814-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, July 5, 1997
Latest Jam And
Jelly Techniques
(Continued from Page B 6)
RED RASPBERRY SPREAD
5 cups crushed red raspberries
14 cup water
1 package no sugar needed
pectin
114 cups sugar
14 cup light com syrup
Prepare home canning jars and
lids according to manufacturer’s
instructions.
Combine*red raspberries and
water in a large saucepoL Gradual
ly stir in pectin. Bring mixture to a
boil, stirring constantly. Add sugar
and light com syrup, stirring to dis
solve. Return mixture to a rolling
boil. Boil one minute, stirring con
stantly. Remove from heat. Skim
foam, if necessary. Carefully ladle
hot spread into hot jars, leaving
14 -inch headspace. Wipe jar rim
clean. Place lid on jar and screw
down band evenly and firmly until
fingertip tight.
Process 10 minutes in a boiling
water canner. Yield: about 4
12-ounce jars.
RHUBARB JELLY
5 cups rhubarb
4 cups sugar
Boil together for 8 minutes. Add
14 cup cherry or strawberry Jell-O.
The Jell-0 will thicken it. Pour
into containers. Cool and freeze.
A. Rissler
Leola
What Can You Do If Mixture Doesn’t Jell?
You followed all the rules. You measured exactly. But the jam or jell
is too thin. Don’t despair.
First realize that the consistency of all fruit jellies and that of some
jams is determined by the balance among three ingredients: sugar,
acid, and pectin. The levels of acid and pectin vary greatly from fruit to
fruits. Even the same kind of fruit will have different acid and pectin
levels according to variety and to age: underripe fruit is highest in acid
and pectin and &11 set easily, but may not have the flavor. You can
increase the acid levels of fruit by added about 2 tablespoons lemon
juice to two cups of prepared fruit before preparing the jelly. But if the
jelly is already made and doesn’t set, try this for those made with No-
Cook Sure Jell:
Prepare containers.
Prepare pectin mixture by slowly stiring contents of 1 box Sure-Jell
Fruit Pectin into V* cup cold water in small saucepan. Bring to a boil
over medium heat; then boil 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove
from heat.
Prepare Trial Batch:
1 cup your jam or jelly
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon pectin mixture
Measure jam or jelly and the sugar into a bowl; stir thoroughly until
sugar is dissolved, about 3 minutes. Add pectin mixture and stir until
blended, about 3 minutes longer.
Quickly pour into containers and continue as directed in package
insert. Store remaining pectin mixture covered in refrigerator.
If the trial batch sets satisfactorily within 24 hours, follow the recipe
above, using the listed measures of sugar, and pectin mixture for each 1
cup of jam or jell. After preparing remainder of batch, discard any lef
tover pectin mixture.
Do not try to remake more than 8 cups jam or jelly at one time.
To remake cooked jam or jelly made with Sure Jell Light Fruit Pectin,
prepare glasses and lids.
Prepare pectin mixture by slowly stirring contents of one box Sure-
Jell Light Fruit Pectin Mixture into VA cups cold water in small sauce
pan. Bring to a boil over medium heat; then boil 2 minutes, stirring
constantly. Remove from heat.
Prepare trial batch:
1 cup jam or jelly
1 tablespoon pectin mixture
2 tablespoons sugar
Measure jam or jelly, the pectin mixture and sugar into small 1-quart
saucepan. Bring to a full rolling boil over high heat, stirring constantly.
Boil hard one-half minute.
Remove from heat and skim off any foam with metal spoon. Quick
ly pour into glass or jar, cover and let stand up to 24 hours to check set
of trial batch. Store remaining pectin mixture covered in refrigerator.
If trial batch sets satisfactorily, follow the recipe above, using the
listed measures of pectin mixture and sugar for each one cup jam or jel
ly. Measure into a 6- to 8-quart saucepot. Bring to a full rolling boil as
directed: then boil hard one-half minute.
Remove from heat and skim off any foam with metal spoon. Quick
ly ladle into glasses or jars. Seas as directed in package insert. After
preparing remainder of batch, discard any leftover pectin mixture.
PEACH-BERRY
FREEZER JAM
1 cup crashed peaches
1 cup red raspberries
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon grated lemon peel
2 teaspoons vanilla
314 cups sugar
14 cup com syrup
1 package powdered pectin
14 cup water
Prepare frec?er jam jars and lids
according to manufacturer’s
instructions.
