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08/04/2006 Archived Entry: "Jelly Success"

JELLY SUCCESS! Last night's experiment with the liquid pectin had a happy ending. The syrup, which I boiled about 15 minutes, added the pectin, then boiled for 10 more before processing in a boiling water bath, was pretty liquid-y immediately after processing. But this morning it's firmly jelled in the jars.

The color is still wrong (more peach than pink), but that might be the recipe (behind the "more" link). Tonight I'm going to try varying the recipe, adding more prickly pear juice and less sugar and lemon juice.

Prickly Pear Jelly Recipe:

3 cups sugar
1 cup prickly pear juice
1/3 cup lemon juice
3 oz (1 pouch) liquid pectin

In a non-reactive (glass, porcelain, or stainless steel) pan, slow-boil the first three ingredients together until sugar is completely dissolved (about 15 - 20 minutes) stirring constantly. Watch carefully, as the syrup has a tendency to foam out of the pan.

Add the pectin and slow-boil another 5-10 minutes, again stirring constantly and watching carefully. The longer you boil, the stiffer the jelly will end up. Pour into 3 8-oz sterilized jelly jars (there will be a little bit left over -- toss it into another jar and keep it in the fridge for breakfast). Wipe rims, put on lids and rings (sterilized, of course), put jars into a boiling water bath (basically a big pot filled with enough water to cover the tops of the jars by at least an inch) and boil for about 25 minutes. Remove jars and let cool before removing the rings and storing.

Note: this recipe was done at 6,000' elevation, so you probably don't have to process as long as I did.

Posted by Debra @ 11:58 AM CST
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