In the mood for jam ~ Star Fruit jam that is!

I have a beautiful star fruit or carambola tree in my back yard.  It gives me two pickings every year.  This season, my tree is loaded with huge, sweet, juicy, delicious star fruit. I am not sure if it's the rain (or I kind of remember giving it some fertilizer a while back) or the heat, but I have fruit galore!



I bring bags of it to the office, give to the neighbors, my mother, my sister, and anyone else that want it.  Every season, I make delicious jam with my star fruits.  It's super easy and so delicious. Here's how to make this delicious concoction:

For about 2 cups of jam, you'll need 12 - 15 medium to large star fruits, 2 cups of granulated sugar, and 1 vanilla bean (very important) cut into 2-3 pieces.

After cleaning the star fruits with a brush under running water, cut the ridges of the fruits (that's usually more stringy and green), then cut lengthwise into quarter and then cut again lengthwise.  Dice everything into small  pieces and place in a large pot on the stove.

Add your sugar and your vanilla bean.  Simmer on low heat for 2 1/2 to 3 hours to reduce the juice produced by the star fruits.  You'll have a thick and fraguant jam.  Let it cool and refrigerate.  It's delicious with plain 0% fat Greek plain or vanilla yogurt, vanilla ice cream, or simply on a piece of toast.  

While I will not give you the nutritional information of the star fruit, I can tell you that they are rich in antioxidants, potassium, and vitamin C.

A word of warning:  people with kidney disease and kidney stone should stay away from eating star fruits as they contain oxalic acid.  Patients that also take statins for cardiovascular illnesses should not consume star fruits as they can increase the statins dosage within the body.