Healthy Kid Series: Healthier Jam
My kids, just like 99.99% of other kids, love them some sunflower/almond butter (allergies) and jelly sandwiches. You can get a pretty decent nut/seed butter from most stores; but jelly… talk about a sugar overload! Even the jelly labeled “no added sweetener” has fruit juice concentrate (aka fruit sugar without any of the fruit’s micronutrients). There is nothing like a mid-afternoon crash after lunch during school!
Doing a quick search on Amazon, I found the best sellers for “jams, jellies & preserves” and compiled a list of the top 3 along with their sugar content for 2 tablespoons of jelly:
1. 24g: Smucker’s
2. 26g: Welch’s Concord Grape
3. 24g: Knott’s Blackberry
The daily recommended sugar intake for a child is LESS than 25 grams. The serving size on each of these jars is 1 tablespoon, but let’s get real… 1 tablespoon is hardly enough jelly for a sandwich, and your kids will tell you exactly just that after school.
Did that just blow your mind? 100% of your child’s recommended sugar intake gone in 2 tablespoons of jelly. It is no wonder more and more kids are becoming insulin resistant leading to type 2 diabetes.
Not to be a total Debbie Downer, here is the recipe to the jelly I’ve been making my kids. It utilizes Swerve as the sweetener. Clinically tested, Swerve, an erythritol blend, does not raise your blood sugar. Your kids get their beloved jelly sandwich but without the sugar highs and sugar crashes.
Fruit Jam Recipe
Ingredients
- 4oz of any fruit, stick to berries for keto diet
- ¼ cup of Swerve (or another preferred sweetener)
- ¼ cup Filtered Water
- 4 g Grass-Fed Gelatin
- 15 g Lemon Juice
- Optional: 2 tbsp Chia Seeds (adds healthy omega-3 fats and also give the jelly more binding)
Instructions
1. Mix gelatin and lemon juice together and set aside.
2. Add fruit, water, and sweetener into a pot and start cooking on medium for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. When the fruit has softened, add the gelatin mix and stir constantly until the gelatin is well incorporated.
4. Then blend in a mixer, and pour into an air-tight container or mason jar.
5. If you are adding chia seeds, add them in and mix.
6. Let jam settle in the fridge for 24 hours. If you are using chia seeds, I like to shake up the jar around the 12-hour mark because the chia tend to float all to the top.
Total calories will depend on what ingredients are used, so do your due diligence and add it to your calorie calculator and track!
Quick Recipe Series
- Cauliflower Rice Sushi- Nut/Seed Granola
Pancake Series Recipes
- Matcha Pancakes Recipe
- Coffee Mocha Pancakes Recipe
Gluten-Free, Grain-Free, Keto and Paleo Friendly Recipes to Try
- Bread Recipe
- Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe
- Cinnamon Roll Cookies Recipe
Healthy Kid Series Recipes
Until next time,
Tami
All posts are my original recipes or ideas unless otherwise stated. Photos were taken with my iPhone. Please follow and come back if you enjoyed this post.