Peach Jam

First, peel the peaches (this step is optional, I just prefer to have no skin in the jam). To peel the peaches, bring water to a boil in a large pot, place the peaches (previously washed) in it and boil for 2 minutes.

Then transfer the peaches to cold water (ice water is better, but cold tap water will do). After these manipulations, the skin will easily come off the peaches with just your hands, although in some places you may need to use a knife to lift it.

Peel the peaches, cut them in half and remove the pit. Cut the halves into quarters and then cut each quarter into 3-4 small slices. Now, sprinkle the peaches with lemon juice to prevent them from darkening.

Next, prepare the syrup for the future jam: put 60 ml of water and all the sugar in a pot (the same pot you will use to cook the jam) and heat it over medium heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves. This will result in a rich syrup.

Carefully place the peaches in the syrup and cook, stirring frequently with a wooden spoon. It is especially important to stir towards the end of cooking, when the jam is already thick enough.

When the peaches soften, you can lightly crush them with a spoon while stirring. This will help thicken the jam faster. Once the mixture thickens enough and stops dripping from the spoon, the peach jam is ready. This will take around 40-60 minutes of cooking. Remove the jam from the heat. If you have decided to make peach jam without vanilla, you can pour it into jars.

If you have decided to add the aroma of vanilla to the jam, split the vanilla pod lengthwise and scrape out the seeds with a knife.

In the ready peach jam, add the seeds, stir, and put the pod there. After 10 minutes, you can remove the pod and pour the peach jam into jars.