My friend Mary gave me some delicious fresh figs from her tree in her garden which inspired me to finally write down my jam recipe! This jam recipe is versatile and you can use with any fruit you want. Simply substitute the figs for any fruit you desire. I developed it because I was looking a for a more healthy natural jam spread for my family. It’s gluten free and plant based which is something we are always looking for in my house. The recipe is as follows, enjoy!
Ingredients:
2 cups of figs (or any fruit you prefer)
1/2 – 1 cup of medjool dates
2 – 4 tablespoons of chia seeds
1/4 teaspoon of lemon zest (optional)
the juice of half a lemon (optional)
approximately 2-2.5 cups of water
Time:
Prep time approximately 15 – 20 minutes
Cook time approximately 25 minutes
Cut up approximately 2 cups of figs. Chop to size that you 
prefer, personally I like mine a little bit chunky. Then cut up approximately 1/2 – 1 cup of dates. Dates are a sweet delicious substitute for sugar. If you like it more on the sweet side use a 1 cup which is about 8-10 medjool dates. I used about 1/2 a cup.
Mix together in a bowl 2 tablespoons of chia seeds and 4 tablespoons of water. I explain it like this to give you an idea of proportion. Remember the ratio is 2:1. Depending on how thick you like jam, you can do more or less chia seeds. I like mine to be in the middle, not too runny not too firm. Set that aside, while you do this next part the chia seeds will start to get gelatinous and expand.
On medium heat, in a larger sauce pan add approximately 1/3 -1/2 cup of water. Let that heat up. Then add the medjool dates. Water stir fry the dates until they get to creamy consistency. This takes approximately 2-3 minutes.
Next add the figs and the remaining water. 
Give it a good stir and then let it come to a boil. Once it boils, then cover and reduce the heat to low. Let it low boil for about 15 minutes.
Next add the chia seeds. Mix it all together until the chia seeds are well incorporated. (Optionally you can now add lemon zest, lemon juice or both! I like to add it because it creates sweetness with a touch of sour which makes the flavor more versatile in cooking.) Then recover and let boil for 5 more minutes.
At this point you can use an immersion blender if you like it smoother. If you don’t mind the chunkiness then there is nothing more to do! And that is it!
This recipe yields about 1 1/4-1/2 pints of jam. This will last in the refrigerator about 2 weeks. It also freezes well and once you open it the same 2 weeks applies.
Also those of you who are not too familiar with fig jam, it is great on all kinds of things not just toast! Roasted vegetables, meat, mix into a dressing, almond butter and this together is also heavenly… you name it!
Enjoy!