Homemade jam is a fun culinary project that only requires a few ingredients, making it a great endeavor for even inexperienced home cooks. However, it can be difficult to thicken jam correctly, and you may not want to indulge in jars upon jars of a super-sugary confection, so try thickening jam with this nutritious ingredient.

You can make a delicious, no-sugar-added jam using only fruit, lemon juice, chia seeds, and all you have to do is heat your fruit (fresh or frozen) on the stove, mash it, and stir in the remaining ingredients. Alternatively, you could stir chia seeds into mashed up fruit and simply let the mixture sit in the fridge until it thickens up.

Chia seeds are a nutritional powerhouse that are high in fiber and omega-3 fatty acids, which can help lower cholesterol, aid in weight loss, and reduce risk of heart disease. They work well with jam because they're extremely adept at soaking up liquid, causing the mixture to thicken while also adding some nutrients to your jam.