30+ Blackberry Canning Recipes

Blackberry canning recipes are one of the most satisfying ways to put up a summer bumper crop, turning an afternoon of picking into a pantry full of jam, jelly, pie filling, and more. Brave the thorns once, and you’ll be eating like it’s August all winter long.

Every year we pull out buckets and head into the brambles, and we always come back to the house stumbling under the weight of all that fruit. Blackberries don’t mess around, and if you’re willing to brave the thorns, you can fill your pantry with blackberry canning recipes in exchange for an afternoon’s work.

My husband grew up in Oregon, where the blackberries are so prolific they’re treated as an invasive weed and mowed down by the acre. He’d get sent out with his three brothers to pick, and they’d come back with all they could carry, having barely dented the crop.

Here in Vermont, blackberries aren’t invasive the way they are in the Pacific Northwest, but there’s still plenty to go around, whether you forage wild canes or grow your own. Blackberries are naturally acidic, so they’re safe for water bath canning, which keeps every recipe here beginner-friendly.

Canning Plain Blackberries

There are plenty of reasons to can blackberries all on their own, with no other ingredients or flavors added. It’s a good way to keep them on hand for whenever inspiration strikes, without having to decide what to make at the busiest point of the season.

Packed in a light syrup or juice, plain canned blackberries are ready to fold into a cobbler, spoon over yogurt, or turn into jam or jelly down the road. They keep their color and flavor surprisingly well.

• Canning Blackberries covers packing them plain or in a light syrup step by step

Blackberry Pie Filling

Canning blackberry pie filling means a pie is always within reach. Make a crust, pour in a jar, and bake, and you’ve got fresh-tasting blackberry pie in the middle of winter.

It’s just as good layered into a cake or spooned over ice cream. Like any canned pie filling, these use Clear Jel, the one thickener tested as safe for canning.

• Canning Blackberry Pie Filling makes a thick, ready-to-bake filling for pies and desserts

Blackberry Jam

For a lot of us, blackberry jam is the whole reason to go picking in the first place. It’s one of the simpler blackberry canning recipes, and blackberries carry enough natural pectin that many versions set up with no added pectin at all.

You don’t have to stop at plain, either. Blackberries pair well with apples, peaches, or mango, and a little vanilla, honey, or lavender takes the flavor somewhere new. There’s even a seedless version if the little seeds aren’t your thing.

• Old-Fashioned Blackberry Jam (No Added Pectin) sets with just blackberries and sugar
• Seedless Blackberry Jam (No Added Pectin) strains out the seeds while keeping all the flavor
• Maple Blackberry Jam sweetens with maple syrup in just three ingredients
• Blackberry Honey Jam skips both pectin and white sugar
• Sugar-Free Blackberry Jam uses a sugar-free pectin for a no-sugar set
• Blackberry Apple Jam leans on apples for natural pectin and body
• Blackberry Peach Jam blends two late-summer fruits into one spread
• Vanilla Lavender Blackberry Jam adds floral lavender and vanilla
• Blackberry Mango Jam brings in tropical mango for a sweet twist

Blackberry Jelly

At its simplest, blackberry jelly is nothing more than blackberries and sugar strained into a smooth, seedless spread. It’s a good way to skip the seeds while keeping every bit of that deep berry flavor.

From there you can branch out into savory and spiced territory. A little jalapeno makes a sweet-hot jelly for the cheese board, and apple or pecan versions are worth a look too.

• Blackberry Jelly (No Added Pectin) sets a smooth, seedless jelly without a box of pectin
• Blackberry Pecan Jelly folds toasted pecans into the jelly
• Blackberry Jalapeno Jelly brings sweet heat for serving over cream cheese
• Apple Blackberry Jelly uses apples for a reliable natural set

Blackberry Sauce & Compote

A jar of blackberry sauce brings the taste of summer to the table in the dead of winter. It’s wonderful over cobbler, pancakes, and ice cream, and it holds its own draped over pork or duck too.

Compote is the looser, chunkier cousin, and the method is the same for just about any fruit puree. Sweeten it to taste, or leave it tart and let the berries speak for themselves.

