Tammy Reiss says that cooking is one of the things she enjoys most. She has won blue ribbons three times with her apple jelly. “The one time I did not take first place with this recipe was when I decided to take a shortcut with skimming the foam. I added a dollop of butter, which […]
By Yankee Magazine
Mar 24 2003
Tammy Reiss says that cooking is one of the things she enjoys most. She has won blue ribbons three times with her apple jelly. “The one time I did not take first place with this recipe was when I decided to take a shortcut with skimming the foam. I added a dollop of butter, which is supposed to take care of the foam. But it made the jelly cloudy. This year I told myself no shortcuts and went back to skimming the foam, and I got another blue ribbon.”
5 pounds apples
5 cups water
9 cups sugar
1 package (1-3/4 ounces)
powdered pectin
Remove the stems and blossom ends from the apples. Cut into small pieces (do not peel or core). Place in a large pot with the water. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for 10 minutes. Crush the cooked apples with a potato masher and simmer for 5 minutes more.
Pour the apple mixture into cheesecloth and let drain into a cooking pot until the dripping stops. Press very gently to get the last few drops of juice. Measure the juice and add water if necessary (no more than 1/2 cup) to make 7 cups.
Measure the sugar into a bowl. Stir the pectin into the apple juice and bring to a full rolling boil, stirring constantly. Add the sugar to the juice and return to a full boil. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat and skim off the foam. Immediately ladle into 1/2-pint jars and seal. Invert the jars for 5 minutes, then turn upright.