CANNING PLUM JELLY

 


It's that time of year again and my new plum tree has produced enough to make a little jelly.  While fresh plums might not be my top choice for snacking straight from the tree, plum jelly ranks among my favorites. 

Keep in mind, jelly isn't limited to spreading on toast or biscuits; it's a versatile ingredient that can enhance beverages, cakes, cobblers, oatmeal, yogurt, ice cream, and even grilled dishes.


PREPARING THE JUICE

I do all of the my jelly the easy way which usually means washing the fruit, chopping it (leaving seeds & skin) and covering with water in a pot. Simmer 10-20 minutes.  By this time, you should have a beautiful pot of fruit juice with pulp.   Strain the juice by pouring through a fine mesh strainer or use use jelly cloth or flour sack/cheesecloth towels from Walmart and strain the pulp.  

You can find detailed steps HERE on EFFORTLESS FRUIT JUICE - NO PEELING & NO SEEDING

INGREDIENTS:

  • 5 1/2 cups of prepared plum juice 
  • 1 package of powdered pectin
  • 7 1/2 cups of granulated sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon of butter (optional, to reduce foaming)

DIRECTIONS:

  • You should have about 5 ½ cups of plum juice for a full batch. You can add more water if you are close to that amount or you can adjust the sugar & sure jel for the amount of juice you have.
  • Pour the juice back into the pot. Add one box of pectin and the butter. Bring the juice to a hard rolling boil.
  • Add the sugar. Continue to boil the jelly for one minute. Remove the pot from the heat. Skim any foam from the top. 
  • Ladle hot jelly into hot, sterilized jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace.  Adjust 2-piece caps.  Process 5 minutes in boiling water canner.  Yield about 8 half-pints.



Recipe from Ball Blue Book of Canning and Preserving


Print Recipe

CANNING CHERRIES








Raw Pack 

Fill jars with cherries.  Gently shake jars to pack cherries closely without crushing, leaving ½ inch headspace.  Add your hot syrup to cover the cherries leaving ½ inch headspace.    Remove air bubbles.  Process pints and quarts 25 minutes in a boiling-water canner.

To prepare light or medium syrup, simply heat the water and sugar in a sauce pan until sugar dissolves. 

  •  Light syrup - 2 ¼ cups sugar to 5 ½ cups water
  •  Medium syrup - 3 1/4cups sugar to 5 cups water

This makes 6 ½  - 7 cups.  Depending on the amount of cherries you are canning, you will need to adjust accordingly.


Hot Pack

Measure cherries and put in a large saucepot.  
Add ½ - ¾ cup sugar for each quart of cherries.  
Cook mixture slowly until sugar dissolves and cherries are hot throughout.  Add  just enough water to prevent stickling.  
Ladle hot cherries and juice into hot jars, leaving ½ inch headspace.  
Add boiling water or syrup (see recipe from raw pack) to cover cherries, if needed, leaving ½ inch headspace.  Remove air bubbles.  
Process pints 15 minutes and quarts 20 minutes in a boiling-water canner.