Quince Jelly

Quince Jelly 

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs of quinces
• 1 lemon (just the juice, sieved)
• white granulated sugar (or preserving sugar which has added pectin)
• water to cover

Method:

1. Wash and roughly chop the quinces (no need to peel, de-core or de-pip) and place in a heavy bottomed saucepan.
2. Barely cover with water. Bring to the boil and simmer gently with a lid on until soft. If the quinces are very firm this could take several hours. Check it every now and then and add more water if necessary.
3. Pour the cooked fruit through sterilised muslin into a large clean bucket or bowl. The muslin is often referred to as a “jelly bag”. I find it easier to line a large plastic sieve with the muslin. This clips neatly onto the top of a clean bowl/ bucket. The sieve is then covered with a clean tea cloth to protect against flies.
4. Leave the jelly bag to drip overnight (or about 12 hours).  Do not be tempted to squeeze the juice through, or the jelly will be cloudy.
5. Measure the juice the next day.
6. Pour the juice into a deep heavy bottomed saucepan and add 1lb/454g of white granulated sugar for each 1pt/570ml of juice.
7. Add the lemon juice.
8. Heat the juice and sugar, gently stirring from time to time, so as to make sure that that all the sugar has dissolved before bringing the liquid slowly to the boil.
9. Continue to boil for about 10 minutes before testing for a set. (A set is achieved when a small spoonful of liquid, placed on a fridge-cold saucer & allowed to cool for a minute wrinkles up when you push it gently with your finger). Test every 3 to 5 minutes until setting point is reached. Tossing in a nugget of butter towards the end will reduce the frothing that can occur.
10. When jelly has reached setting point pour into warm sterilised jars using a funnel and ladle. (Sterilise jars by washing in hot soapy water, then rinsing in clean water, followed by drying with a clean tea-towel, followed by keeping warm in a very low oven).
11. Cover immediately with plastic lined screw top lids or waxed disks and cellophane tops secured with a rubber band. If you don’t think that the jelly has set properly, you can reboil it the next day. The boiling reduces the water in the jelly.
12. Label when cold and store in a cool, dark place, away from damp.