{"id":4763,"date":"2020-07-04T23:05:46","date_gmt":"2020-07-05T06:05:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.zojirushi.com\/blog\/?p=4763"},"modified":"2024-08-29T13:28:00","modified_gmt":"2024-08-29T20:28:00","slug":"july-is-national-blueberry-month","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.zojirushi.com\/blog\/july-is-national-blueberry-month\/","title":{"rendered":"July Is National Blueberry Month!"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Blueberry Bread<\/strong>
\nThis is an official month declared by the USDA<\/span><\/strong><\/a>! Did you know that blueberries are native to North America and we grow them in 35 out of the 50 states? That means we supply about 95% of the world\u2019s crop. It\u2019s known as a superfood, because they\u2019re rich in fiber, low in calories and full of vitamins and antioxidants. It\u2019s also one of the few foods found in nature that are blue, so there\u2019s always that.<\/p>\n

I wanted to try Blueberry Bread with my breakmaker, so I found a recipe on the Fleischmann\u2019s<\/strong><\/span><\/a> site, the people who produce the instant yeast in bottles and packets. The experts at Zojirushi advised me to use dried blueberries because using fresh ones would make the dough soggy. This also gave me a chance to use the dispensing attachment that comes with the breadmaker\u2014it drops whatever dry ingredient you want into the dough for you, so you don\u2019t have to interrupt the cycle or even take the dough out. Worked like a charm. This is all I needed according to the recipe. (The black container is the auto ingredient dispenser.)
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Ready to go.
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This was the best looking bread I\u2019ve been able to bake with my breadmaker. I mean, look how perfectly shaped it is! And the texture and color of it was amazing. Then when I sliced it open and saw the swirly blueberry, I was totally impressed. And yeah, it tasted as good as it looked, so I rated this one an \u201cA\u201d and patted myself on the back.
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Blueberry Jam<\/strong>
\nNow for some fresh (ok, frozen fresh) blueberries and my Blueberry Jam using a Zojirushi recipe<\/span><\/strong><\/a> for the breadmaker! This also turned out amazingly good, and I think the credit goes to using fresh ingredients.
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The frozen blueberries worked out great, and I made up for the freshness factor by using lemons from our garden!
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I mean, this jam only requires blueberries, sugar and lemon juice\u2014add it to the pan and the machine does the rest. Be sure to mash up the berries first.
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Cook for an hour and twenty minutes with the Jam Course and ta-dah! Fresh blueberry jam!
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Pour the jam into a glass jar and refrigerate to thicken it a bit. The homemade jam recipes online suggest adding pectin to the jam to add firmness, which I did\u2014you can buy that at the supermarket.
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\nThis was a very tasty jam\u2014not too sweet like the kind you get at the store. And it felt good knowing there weren\u2019t any preservatives in it; but of course that means you can\u2019t keep it that long in your fridge. Next up for jams\u2014strawberry!<\/p>\n

Just For Fun<\/strong>
\nWhat do you do when the twist-off cap on your soda won\u2019t open? You use your slipper of course! (Don\u2019t worry\u2014I cleaned the bottle before drinking!)
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