Apple Rosehip Jam

Apple Rosehip Jam is a delicious early autumn recipe that combines juicy apples with the fruity, tangy, and subtly floral taste of rosehips.

Hey, folks! I hope you’re all doing well and having a lovely day.

Today, I am thrilled to share another tasty recipe that’s perfect for late summer and early fall, featuring a fruit that you may not often see in recipes. Apples. Just kidding –  rosehips. So, let’s dive into this Apple Rosehip Jam recipe.

What Are Rosehips?

Rosehips are the seed-filled fruits of the Rosa Genus family, growing on rose plants after the flowers fade. That’s why they belong to the accessory fruits, which means that the edible part of a fruit develops from other tissues like flowers.

But Wait…Are Rosehips Edible?

Yes, they are perfectly edible. However, it can be a tad challenging to collect rosehips and prepare them for cooking. There are irritating hairs and seeds inside the fruit, which can cause skin itching and digestive issues, so you may want to use latex or nitrile gloves when doing the prep work. The fruit can be eaten raw – except for the seeds and hairs. The cooking is still recommended, as it helps remove the hairs, which is especially important if you have a sensitive stomach.

How to Harvest and Prepare Rosehips?

To collect rose hips, wait until the fruit is bright red or orange (depending on the variety) and is slightly soft, but not wrinkled. Ideally, harvest after the first frost, but birds may get to them first.

Wear gloves to protect your hands from thorns. To harvest, gently twist rose hips from the stem, or use pruners or scissors to snip larger fruits.

After harvesting, wash the hips and trim off any stems or leaves. Cut the fruit in half and remove the small, irritating seeds and hairs from the inside of the fruit. A small dessert spoon is suitable for this task. Kitchen gloves are also helpful in protecting the skin from irritation.

Rosehips – Health Benefits

Rosehips vary in size, color, and flavor depending on the species, providing a diverse range of options for foraging and use. You can often find rosehip oil in skin care products.

Rosehips also offer numerous health benefits. For example, they are high in Vitamin C, containing many times the amount found in oranges. They also contain antioxidants and anti-inflammatory compounds that help boost immunity, reduce joint pain, and inflammation.

However, as always, please remember that products used for natural medicine may worsen certain conditions and, therefore, should be used only after consultation with your physician. For instance, rosehips are high in Vitamin C, which may increase your risk of developing certain types of kidney stones.

What’s the Taste of Rosehips?

Rosehip has a sweet and tart or sweet and sour flavor, similar to that of a tart, green apple or plum. Some varieties may have notes of cranberry and hibiscus. The taste can vary by rose hip variety, but generally includes floral notes along with the sweetness and tanginess.

Apple Rosehip Jam Recipe

That’s why rosehips pair well with apples, making the perfect blend of flavours in this recipe for Apple Rosehip Jam. The natural sweetness of apples complements the tart and zesty flavour of rose hips, creating a balanced and bright taste.

Additionally, because rosehips have hard skins, a jam may become chunky if used alone. The addition of apples helps achieve a more uniform and pleasant consistency. However, you can still pass the jam through a mesh sieve if you want a fine, smooth texture. Since apples are high in natural pectin, you don’t need to add any.

Apple Jam with Less Sugar

Please note that I always make jam with less sugar. The common proportion is 1:1 (fruit to sugar), but I always opt for at least 2:1, or even less, which yields a more fruit-forward and clean taste. However, this means that sometimes I need to add additional pectin. It also affects the shelf life of jams, making it shorter, because sugar works as a preservative. If you follow this recipe and ratio, be sure to consume the jam within 2 weeks or so or cut the recipe in half.

Ingredients You’ll Need for Apple Rosehip Jam

• Apples – Go with tart and sweet varieties that are good for cooking, e.g., Granny Smith, Pink Lady, Empire, Cortland, or Gala. For the best flavour, use two or more varieties, such.
• Rosehips. You will need about 350 g whole fruit, or 250 g of the seeded.
• Granulated Sugar – I used only 1/2 cup, but feel free to increase to your taste.
• lemon Juice – an optional ingredient, for added freshness.
• Water – Can substitute orange juice.

More Fun Fall Jam Recipes

Looking for more exciting jam recipes to enjoy this fall? Please check the ideas below:

• Orange Rowan Berry Jam
• Rowan Berry Apple Jam
• Pear Brandy Jam
• Fig Jam with Brandy (Dried Fig Spread)
• Maple Fig Jam (With Lemon and Vanilla)

I hope you enjoy this recipe for Apple Rosehip Jam and will give it a try. If you try it, please let me know in the comment section below, send me an Instagram message, or share your photos by adding the hashtag #havocinthekitchen.

Cheers!

Apple Rosehip Jam

Recipe by Ben | Havocinthekitchen

Apple Rosehip Jam is a delicious early autumn recipe that combines juicy apples with the fruity, tangy, and subtly floral taste of rosehips.

Course: Sweet Spreads and PreservesDifficulty: Medium

5.0 from 2 votes

Pin

Print

Prep time

45

minutes

Cooking time

1

hour 

Yields

~ 550

grams

Cook Mode

Keep the screen of your device on

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 lb. (700 g) apples – about 3 large apples

• about 300-350 g whole rosehips
  or 250 g seeded

• 1/2 cup (100 g) granulated sugar
  or more, as desired

• 1/2 to 2/3 cup (120 to 160 ml) water
  can substitute orange juice

• 1-2 tbsp. (15-30 ml) fresh lemon juice (optional)

Directions

• First, you need to harvest rose hips. wait until the fruit is bright red or orange (depending on the variety) and is slightly soft, but not wrinkled. Gently twist rose hips from the stem, or use pruners or scissors to snip larger fruits.
• After harvesting, rinse the hips and trim off any stems or leaves. Cut the fruit in half and remove the small, irritating seeds and hairs from the inside of the fruit. A small dessert spoon is suitable for this task. Kitchen gloves are also helpful in protecting the skin from irritation. Rinse the seeded halves to remove any remaining seeds and hairs.
• Core and seed the apples and chop them roughly. You can peel the skins, but I don’t recommend it, as they are known for their concentration of pectin.
• Add the chopped apples, seeded rose hips, sugar, lemon juice (if using), and 1/2 cup (120 ml) of water and bring to a simmer, stirring to dissolve the sugar.
  
• Cook gently, stirring regularly, for 45-60 minutes until the apples have collapsed and rose hips have softened. During this step, you may need to add more water, if the jam looks too thick. Also, be sure to taste and add more sugar, if necessary.
• To test if the jam is ready, use the wrinkle test: add a small amount of jam onto a cold plate and allow it to cool. If the jam wrinkles when you push it with your finger, it is ready.
• Once you are satisfied with the jam consistency, turn the heat off and let it cool. If desired, you can pass the jam through a fine sieve to strain out the rose hip skins, as they remain quite visible and tough, just like in my pictures.
• Keep the jam in a container or jar in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. Because it is low in sugar, its shelf life is limited. To extend its life, the jam can be preserved. However, even canned, low-sugar jams do not keep as long as high-sugar ones. I do not can myself, so I cannot advise on safe canning methods.

Notes

• The amount of jam will depend on the amount of sugar and water you have added, as well as how much you have cooked down the jam. My version yielded approximately 550 g, partly because I cooked it for an hour, but it can yield more if you incorporate additional sugar and water and cook less.