cranberry jelly

[campn4walleye]

I have to brag a bit. Yesterday I picked a ton of high bush cranberries and froze them (to make them easier to get off the stems). Today I made cranberry jelly (first time ever). It turned out beautifully. It's bright red and clear jewel tones and tastes delicious! It's still a bit wiggly, so will set up with time (hopefully).

I got my first taste last yr from some older folks who made it and gave me a jar. This is now my favorite.

Does anyone else do this? We have lots of high bush cranberries growing wild in WI. You have to beat the birds to them.

[Super_Dave]

campn4walleye wrote:
I don't think a juicer would work. These cranberries have flat seeds that are as large as the berry itself.

Since then we have gotten a grape auger that might be easier. They were on backorder at the time.

Sounds like you've got someone to be your tester. 😉

[campn4walleye]

I don't think a juicer would work. These cranberries have flat seeds that are as large as the berry itself.

Since then we have gotten a grape auger that might be easier. They were on backorder at the time.

[Mocoondo]

campn4walleye wrote:

Here's how I did it:

I froze the cranberries overnight right on the stems. They grow in bunches. It makes them easier to pluck off prior to cooking. I picked about 6 lbs worth.

Place them in a dutch oven and add water just to barely cover them. Boil them for about 15 mins or until they get soft. Pour off the juice and save it (that's the jelly basis). Place the cranberries in a food mill or squish them to get even more liquid (over a large bowl). Pour it all out and strain through several layers of cheesecloth. You only want the juice!

Great recipe, but holy smokes, you need a juicer!! 🙂

When I am doing jellies, I just place whatever fruit I am using in the juicer, hit a button, and I have good clear juice in about two seconds strained right out into a small pitcher.

Once we invested in the juicer, it opened up a whole new world of different jellies for us. We've done strawberry kiwi, peach, pear, apricot, blackberry, cherry, pineapple and many others.

The best part is we don't even mess up the kitchen any more. 🙂

[campn4walleye]

Sorry everyone, I was remiss in my duties.

Here's how I did it:

I froze the cranberries overnight right on the stems. They grow in bunches. It makes them easier to pluck off prior to cooking. I cut about 6 lbs worth.

Place them in a dutch oven and add water just to barely cover them. Boil them for about 15 mins or until they get soft. Pour off the juice and save it (that's the jelly basis). Place the cranberries in a food mill or squish them to get even more liquid (over a large bowl). Pour it all out and strain through several layers of cheesecloth. You only want the juice! If you have any of the pulp, it will cloud your jelly. That's how you get the sparkling color. Let it stand until no more juice drips.

Place juice in dutch oven and heat. Add 1 pkg of sure jell. Stir until dissolved. Add 6 cups of white sugar. Cook until boiling and starts to thicken. I cooked it for about 5 minutes. Let it stand for 1-2 mins. Scrape off the pink foam that has formed on top.

Prepare your jars as usual for canning. Fill your jars (I used 1/2 pt) to 1/8" headspace. Do not get any pink foam. Process in boiling water bath for 5 mins.

I got 14 half pint jars. I had it on my bagel with cream cheese this morning and it was perfect! SO YUMMY!

NOTE: YOUR KITCHEN WILL HAVE THE AROMA OF DIRTY SOCKS! But, it's worth it:B

[Super_Dave]

I also use Sure-Jell pectin.

My abbreviated recipe for jam is:
Mix no/low sugar pectin packet with 1/2 cup of sugar.
Mix pectin/sugar mixture with 6 cups of prepared fruit.
Add some lemon juice or Fruit Fresh if fruit is subject to browning.
Bring mixture to boil in large pot and add 4 cups of sugar.
Bring back to a rapid boil and allow to boil for 1 minute.
Remove pot from heat and fill prepared 1/2 pint jars to 1/2" - 3/8" of the rim.
Apply lids and hot water bath for 10 minutes.

[Mocoondo]

Super_Dave wrote:
Mocoondo, how much sugar do you use with your low/no sugar pectin? I use 4 1/2 cups sugar to 6 cups of fruit and get super solid jam. Each fruit does however have a different level of its own natural pectin. I've also come to think that Ball pectin sucks so I use a different brand now.

We use the "SureJell" brand of pectin and it works great...pink box is the low sugar variety. It just happens to be what is always available at our grocery store. The amount of sugar depends on what you are making but it is generally between 2 1/2 and 5c, which is still a lot, but a whole lot less than when using the regular pectin and I find the low sugar pectin to yield a sweeter end product. We follow the recipe exactly as printed in the insert that comes with each box of pectin with the exception of the amount of pectin. We use 1 1/2 boxes for each batch. 1 1/2 boxes gives us a perfect set. You can find the insert here:

http://www.kraftrecipes.com/SiteCollectionImages/brandhub/pectin/SureJell-Light-Insert.pdf

[Super_Dave]

Mocoondo, how much sugar do you use with your low/no sugar pectin? I use 4 1/2 cups sugar to 6 cups of fruit and get super solid jam. Each fruit does however have a different level of its own natural pectin. I've also come to think that Ball pectin sucks so I use a different brand now.

[Mocoondo]

We put up all sorts of jellies, jams and preserves this time of year, eventually giving most of it away during the holidays. So far this season we have done concord grape jelly (off our vines), strawberry jam (home grown), mint jelly (also home grown), rhubarb jam (home grown again), peach jam, orange marmalade, and cherry tomato jam (home grown and don't wince until you've tried it!).

As to the recipes, making jellies and jams is super simple. We use the low/no sugar pectin as it actually comes out sweeter than the high sugar recipes.

For jellies, we have a Breville juicer which we use to extract the juices, then boil in the sugar and pectin according to the recipe, jar it up, and then process.

For the jams and preserves, we just boil down the fruits, using a masher to get the desired consistency, then add in the sugar and pectin, jar it up and then process.

You can only do small batches of jellies and jams at a time otherwise it will not properly set up. We also use 1 1/2 packages of pectin because we find that a single package does not firm up how we like it. With about 6 pounds of fruit, we fill 7-8 jelly jars.

[romore]

LMAO Cranberry jelly is one of our favorites too.

[old_guy]

excuse me for being rude, but how can you sit there and tell us this and NOT post the recipe????

[Super_Dave]

Tricia, do you have to add Fruit Fresh or lemon to the recipe so that the cranberries keep their brilliant color?