberries without overpowering them. Chia seeds thicken the mixture nicely while adding a tasteless burst of nutrition in every bite.
If you’ve got 20 minutes, you can make this jam. It’s a snap. All you do is add blueberries and a touch of maple syrup into a pot. Bring it to a low boil and then reduce it to simmer for about 5 minutes or so. Then stir in the chia seeds and simmer it for another 10-15 minutes, stirring frequently until it’s as thick as you desire.
Before adding the chia seeds, the blueberries will be quite watery.
Have no fear chia is here!
After adding in the chia seeds and cooking the mixture down, it thickens up beautifully! Hence, the name – magical jam. You won’t believe your eyes how thick this gets. Thanks to the chia seeds, we’re also pumping up the jam with all kinds of healthy omega fats, iron, fibre, protein, magnesium, and calcium. Who knew jam could be so healthy?
Enjoy this on toast, oatmeal, vegan overnight oats, thumbprint cookies, tarts, in smoothies, and so much more. Also, feel free to try this out with any seasonal fruit you wish.
Magical Blueberry Vanilla Chia Seed Jam
Yield
1 cup
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
Adapted from my strawberry chia seed jam.
Ingredients
- 3 cups fresh blueberries
- 3-4 tbsp pure maple syrup, to taste (or other liquid sweetener)
- 2 tbsp chia seeds
- 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
Directions
- In a medium-sized non-stick pot, bring the blueberries and 3 tbsp of maple syrup to a low boil. Stir frequently, and reduce heat to low-medium to simmer for about 5 minutes. Lightly mash the blueberries with a potato masher or fork, leaving some for texture.
- Stir in the chia seeds until thoroughly combined and cook the mixture down until it thickens to your desired consistency, or about 15 minutes. Stir frequently so it doesn’t stick to the pot.
- Once the jam is thick, remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract. Add more maple syrup to taste if desired. Enjoy on toast, English muffins, oatmeal, vegan overnight oats, oat bars, tarts, cookies, banana soft serve, smoothies, and more. The jam should keep for at least a week in an air-tight container in the fridge.
Nutrition Information
(click to expand)
A breakfast sandwich sounded like a good idea.
Banana slices, sunflower seed butter, and blueberry jam all sandwiched in a toasted English muffin….I couldn’t wait a second longer.
*Poof*…it was gone just like a magic trick.
~~~
We’re off for our flight back home this morning! I think my first meal back will be banana bread oatmeal with blueberry jam & sunbutter to top it all off…yum. And then about a week’s worth of salads because I kinda got off track with the salad-a-day challenge a bit. Whoops.. This last week of June is going to be a leafy one…
This will be my Saturday afternoon project. I have to get to the market first to find my berries! It looks so good and so healthy. Thanks for sharing. :)
Great blog and I have a few clients who will be interested in this so thank you.
Many thanks
Nick
Brilliant idea, I can’t wait to try it out with all kinds of fruits!
Hi Angela and thank you for all the great recipes and stories! I also love making my own jelly and jam and thought I was the only one that thought to add the vanilla ~ silly me. I can’t wait to try the chia seeds which I will be buying this weekend. The vanilla adds such a nice subtle flavor. Thank you for sharing ~ Adriana
I agree…I add vanilla to pretty much anything! hah
Perfect timing Angela! I have a ton of blueberries that need to be eaten ASAP. My boyfriend is in town and I think I’m going to surprise him with this for breakfast :)
Your pics make me want to make some right now!! I use chia seeds on my cereal but never thought to use in a jam recipe….brilliant!!!
I hope you don’t mind I add your blog to my list of blogs to follow? You are an incredible inspiration and your recipes are fantastic!
Question: is L-cysteine always non-vegetarian, or can it be vegan? For example, I thought the pies from Mcdonald’s were vegan, as they list no eggs or milk…but they are made of l-cysteine and I’m not exact sure what this consists of. Thank you =)
I love blueberries and I love jam so am totally keen to try this natural lower sugar option! BTW – I made your potato burritos today and they were delicious – a keeper for sure! Keep the delicious recipes and creativity coming!
I love chia seed jam! The blueberry, maple syrup and vanilla combo sounds delicious. :)
Wow, I (a) want to make this jam asap and (b) am going to use whatever jam I have currently to make that banana, jam, butter sandwich tomorrow morning. Looks so mouth watering!
