HOMEMADE GRAPE JELLY

Making jelly is much easier than I thought and I find myself wondering why I waited so long.  However, after having to strain all my raspberries through cheesecloth to make my raspberry jelly I decided I did not like that part of the process at all.  I knew I needed  some help and after a little research ended up splurging and ordering the Roma Food Strainer & Sauce Maker (And I also ordered the additional strainer attachments for berries and grapes.).  Making the grape jelly is pretty much the same as making my Homemade Raspberry Jelly, the only difference being the quantities that go into the recipe and the fact that getting the juice out of the grapes was so much easier!  The really big bonus for me was that the grapes were FREE!  I picked them ripe off the vine in my yard :-) 

The Ball Classic Pectin recipe on the label does not give the amounts required for making grape jelly so I had to use their Pectin Calculator.  It's a very simple and helpful way to get the exact ratio of juice/pectin/sugar that is necessary for any fruit you want to do.  They also have a lot of other recipes available if you are combining fruits or are making herb jellies (mint for example).  

FYI the jelly does NOT come out purple!  My husband was a little upset at first, but after he tasted it he realized it tasted just like the regular grape jelly from the store.  It's funny how we get used to things being a certain way. 

Check out the Free Grape Jelly Labels at the bottom of this post!

Grape Jelly Recipe:

• 3 cups Grape Juice (You need about 4 pounds of grapes to get this much juice)
  
• 4 tablespoons Ball Classic Pectin
  
• 3 cups Sugar 

Watch my short video above to see how simple and easy using the Roma Food Strainer is to strain all my grapes!  Worth every penny...

Directions:

1. Get the juice out of the grapes.  I used my new Roma Food Strainer.  It is a hand crank and was reasonably priced (in my opinion).  I ran the grapes through twice using the special grape cork screw (purchased separately).  
   
2. Let the juice settle overnight in the refrigerator and just pour or ladle off the good juice at the top, discarding the sediment at the bottom.  You could strain it through cheesecloth, but I prefer to not waste cheesecloth and instead to let density do it's work!
   
3. You should have 3 cups of juice.  I actually had more so I just saved the extra in the refrigerator to do another batch later.
4. Fill the large pot for processing with about 7 inches of water and set it to boil (it takes a long time).
5. Set the 12 clean 4 ounce jars on the raised rack in the large pot (mouth up) to heat/keep warm.  
6. Put the 12 lids in a small sauce pot and bring to a boil.
7. Measure out the 3 cups of sugar and the 4 tablespoons of pectin and set aside.
8. In medium saucepan, bring juice to a boil.  As it is heating slowly stir in the pectin a little at a time.
9. When it comes to a full rolling boil add all the sugar at once stirring constantly.
10. After sugar is dissolved and it comes to a full rolling boil, time exactly one minute of boiling and remove from heat.
11. Immediately begin to fill jars one at a time.  Using a funnel and a ladle, fill a jar leaving 1/4 inch of headspace.
12. Swipe a rubber spatula along the inside wall of the jar.
13. Wipe the rim of the jar clean.
14. Put a lid on it and screw a rim on to finger tightness.
15. When all jars are done put them on the rack in the canning pot and lower into the water. (If you have extra jelly but no more jars, just pour it into any container and put it in the refrigerator to set.  You can keep it for up to a month).
16. Bring the pot to a rolling boil, cover and then time exactly 10 minutes.
17. Turn off heat, remove cover, and allow to sit for 5 minutes.
18. Raise rack and carefully remove each jar and set aside to cool.
19. You should start to hear the lids 'popping.'  This is great!  
20. Allow jars to sit for 24 hours.  After 24 hours push in the center of the lid.  If it pops back it did not seal properly and needs to be refrigerated and eaten within a month.
21. If the seal does not pop back the seal is good and you can store it in a cool, dry location for up to a year!

Problems, Questions, or Want to Learn More?
Check out Simply Canning for help with Water Bath Canning.
Check out The National Center For Home Food Preservation.

Free 4 ounce Jar Printable labels! 
This is a pdf file that is designed to be used with Avery White Address Labels 5160/8160 size 1" x 2 5/8".
Print a full sheet of labels, write in your name and the date, and choose to cut it out on the line or not!
Click on the pictures or button below to download the pdf file.

8.5" x 11" Full Sheet of Labels

Example of what one label looks like.

click here to download full sheet of grape jelly labels in pdf format!

I am really glad I purchased both of the products above and can vouch for them 100%!  They made the process so much easier and in turn more pleasant.  Check them out by clicking on one of the two pictures above or one of these two links:  Roma Food Strainer  or  Roma Strainer Accessory Kit at Amazon (affiliate links).

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