Pear Jam with Green Cardamom

I found this super easy tasty-sounding jam recipe in my Food & Wine magazine.  I'm ripening my pears as we speak so that in a few days I can try it out myself.  It's a 2 day recipe in that you have to soak the pears for one day, but there's no complicated canning process.  I promise to report how it turned out, but I just had to share before the holidays were over.  To vary this recipe, add a split vanilla bean or a cinnamon stick in place of the cardamom.  I'm definitely using the cardamom though...it sounds so flavorful!

INGREDIENTS:

4 pounds ripe Bartlett pears - peeled, cored and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
4 cups sugar
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon green cardamom pods, lightly crushed
1 tablespoon honey

DIRECTIONS:


1.  In a large glass or ceramic bowl, toss the pears with the sugar and lemon juice. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
2.  Put a metal spoon in the freezer. Transfer the pears and their liquid to a wide, heavy pot and bring to a boil.  Put the crushed cardamom in a tea ball and add it to the pot.  Cook the pears over high heat, stirring frequently, until the liquid starts to thicken and the pears become translucent, about 10 minutes.  Remove the pot from the heat.
3.  Transfer one-third of the pears to a food processor or a food mill and puree until smooth.  Add the puree to the pot.  Boil over moderately high heat, stirring until the jam is very thick, about 5 minutes.  To test the jam, drop a small amount on the chilled spoon and freeze for about 30 seconds.  When you tilt the spoon, the jam should be thick and run down the spoon slowly.  If the jam is runny, cook it for a few minutes longer, then test again.  Remove the tea ball and stir in the honey.
4.  Ladle the jam into three clean, 1-pint jars and let cool completely.  Tightly close the jars and store the pear jam in the refrigerator for up to 2 months.  (I'm going to use little 12 ounce jars to give out this holiday!).