Whether it be sewing, cooking, crocheting, whatever -- I'm particular about the end product, especially when I want to give it away. Sometimes I hold a higher standard than I can meet, bite off more than I can chew as it were -- and then I'm disappointed. But some things I have done for years and know I can do, so I'm baffled about this year's elderberry jelly. I have three failed batches of the stuff. (I'm tellin' ya -- I've run out of jars!) The stuff neither qualifies as jelly or syrup, being somewhat in between and somehow globbish. What am I doing wrong? I even re-cooked the first batch but the product was not improved. If I were making for just Mike and me, I would roll my eyes and move on to the next thing (machine embroidery, quilting, dollmaking), but I want to share it with family and friends. Here is my list of possible reasons for the failed product:
#1) The elderberries weren't ripe when we picked them. I thought it might be too soon. I remember one year I picked them in October while the guys were hunting, and in conversation last year, Uncle Dan mentioned hearing that the elderberries sweeten with a frost, so it could well be that the berries were too green. If the juice is the problem, it's useless to continue experimenting with what I have on hand.
#2) SureJell has dropped elderberry from its list of recipes, so I have trusted online info. I used three cups of juice, but one site recommends 3 3/4 cups for SureJell (which I used) and 3 cups for MCP. Have you priced pectin recently? Expensive! I just hate to experiment with this stuff. The pectin, 4 1/2 cups of sugar, and 3 cups of berry juice is wasted with each failed batch -- not to mention the jars!
#3) Perhaps I'm rushing the process, not cooking the pectin long enough before adding the sugar or not cooking the syrup long enough after adding the sugar. But I'm here to tell you, I have made elderberry jelly -- and some other kinds -- many times and never found the product as touchy as some folks claim -- until this year, that is.
#4) Since I froze the juice, I thought perhaps starting with cold juice was the problem. So, with the last batch, I was careful to start with juice at room temperature and add the pectin carefully, making sure it was well combined with the juice before beginning to cook. That batch was just as sticky wierd as the others.
#5) I don't think this constitutes the reason for failure, but I committed a big "no-no" by squeezing the jelly bag. Sorry. I will never do it again.
Internet experts abound. One writer said elderberries don't have enough natural pectin to set up, however, last year I made a nice batch without store-bought pectin -- a fact that another online writer corroborated. Most sites and the pectin instructions advocate processing the jelly in jars in a canner. I never do that. If the jelly doesn't seal, I just freeze it.
My plan: I bought more jars. When the weather is colder, I'll seek to pick elberberries again, process more juice, and give it another try. So, if you have any ideas on this subject -- anyone -- I would gladly consider them. And I'll report in a couple of weeks how that batch turns out. KW
4 comments:
UPDATE:
After posting this blog, I went out to check the elderberry bushes and discovered that the clusters were mostly ripe and in some cases the bushes were past. So, Mike and I picked elderberries after lunch and I processed the juice. I used 3 3/4 cups of juice (instead of 3) to a packet of SureJell, and boiled it until I was sure of a full rolling boil. Then I added 4 1/2 cups of sugar and when it reached a full rolling boil, I boiled two minutes instead of one. The syrup looked smooth and I'm hopeful of a good batch. All five jars sealed.
I read that 100% cane sugar is important - no Idaho beet sugar. Also boiling time.
I had never heard that about cane sugar, but I confess I have been buying the store brands instead of C&H. With the next batch I'll make sure it's cane sugar.
I also read about adding crab apples or cooking apples to the elderberries as you process the juice. The apple flavor tones the elderberry (which we knew), and the apple skins have lots of natural pectin.
So -- in the next couple of weeks I'll try it again and let you know how it turns out.
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