Jams & Jellies

This past growing season I managed to put away quite a bit of preserved foods. Being that our yard is so small the majority of produce was not our own produce but it all was local for the most part. This particular post will focus on Jams & Jellies that I made this year and will be followed by Pickles & Relish and Salsa's.

Strawberry Jelly

The last few year we have been getting our berries from Sunny Terrace Farms. They have very nice strawberries and are located about :10 south east of us.

It was strawberry jelly that started my interest in canning and I have been making it for about four years now I think. Above are the ingredients needed to make two batches of strawberry jelly.

This is the jelly bag that I use to extract the juice from the berries. My Mom made this jelly bag out of an embroidery hoop, muslin type fabric & ribbon and it works great. I may be multifaceted but sewing is definitely not one of the facets. I hang it from the kitchen sink light and let it drain into a bowl in the sink. Once the juice stops flowing I lightly squeeze the bag to get the remaining juice out. It is a bit of work but I detest wiggly strawberries in my jam!

Above is the strawberry jelly I made this season, it is a double batch. An excellent recipe that tastes just like summer when the snow is flying. The recipe follows:

3-3/4 cups prepared juice (buy about 3 qt. fully ripe strawberries)

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

7-1/2 cups sugar, measured into separate bowl

1/2 tsp. butter or margarine

2 pouches CERTO Fruit Pectin

BRING boiling-water canner, half full with water, to simmer. Wash jars and screw bands in hot soapy water; rinse with warm water. Pour boiling water over flat lids in saucepan off the heat. Let stand in hot water until ready to use. Drain jars well before filling.

STEM and crush strawberries thoroughly, one layer at a time. Place three layers of damp cheesecloth or a jelly bag in large bowl. Pour prepared fruit into cheesecloth. Tie cheesecloth closed; hang and let drip into bowl until dripping stops. Press gently. Measure exactly 3-3/4 cups juice into 6- or 8-qt. saucepot. Stir in lemon juice.

STIR sugar into juice in saucepot. Add butter to reduce foaming. Bring mixture to full rolling boil (a boil that doesn't stop bubbling when stirred) on high heat, stirring constantly. Stir in pectin. Return to full rolling boil and boil exactly 1 min., stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Skim off any foam with metal spoon.

LADLE immediately into prepared jars, filling to within 1/8 inch of tops. Wipe jar rims and threads. Cover with two-piece lids. Screw bands tightly. Place jars on elevated rack in canner. Lower rack into canner. (Water must cover jars by 1 to 2 inches. Add boiling water, if necessary.) Cover; bring water to gentle boil. Process 5 min. Remove jars and place upright on a towel to cool completely. After jars cool, check seals by pressing middle of lids with finger. (If lids spring back, lids are not sealed and refrigeration is necessary.)

Peach Jam

Above is the peach jam that I made for the first time. It turned out tasting more like marmalade then peach for some reason. The fruit was not 100% ripe when I used it so I am guessing this is the problem. I will have to try again next season with fully ripe fruit. The recipes follows:

4 cups prepared fruit (buy about 3 lb. fully ripe peaches)

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

7-1/2 cups sugar, measured into separate bowl

1/2 tsp. butter or margarine

1 pouch CERTO Fruit Pectin

BRING boiling-water canner, half full with water, to simmer. Wash jars and screw bands in hot soapy water; rinse with warm water. Pour boiling water over flat lids in saucepan off the heat. Let stand in hot water until ready to use. Drain well before filling.

PEEL and pit peaches. Finely chop or grind fruit. Measure exactly 4 cups prepared fruit into 6- or 8-qt. saucepot. Stir in lemon juice.

STIR sugar into prepared fruit in saucepot. Add butter to reducing foaming. Bring to full rolling boil (a boil that doesn't stop bubbling when stirred) on high heat, stirring constantly. Stir in pectin. Return to full rolling boil and boil exactly 1 min., stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Skim off any foam with metal spoon.

LADLE immediately into prepared jars, filling to within 1/8 inch of tops. Wipe jar rims and threads. Cover with two-piece lids. Screw bands tightly. Place jars on elevated rack in canner. Lower rack into canner. (Water must cover jars by 1 to 2 inches. Add boiling water, if necessary.) Cover; bring water to gentle boil. Process 10 min. Remove jars and place upright on towel to cool completely. After jars cool, check seals by pressing middles of lids with finger. (If lids springs back, lids are not sealed and refrigeration is necessary.)

Cherry Jam, both sweet & sour

Above is a sweet cherry jam that I made in April from California cherries, this one is definitely not local. I made one batch of it and it is pretty good.

Above is sour cherry jam made with tart cherries. I much prefer it to the sweet one so next season I will make a double batch with just sour cherries. You may notice there only are 2 jars and an almost empty one, this one definitely has gone over well. The Recipe follows:

4 cups prepared fruit (buy about 3 lb. fully ripe sour cherries)

6-1/4 cups sugar, measured into separate bowl

1/2 tsp. butter or margarine

2 pouches CERTO Fruit Pectin

1/4 tsp. almond extract

BRING boiling-water canner, half full with water, to simmer. Wash jars and screw bands in hot soapy water; rinse with warm water. Pour boiling water over flat lids in saucepan off the heat. Let stand in hot water until ready to use. Drain jars well before filling.

STEM and pit cherries. Finely chop or grind fruit. Measure exactly 4 cups prepared fruit into 6- or 8-qt. saucepot.

STIR sugar into prepared fruit in saucepot. Add butter to reduce foaming. Bring mixture to full rolling boil (a boil that doesn't stop bubbling when stirred) on high heat, stirring constantly. Stir in pectin. Return to full rolling boil and boil exactly 1 min., stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Skim off any foam with metal spoon. Stir in extract.

LADLE immediately into prepared jars, filling to within 1/8 inch of tops. Wipe jar rims and threads. Cover with two-piece lids. Screw bands tightly. Place jars on elevated rack in canner. Lower rack into canner. (Water must cover jars by 1 to 2 inches. Add boiling water, if necessary.) Cover; bring water to gentle boil. Process 10 min. Remove jars and place upright on a towel to cool completely. After jars cool, check seals by pressing middles of lids with finger. (If lids spring back, lids are not sealed and refrigeration is necessary.)

All recipes came from Kraft Foods