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There are still masses and masses of beautiful blackberries here, plump and nodding under the wonderful September sun. Our spotty dog, Mango adores them just as much as we do. On a walk, she will trot along the hedgerow nibbling them straight off the bush. Most of our family walks recently have involved blackberry picking and den building- we have the scrapes and scratches to prove it……..and 2 freezer drawers packed full! On that note, this recipe works brilliantly with frozen blackberries.
Blackberry jelly is a super way to preserve that unique and delicate, slightly floral flavour for months or even a couple of years. A quirky alternative to redcurrant jelly, blackberry jelly is a cooks best friend when it comes to casseroles, gravies and sauces to go with meat. It is also wonderful with pate and cold meats. My daughter cannot stand “bits” in jam. Blackberry and apple jam is a favourite of mine but it is crammed full of seeds and “bits” so I do understand why she flatly refuses to touch it. She does however, LOVE blackberry jelly- on crumpets, toast and pancakes! Who wouldn’t? It tastes divine and looks jewel- like with its wonderful deep, glistening purple.
There is no need to buy an expensive jelly bag with frame. A simple muslin square rigged up anywhere you can tie it over a bowl will do a perfect job. A word of warning- don’t be tempted to squeeze the bag. This could give you a cloudy jelly that will still taste delicious but will not have nearly so much aesthetic appeal.
Feel free to swap the blackberries for redcurrants if that is what you have a glut/ freezerful of. Just reduce the boiling time to 10- 15 minutes before testing for a set. Calculate the quantity of sugar as described below.
For sterilising jars and testing for a set please follow the links for the relevant posts:
The quantities below makes 7-9 small jars. You can halve them if you like but don’t forget these make super Christmas presents for teachers! Always sterilise a couple extra, just in case. There is nothing more irritating than getting to the jarring stage and having to scrabble around quickly sterilising an extra jar.
Ingredients
2 kg blackberries
2 litre water
Granulated or caster sugar (see step 5 to calculate the amount needed)
A dab of unsalted butter
Method
1. Put the blackberries in a preserving pan or very large, heavy bottomed saucepan, along with the water. Over a medium heat and stirring occasionally, bring it to the boil. Simmer gently for 30 minutes. During the last 10 minutes, frequently mash the fruit with a potato masher (with the aim of releasing as much flavoursome juice as possible).
2. Carefully pour into a large pouring jug and then into your jelly bag, set over a large bowl. I do this by loosely tying my jelly bag to a cupboard handle so that I can still easily fit the spout of the jug into the top of the bag. When all the mixture is in, I tighten the string. Much of the juice will flow straight through the muslin so don’t worry if you think it won’t fit in. If you go slowly, it should all fit in fine.
3. Leave the mixture dripping through the jelly bag until all the dripping has stopped. This will usually take a couple of hours but I usually get to this stage in the evening and then leave it over night to finish the recipe the next day.
4. Discard the pulp that remains in the bag. Carefully measure the juice that has strained into the bowl and return it to the preserving pan/ large saucepan.
5. Calculate the amount of sugar you will need: you will need 450 g of sugar for each 600 ml of liquid. Add this to the juice in the pan. Place the pan over a low- medium heat and stir well until all of the sugar has completely dissolved (this will take a few minutes longer if you are using granulated sugar rather than caster sugar).
6. When the sugar has completely dissolved, turn the hear up and boil rapidly for 20 minutes before testing for a set. Blackberries vary a lot in the amount of pectin they contain so you may well need to boil for a little longer before you achieve a good set. Test at 2 minute intervals until you are happy that the jelly has reached setting point.
7. Take the pan off the heat. Skim off any scum with a large metal spoon. To remove the final bit of scum, add the dab of butter and stir slowly.
8. Allow the jelly to cool for 10 minutes before carefully ladling/ pouring into the sterilised jars. Seal the jars. When they are completely cool, label and store somewhere cool and dark.
ScrummyWalks 