Vanilla Pear Jelly
Ingredients
- 8 each ripe Anjou pears, stemmed and blossom
Instructions
- 1
ends removed, then quartered with peel left on 2 tablespoons vanilla extract 3 1/2 cups cane sugar 1 (1.75 ounce) box powdered pectin Wash fruit.
- 2
Adjust enough water to barely cover pears in a large sauce pan or kettle.
- 3
Boil uncovered for 35-45 minutes.
- 4
Fruit should look translucent.
- 5
Strain juice through a double layer of cheesecloth or a jelly bag.
- 6
Do not try to hurry this by squeezing the fruit or the juice will become cloudy.
- 7
The peel helps give the juice a pale yellow color.
- 8
Wash and rinse jars.
- 9
Pour 2 inches of water into each jar, place in pan and add water up to half way around jars.
- 10
Bring to boil.
- 11
Wash and rinse jar seals and jar rings.
- 12
Boil jar rings, but keep rinsed seals aside.
- 13
Heat 3 1/2 cups of the pear juice (if you don't have enough juice, you can add as much as 1/2 cup water), add the vanilla and the pectin.
- 14
Bring to a boil and add the sugar.
- 15
Boil until the sugar is dissolved and the boiling mixture cannot be stirred down (about 10 - 20 minutes) You'll begin to see the mixture thicken on the back of a wooden spoon and form 2 side-by-side droplets at this point..
- 16
Turn down the heat, skim off the foam, and bring to a boil for another five minutes.
- 17
Using you "spoon test", the jelly should be thick enough to "sheet" in small waves on the back of the spoon.
- 18
Pour into sterilized jars and add lids.
- 19
You may want to boil the filled jars for another five minutes after the lids have been put in place.
- 20
You'll know either way if the seal has been made by placing your finger in the center of the cooled lid.
- 21
If it doesn't spring back, the jar has been sealed.
- 22
You may also recognize the "pop" during the cooling process, which signals that the seal has been made.
- 23
Store in a cool, dry place.
- 24
Makes 6 to 7 (8 ounce) jars.