I have found so much inspiration on your sites, and for that I am deeply thankful. I’ve had so much fun trying your recipes, like this one above. Can’t wait to try the batch I made this evening on an english muffin in the morning! A million thanks!
– Kate
Thank you Kate, Im so happy to hear that! Enjoy :)
Looks amazing. I used chia seeds for a chocolate pudding and it is quite magical to see the transformation from runny to just right! :)
This looks SO good! Any idea if I can put this into sterilized jars and can it so it keeps all winter? Right now I make a jam recipe that uses berries, sucanat, honey, and green apples for the pectin to thicken, it goes into sterilized jars, and then into a boiling water bath in the canner for 5 minutes, and I have jars of jam that keep all year. Do you think I could do the same with this recipe? Thanks!
Hey Leah, That is a great question and Ive wondered it myself! I have no prior experience with canning so I wouldn’t be able to say for sure. Maybe someone else has tried it and can give us their advice!
I’m going to give it a go over the next few weeks. I’ll be out picking bilberries in August, so will have a crack at it and let you know how it goes.
Made this yesterday, thank you SO much!! It took hardly anytime to make and it is a winner in our house. Chia seeds to thicken is unreal, thank you:))
Chia seeds in anything with liquid usually totally gross me out – they just get so slimy in the chia puddings and smoothies! But I think this is one I could handle! It would be just like raspberry seeds. :) I’m gonna try it!
yea I found that they reminded me of rasp seeds too. I didnt find it overly slimy!
would stevia work instead of maple syrup?
can’t see why not :)
I was about to ask whether the chia added a slime-factor, but that comment ^^ answered it for me! Plus, I guess jam is fairly slippery anyway so it would be less noticeable. I made jam last year with agar agar flakes, but I’m definitely trying a chia version this summer, thanks for the idea!
Can this jam be canned in a traditional waterbath? I’d love to make some and I love the idea of thickening it with chia seeds. I’ve been canning strawberry jam this year for the first time and using a low/no sugar pectin and a small amount of Sucanat. This recipe sounds amazing.
I think this just changed my LIFE! Lol, okay that sounds a bit dramatic but seriously what a fabulous recipe for easy jam! And by the way, Angela, I love your blog and amazing recipes :)
You are a wealth of brilliant ideas, Angela! Love the idea of adding chia seeds to thicken (and pump up the nutrition) of jam. Sounds delicious!
Amazing! Just made a peanut butter and “jelly” smoothie with it, heaven <3
mmm great idea :)
Just made this – delicious! My jam-loving husband thought it was great and definitely didn’t notice the chia seeds– now I can feel good about his daily PB&J knowing he’s getting fiber and protein!
Congratulations! You passed my PB&J loving 3 year olds high standards when it comes to Jelly. He loved this, and I am thrilled to have a healthy alternative to store bought jelly. Thank you :)
I made this jam last night and used half strawberries and half blueberries- its really fantastic!!!!!
Just finished making a batch and it tastes great! Looking forward to spreading it over an english muffin or mixing it in with some yogurt. Also, half of the blueberries I used were from the freezer and it still turned out great! Glad to know I can make it any time of year.
You inspire me! I’ve been vegetarian for just about 12 years now and have just started the vegan thing a few weeks ago, because I am already lactose intolerant and hate eggs.. so why not just cut out all of the other junk as well! Anyway, I’ve been looking through vegan cookbooks, websites, EVERYTHING and they call for the most crazy ingredients!
I stumbled across one of your recipes while searching for something different to make for dinner, I’m glad I did! I’m on your site all of the time now LOVING YOUR RECIPES! I love your story and I can relate to it..I don’t want to make this too long so I would like to say thank you for sharing your simple and delicious meals for everyone to enjoy!
Hey Chelsea, So nice to meet you! Thank you so much for your comment. That means so much to me! Goodluck with your vegan transition. I hope you enjoy many more recipes to come. :)
I have tried it, super delicious!! Thnak you so much for the recipe!
My mom always says that vegan food taste strange, but my raspberries-chia seeds-vanilla-jam was successfull also with her! i didn’t tell her it was a vegan jam LOL :D
kisses from Switzerland
Thank you for this. I made it with raspberries and blueberries and YUMMY! Thanks again.
You are a genius.
Thank you for such a great recipe! It was super easy and is delicious! I made it to serve for guests and they loved it. Your instructions were spot on and I’m looking forward to making this jam often.
Just had to make another batch! This time with diced, very ripe peaches. I added a squirt of lemon juice and it tastes lovely. The color isn’t exactly attractive, but the flavor is great.