• Canning Blackberry Sauce is built for cobblers, sonkers, and dumplings
• Blackberry Applesauce gives classic applesauce incredible flavor
• Lavender Blueberry Blackberry Sauce blends two berries with floral lavender
• Canning Fruit Purees and Compotes is the NCHFP method for safely canning purees

Blackberry Butter

Blackberry butter cooks the fruit down low and slow into a smooth, deeply flavored spread, and it’s a fine way to use up a big haul at once. It’s lovely on toast and a nice change of pace on a cheese board.

A splash of honey or a handful of apples rounds out the flavor and helps it thicken. Like other fruit butters, it needs little or no added pectin to come together.

• Apple Blackberry Butter combines blackberries and apples into a thick butter
• Honey Sweetened Blackberry Butter sweetens with honey instead of refined sugar

Blackberry Juice & Lemonade Concentrate

When you’d rather drink your blackberries, juice and concentrate are the way to go. Plain blackberry juice is good for sipping and doubles as a base for jelly or drinks later on.

A canned lemonade concentrate is the real workhorse here, giving you blackberry lemonade by the glass all summer. A jar of concentrate plus a pitcher of cold water is about the fastest summer drink there is.

• Blackberry Juice cans plain blackberry juice for drinking or making jelly
• Blackberry Lemonade Concentrate cans down to a concentrate you dilute by the glass
• Blackberry Juice Concentrate cooks the juice down to save pantry space

Blackberry Syrup

Blackberry syrup turns fresh summer berries into a rich, pourable syrup for the pantry. Waffles, pancakes, desserts, and drinks are all better for a bottle of it on the shelf.

It’s also a fun base for sodas and cocktails, and a little lemon or herb brightens the flavor. A few jars stretch the blackberry season well past the first frost.

• Blackberry Syrup makes a rich pourable syrup for breakfast and drinks
• Blackberry Lemon Thyme Syrup adds lemon and thyme for a more grown-up pour

Pickled Blackberries

Pickled blackberries are an unexpected treat, sweet and tangy and ready to liven up a plate. They pair surprisingly well with pork chops, steak, chicken salad, and even roasted sweet potatoes.

Firm, just-ripe berries hold up best in the brine, and the spiced syrup that’s left behind is worth saving for dressings. Make a few jars and you’ll keep finding new ways to use them.

• Pickled Blackberries is a simple traditional sweet-and-sour version
• Spiced and Pickled Blackberries adds warm spices to the brine
• Savory Pickled Blackberries takes a more savory turn for serving with meats

Blackberry Chutney

Blackberry chutney cooks the berries down with vinegar, onion, and spices into a thick, savory-sweet condiment. It’s a natural alongside cheese, cold-meat sandwiches, and a holiday cheese board.

If you’ve never made a fruit chutney, this is an approachable place to start. A jar or two also makes a thoughtful homemade gift for the cooks in your life.

• Blackberry Chutney is a classic savory-sweet chutney for canning
• Irish Blackberry Chutney is a traditional Connemara-style version

Other Ways to Preserve Blackberries

Canning isn’t the only way to hang onto a blackberry haul. Freezing and dehydrating are both simple, and frozen berries are perfect for tossing into winter smoothies and baking.

And if the canes really run wild the way they do out West, a batch of blackberry wine is a satisfying use for all that extra fruit.

• Homemade Blackberry Wine ferments ripe blackberries into a deep red wine
• How to Freeze Blackberries keeps fresh berries ready for baking and smoothies
• How to Dehydrate Blackberries dries berries for snacking and baking
• 16 Ways to Preserve Blackberries rounds up even more ideas for a big harvest

Blackberry season is fleeting and a little prickly, but a shelf lined with deep-purple jars makes the scratches worth it. Pick more than feels reasonable while the canes are loaded, and freeze whatever you can’t get to right away.

With this many ways to put them up, even one good picking afternoon can keep your pantry interesting all year. Start with whatever you’ve got and a tested recipe, and go from there.

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