Combine peaches, red raspber
ries, lemon juice, lemon peel, and
vanilla in a large bowl. Stir in
sugar and com syrup; let stand 10
minutes. Combine pectin and
water in a small saucepan; boil
hard for 1 minute, stirring con
stantly. Add pectin to fruit mix
ture, stirring constantly for 3
minutes. Carefully ladle jam into
freezer jam jars, leaving 14 -inch
headspace. Adjust caps. Allow to
stand at room temperature until
set, not to exceed 24 hours. Label.
Store in freezer. Yield: about five
8-ounce jars.
Sugar, pectin, acid
Use caned or beet sugars for
best results. If you prefer to use
honey rather than sugar, select a
recipe specifying honey. Do not
interchange sugar and honey in a
recipe for jams and jellies
Participants at the jam and Jelly workshop taught by Nancy Wlker at the Lancaster
County Extension taste-test Jellies made with reduced sugar and without sugar.
because it will not work.
Jellies jell best if some acid is
present For this reason, many
recipes specify lemon juice as an
ingredient.
Pectin makes jam jell. It comes
in both powder and liquid form.
A tablespoon or two of butter
added to boiling fruit reduces
foam. Foam should be skimmed
off before filling jars.
Berry seed removal
To remove seeds from raspber
ries, puree the fruit in a blender,
then pour the mixture through a
coffee filter and allow to drip for
four hours in the refrigerator.
Juice may be frozen and made
into jelly later.
Problems?
Cloudiness:
• Ladling too slowly or too late
which results in jelly setting up
too fast Because the jelly traps
tiny air bubbles, it appears
cloudy. Ladle jelly quickly and
immediately into jars.
Gummy Jam or Jelly:
•Overcooking
• Too much sugar. Measure
carefully using standard, level
cup measurements.
Stiff Jam or Jelly:
• Fruit that is not fully ripe.
•Overcooking. Cook quickly for
specified time over highest
heat
•Too much pectin or sugar.
Thin Jam or Jelly:
• Inaccurate measurements.
•Too much prepared juice or to
much or not enough sugar.
•Increasing the recipe. Because
it is difficult to get a full rolling
boil with large quantities, never
try to double or increase the
recipe. For larger quantities,
make separate batches and fol-
low the recipe exactly.
•Judging set too soon. Some
fruits like cherries, apricots,
and plums, may take two weeks
to reach a final set.
PEACH JAM
5 cups sliced peaches
6 cups sugar
1 can crushed pineapples
Mash peaches and cook together
ingredients IS minutes. Add 6
ounces Jell-O, peach or orange fla
vored. Stir until dissolved. Pour
into jars and freeze or seal in boil
ing water bath.
Jam: includes small pieces of
fruit.
Jelly: clear
Conserve: mixture of fruits,
thicker than jams and jellies.
Dalry promoters In Wyoming and Lackawanna counties
include, front from left, Jaime Luce, dairy princess, and
Sara Gozzlllo, alternate. Back row, Angela Adams, Lee Ann
Newell, Brandi Smith, and Amanda Anderson.
Jaime Luce Represents
Wyoming And
Lackawanna Counties
TUNKHANNOCK (Wyoming
Co.) —Jaime Luce wears the dairy
princess crown for Wyoming and
Lackawanna counties.
The princess is the daughter of
Jim and Jeannette Luce of
Meshoppen. At Elk Lake High
School, Jaime is in tenth grade and
is involved in many sports. At
home, she helps fiwth the farm
chores where she is in charge of
feeding and training calves. She
also built the pens for the calves.
Jaime is an avid promoter for farm
safety as the result of her father’s
injury when attacked by a bull.
Jaime enjoys horse riding and art.
She plans to make a career in
photography.
Sara Gazzillo is the alternate
dairy princess. She is also a tenth
grader at Elk Lake High School.
A. Rissler
Leola
What Is It?
Preserves: whole fruit
Marmalades: citrus
Butters: apple, grape, pears,
peaches, darker colored thai
fruit.
She helps on her parents ’ John ana
Kim Gazzillo’s farm in Meshop
pen.
Five dairy maids included
Angela Adams, daighter or Robert
and Rose Adams; amanda Ander
son, daughter of Ronald and Laura
Adams; LeAnne Newell, daughter
of David and Lori Bennett; Brandi
Smith, daughter of Leslie and
Jeanette Cobb; and Karri Urpack,
daughter of Joe and Betty Urpack.
At the pageant held recently at
the Pink Apple Restaurant Alter
nate New York State Dairy Prin
cess Melissa Osgood was the guest
speaker and Pa. Guernsey Princess
Charlene Shupp presented a skit
A special award was given to
Judy Johnson for her help in many
agricultural causes and her work to
further the image of dairy farming.