So I posted earlier that I had decided to try and make some apple jelly. Well since that post I have made a number of batches and am very pleased with my results. I ended up making apple, apple cinnamon and apple cranberry.
First off you need apples. I used a number of different varieties all that grow wild along the road I live on. I used a couple varieties that were fully ripe and red so that the bright skin would impart its color to the jelly, and then a couple varieties that were partially ripe. From what I have read the partially ripened apples contain more pectin than fully ripe apples. Because I was worried that there still wouldn’t be enough pectin I threw in a handful of green crab apples as well just in case. Crabapples contain more pectin than regular sweet apples.
I filled the sink with water and dumped the apples into it so that they would be clean. They were then rough cut into 4-8 pieces so that they were all roughly uniform in size, in the process i cut the blossom end off on the apples and took the stem off as well. This was to make sure there weren’t any little black things in the jelly.
The cut apples were placed into a saucepan until they were within 2 inches of the top. I then filled the pot with water till it was approximately an inch below the apples. If your apples are floating then you have added too much water. It is also important not to fill the pot too full, because when it boils over it is a pain to clean off of the stove. (If you want it to be apple cinnamon jelly add a couple cinnamon sticks to get the flavor as it boils, and if you want apple cranberry add cranberries as a 1:3 ratio to apples)
Boil the apples for approximately 30 minutes. I boiled on high for 10 minutes and then turned it down to medium low for another 20 minutes. Also at the 10 minute mark take a potatoes masher and crush the softened apples. You can also do this again at the 20 minute mark. Crushing the apples allows all of the juices to blend together and get the most out of the apples as possible. You will end up with a pot full of mushed apples, skins and seeds that smells good but doesn’t look appetizing at all. This is exactly what you want.
You are now going to strain the jelly. Line a large bowl with a triple layer of cheesecloth. Make sure there is enough cloth that it hangs over the sides, because after the jelly goes into it you are going to need to tie the 4 corners together. After the cloth is in place you can pour the cooked apples and all the liquid in the bowl. Tie the four corners up so that the cheesecloth can be picked up with all the contents staying inside it. My batches of jelly ended up being quite large so I ended up using a cereal box on either side of the bowl, with a wooden stick sitting on top of them for the cloth to hang from.
As the cheese cloth hangs all of the juice will drip out of it and into the bowl. It should be left for approximately 4-5 hours or you can leave it overnight.
I ended up making 3 kinds of jelly and 1 kind of syrup. For the jelly use ¾ cup sugar for every cup of juice. For the syrup use ½ cup of sugar for every cup of juice. One of my syrup batches actually became jelly so if you want to use less sugar you can.
In a large pot mix the juice with the sugar and whisk it all together. Turn the burner on high and let the liquid start to boil. Don’t stir the juice and keep it as hot as possible. It should take approximately 25 minutes until it is ready. Using a thermometer check the temperature, you want it to be at 218-220C. You can also check it by dipping a spoon in to the liquid jelly and when you let it fall off the spoon it should sheet off the spoon instead of drip. And the third way is to put a few drops on a frozen plate and let it sit for about 15 seconds. When you push your finger through it, it should wrinkle up; and that lets you know the jelly is done.
When you start to boil the jelly, you also need to put a large stock pot full of water on to boil as well. This will be used to make sure the jelly seals properly.
You can use any size jar that you want but I recommend 125ml and 250ml jars. Your jars need to have been washed and sterilized, wash them in warm soapy water to make sure there is nothing in them. Remember when canning you need to always use new lids so that they seal properly, but the sealing rings and jars can be reused.
I then filled my jars using a glass mug to scoop and pour the jelly. Fill the jars so that there is only ¼ head space between the jelly and the top of the jar. Wipe off any jelly that's on the outside of the jar and then add the lid and sealing ring. Make sure you tighten the ring up and then set the jar aside. When all of your jars have been filled and sealed place then in the stock pot of boiling water for 5-10 minutes. This ensures that the jar seals properly and makes your jelly safe to eat in the coming months.
After removing the jelly from the water set it on the counter to cool down. As it cools you should hear popping as the lids all pop down. If the lid pops down that's great it means you are safe to store it until you are ready to eat it. If it doesn’t pop that means it didn’t seal properly and can’t be stored. It would end up most likely growing mold and you risk botulism. You can re boil the jelly and then reseal it or I recommend just eating that jar first. I didn’t encounter this problem with any of my jars and if you do everything properly it usually isn’t a problem.
All that's left is to label your jars and put them somewhere safe until you are ready to enjoy them.
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