I made the magical blueberry vanilla chia seed jam this morning, and it really is magical! I love it, and I can’t stop eating it…a spoon full here, a piece of toast there, ice cream, etc… It is incredible!! Thanks for the amazing recipe!!
I totally made this for our camping trip – it was tasty, and everyone appreciated it for breakfast. Totally awesome, and I will be making this regularly! Thank you!!!!!
Wow nice work!!!
Oh my gosh. Angela — you are a GENIUS!!! :D
just made the jam, fresh strawberries from the farmers market, subsituted a bit of lemon juice indtead of vanilla to keep the berries red, yummy the best jam ever!! thank you oh she glows!
Hey Patricia, thats great news! Thanks for sharing. I love the thought of lemon & strawberries…yum.
The chia seeds are a great way to thicken to the consistency of jam. My daughter made this today and it is amazing. Can’t wait to share this with my friends. Delicious!!!
Made this to go with baked cake doughnuts for breakfast – so good! I felt proper domestic after making jam ;) Wonderful recipe!
Hi there,
I’m just wondering if you tried freezing it and how it worked? Thanks!
Im testing it in the freezer right now and Ill update the recipe as soon as I know :)
Awesome! I just made a blueberry raspberry version and I will be putting it in the freezer. I will let you know how it comes out.
Yes please do :)
Hey Ange, Made this, loved this. I didn’t need as much maple syrup but that could depend on the ripeness of the blueberries. I can’t wait to try variations with different fruits and fillings!
I wrote about it here: Blueberry Vanilla Chia Seed Jam
I mean here: http://tastespace.wordpress.com/2012/07/06/blueberry-vanilla-chia-seed-jam/
OH. MY. GOODNESS!!!!!! This is soooooooooooo goooood!!! I JUST made it and it’s not going to last very long haha! Even my 5 year old loves it and he doesn’t like jam!!! Thank you for this, it was life changing lol!!
We picked 10 pounds of blueberries this weekend so this recipe was perfect. My 5 year old gives it lots of Mmmmms! I get so frustrated at the supermarket looking at containers of jam all with high fructose corn syrup. This is sweet enough for me and I love knowing exactly what went into it. Thank you so much.
I like ro using chia seeds to make cold drink, I love chia seeds for everything! This blogs looks fantastic, I’ll have to give it a try!! :)
Made it on the weekend and it is AWESOME! Halved the recipe because I didn’t have enough blueberries and it worked perfectly well. It should work with other types of berries, correct? Should I use the same quantities?
Yes it will work with other berries :) If you check the comments some people have mentioned variations theyve made! I tried blackberries and it too was good. Just needed a touch more sweetener since they were frozen.
This is great news on using chia seeds- thanks for sharing!! I have a few pounds of frozen blueberries a farmer friend gave us, do you think I can use those instead of fresh?
I tried a batch using frozen blackberries and it worked fine – although I think I had to cook it down much longer. Goodluck!
Hi Angela!
Love your blog! Every recipe I make of yours turns out amazing :)
I made this jam the other day, except I used some left-over cherries instead of blueberries – and it is soooo good! Your a genius
I made one with cherries last night – we must have been on the same wavelength! Glad you are enjoying it :)
Where did you buy your white spoons?
Is it ceramic?
Just made this jam with frozen strawberries and a few nectarines I had to use up. HOLY YUM!! I used date paste to sweeten it. Absolutely delicious. Thanks for a healthy jam recipe! :)
So, aside from the fiber in the chia, what would be the advantage here, vs. other thickeners? The heat destroys the Omega 3’s, correct? Not meaning to criticize in ANY way, and maybe it was asked above? I just am not a HUGE fan of chia but do use it on occasion because I like the health benefits – but I had understood those were pretty much null and void if you heated the chia. Just curious. Thanks so much.
Hi Marti, From what I understand, there is some damage to EFA’s when cooking, especially at high heats. If this is a concern for you, you can cook it at a very low heat or even try mixing it and leaving it overnight in the fridge to thicken up on its own. Goodluck!
YUM! Trying this today! I love jam but don’t eat it because of the calories and additives. I’m a diabetic and it’s not good for me. Nice to know I can eat my jam again! Can you use agave nectar instead of the maple syrup?
Yes I think that should work fine :)
made this tonight with blackberries – turned out great! thanks for the recipe!!! will definitely make again!