Steps

• Wash the apricots, open them and remove the pit. Cut them into pieces.
  Peel the half apple and cut it into small pieces.
  Put the fruit and sugar in a microwave-safe container; I used a glass one.
  Set the microwave to full power for 15 minutes. Halfway through cooking, stop the microwave to stir the fruit. If desired, it can be stirred more times to better distribute the heat, but I did it just once.

  After the time is up, leave the container in the oven to rest. I recommend a minimum resting time of 15 minutes.

  Blend briefly with an immersion blender. I like my jam to remain ‘chunky’, and I like having pieces of fruit. However, I always ensure there are no apple pieces left.

  Check the consistency of the mixture, and if it’s too liquid, restart the microwave for another 5-10 minutes, as needed.

  👉 During microwave cooking, the fruit softens, and the sugar melts, making the mixture soft and possibly too liquid for jam. Consider that once cooled, the jam will thicken further.

  Remember to add the apple; it’s very useful as it helps the jam to thicken.

  Fill the jars.

  

• If you intend to use this apricot jam immediately, for example, to make a tart, you can store the jars in the fridge: it keeps for several days without issues.

  If you want to store it for the winter, you need to get glass jars with suitable closures and sterilize them by boiling them in a pot (they must be completely submerged in water) before using them.
  Once the jars filled with jam are completely cooled, they must be boiled to create a vacuum seal (in a large pot, ‘standing’ with the lid on top and the water covering the lid by at least three fingers, and protected with a cloth to prevent them from hitting each other) for 20-30 minutes. They should be left in the boiling water to cool and then stored in a, preferably cool and dark, pantry.