Croissaint with butter and jam.
Homemade fruit jellies and jams are delicious and economical. If you're lucky enough to be able to grow your own fruit, you can make jellies and jams from your own harvest. If you already have the jars, your only costs are for sugar and jar lids. Even if you buy your fruit at a grocery store or farmer's market, the jellies and jams you make will taste better to you and your family than store bought preserves. Best of all, you know exactly what is in them and how they were made. Jams--thick fruit spreads--are easier to make than jellies, which are made by cooking fruit juice with sugar.
Instructions
Fruit Jam
1. Boil jars for 10 minutes to sterilize.
Fill the water bath canner with 4 to 4-1/2 inches of hot tap water. Set the canning jars, bottoms up, on a rack inside the canner. Bring the water to a boil over high heat and boil for 10 minutes. Turn off the heat. Leave the jars in the water until you're ready to use them. Wash and rinse the lids and screw bands. Bear in mind that you can use the lids only once, as they may not seal during a second use.
2. Use a tall saucepan to prevent boil-overs.
Clean the fruit. Remove the stems, pits, cores and hulls. Combine the prepared fruit with sweetener and lemon juice in the saucepan in amounts specified in your recipe. For most fruit, add 6 cups of sugar and 1/4 cup of lemon juice to 2 quarts of fruit. Apples, grapes, blueberries, blackberries, cherries, cranberries or grapes have enough natural pectin to gel their own juice; add pectin if you are using other fruit. Stir over low heat until the sweetener dissolves, then boil rapidly. Stir the mixture frequently as it thickens to prevent the fruit from scorching on the bottom of the pan. Immerse the thermometer in the boiling mixture to check for doneness. Remove the saucepan from heat when the temperature of the fruit mixture reaches 220 degrees Fahrenheit.
3. Fill the jars with the hot fruit mixture.
Fill the sterilized jars with the hot fruit mixture, leaving 1/4" space between the fruit level and the top of the jar. Wipe the rims with a clean, damp cloth. Install the lids according to the manufacturer's instructions. Place the jars on the rack in the water bath canner and cover them with water, covering the jars by at least 2 inches. Cover the canner and bring the water to a boil. Boil the jars for 5 minutes, starting when the water starts to boil. Carefully remove the jars from the canner with the jar lifter.
4. Jars of jelly.
Check the seals after the jars have cooled for 24 hours. Refrigerate any unsealed jars and use the contents within two weeks. Wipe the sealed jars, remove the screw bands, label and date the jars and store them in a cool, dry, dark place.
Fruit Jelly
5. Remove stems but not pits from cherries.
Clean the fruit thoroughly and remove any stems, but do not peel or core the fruit. Preheat the water bath.
6. Crush the fruit as it cooks to release the juices.
Cook the fruit. Boil the fruit over high heat, stirring frequently. Add 1 cup of water per pound of hard fruit such as apples, but use just enough water to prevent berries and other soft fruits from scorching. Crush the fruit as it cooks to release the juices. Cook berries and grapes 10 minutes or less, until soft. Cook hard fruits for 20 to 25 minutes.
7. If you don't have a jelly bag, use a colander with cheesecloth.
Pour the mixture into a damp jelly bag or a colander lined with a double thickness of cheesecloth and set over a bowl. Do not squeeze the bag. Allow the juice to filter for eight hours or overnight, until sediment settles on the bottom of the bowl. Combine the fruit juice with sweetener and lemon juice according to your recipe and boil until the jelly reaches 220 degrees Fahrenheit.
8. Sterilize canning jars before using them.
Prepare the canning jars and lids according to manufacturer's instructions. Pour the jelly into the jars, leaving 1/4 inch between the jelly level and the top of the jar. Wipe the rims of the jars and adjust the lids according to manufacturer's instructions. Place the filled jars on a rack in the preheated water bath canner. Cover the jars with water by at least 2 inches. Boil the jars for 5 minutes, starting when the water comes to a full boil. Carefully remove the jars with the jar lifter.
9. Jelly filled cookies
Cool the jars for 24 hours. Check the seals. Refrigerate any jars that did not seal and use them within two weeks. Remove the screw bands and wipe the sealed jars with a cool, damp cloth. Label and date the jars and store them in a cool, dark place.
Tags: jars with, water bath, according manufacturer, according manufacturer instructions, bath canner