Ingredients:
3 lb Black Velvet apricots, stones removed
2 1/4 cups sugar
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 tablespoons whole Tellicherry peppercorns

Directions:
Place the peppercorns in tea ball. Place everything in a heavy bottomed pot. Stir.

Bring to a boil. Reduce heat slightly and cook until thick, stirring occasionally and smashing up the apricots with the back of your spoon. Discard the peppercorns.

Pour into prepared jars leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes.

Yield: about 4 8-oz jars

Note: A great source for canning information is the Blue Book guide to preserving. I highly recommend it for learning how to can. Here are some of my other favorite canning books and supplies.

My thoughts:

When I spoted Black Velvet Apricots at the store, I had to have them. Black apricots! When I googled them when I came home, I realized that technically they were aprium, which made sense once I ate one. They were small like an apricot, the skin was a fuzzy black but the inside was closer to that of a plum than an apriot. So, so sweet and delicous. Yum! I had too many to eat before they’d spoil so I made this small batch of jam. It was pretty quick and easy because I didn’t have to peel them or use pectin. The skin just melted into the jam and it set up really nicely on its own. I added a bit of pepper for a hint of spice to counteract the intense sweetness which I enjoyed as sort of an afternote. It is really, really good on Greek yogurt.