Recipe #3 Peach Jelly

I am falling way behind in my recipes but I am still going.  Ashlee told me that she wanted to make jelly again.  The first thing we ever did together, just the two of us, while I was still dating her dad was make fig jam from the tree I had while I lived in Marion.  

So we settled on Peach jelly.  David doesn't like peaches but that is good, then it will just be for us.  I have a ton of pectin left from making the fig jam so we used Sure.Jell for less or no sugar recipes.  I copied and pasted the recipe from the website below the jump.

Six pounds of peaches at $0.88 per pound

I cooked the peaches with a little water for a while.  they were slow to cook and there wasn't really a whole lot of juice coming out of them, until I reread the instructions.  I guess I could have put the peaches through a food processor first but a potato masher worked pretty well to get the juices started.  

To get three layers if Cheese cloth I put them one inside another three times then tied a knot in the bottom.  I then stretched it over a bowl like this.

The we figured out how to hang the bag by closing it in the microwave door. (Shhhh! Don't tell David we did that.)  Then we were too impatient to wait for four cups of juice to just drip out so we had to help it out a little.

Then we added the pectin and sugar.

A little butter to keep the foam down.

The rest of the sugar.

Then finally, a full rolling boil,

My favorite part, ladling it into the jars.

Processing the jars, it only made three full and one small one went straight into the fridge for immediate sampling.

The final product set perfectly and I tried it the next day.

My verdict

Delicious, I will definitely make it again.

what you need

4-1/2 cups prepared juice (buy about 6 lb. fully ripe peaches)

1/2 cup  water

3 cups sugar, measured into separate bowl, divided

1 box  SURE.JELL For Less or No Sugar Needed Recipes Premium Fruit Pectin

1/2 tsp. butter or margarine

make it

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.

PIT unpeeled peaches. Finely chop or grind fruit; place in saucepot. Add water. Bring to boil. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer 5 min., stirring occasionally. Place three layers of damp cheesecloth or 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 4-1/2 cups juice into 6- or 8-qt. saucepot. (If necessary, add up to 1/2 cup water for exact measure.)

MIX 1/4 cup of the sugar (from the measured amount in bowl) and pectin in small bowl. Add to juice in saucepot; mix well. 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 remaining 2-3/4 cups sugar. 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 wo-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 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.)

kraft kitchens tips

ALTITUDE CHART

At altitudes above 1,000 feet, increase processing time as indicated: 1,001 to 3,000 feet-increase processing time by 5 min.; 3,001 to 6,000 feet-increase processing time by 10 min.; 6,001 to 8,000 feet-increase processing time by 15 min.; 8,001 to 10,000 feet-increase processing time by 20 min.

JAM OR JELLY DIDN'T SET?

Every once in a while, you may find that your jam does not set the way you expected. If your efforts resulted in a runny batch, try our Remake Directionsto improve your finished jam. If your jam still doesn't set, you can always use it as a glaze or syrup.