Description
A tart, lemon-y jelly from Oregon grape fruits.
Ingredients
Scale
- 10 cups of Oregon grape berries
- ½ cup of water
- 2 cups of organic sugar
- ¼ cup lemon juice
- ¼ tsp. butter (optional)
- ½ package liquid pectin
Instructions
- Clean ripe Oregon grape berries under cold water. There’s no need to remove the stems from the berries. Simmer Oregon grapes in the water to release the juice. Mash the berries with a potato masher to get as much juice as possible. Simmer for 15 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat.
- Line a colander with cheese cloth or use a jelly bag. Pour the fruit into the cheese cloth or jelly bag and allow it to drain naturally. Press to get as much juice as possible from the fruit. Note that this will cloud the jelly but it will result in a greater yield. I used a potato ricer for this last pressing.
- Discard the pulp and stems and retain the juice.
- Place 4 cups of juice into a saucepan. If you don’t have a full 4 cups of juice, top up with water to make a total of 4 cups. Bring to a simmer. Add sugar and lemon juice plus butter. The butter is to inhibit foaming as the juice simmers. Boil for one minute.
- Add liquid pectin and return to a boil. Boil for 5 minutes or until the mixture reaches the jelly stage. The jelly will form a sheet as it falls from the spoon when it has reached the correct temperature.
- Remove from the heat. Pour into sanitized jars and cap with a 2 part canning lid. Process in a boiling water bath for 5 minutes. Allow to cool right side up.
- Remove the rings. Label and date. Store in a cool, dry place
