✽ Sugar-Free
Jams and Jellies ✽
You can make your own spread-
able treats from natural honey.
We put up a lot of jams and jellies
with honey, and one of the first
things we learned is that small
batches are easier to handle, go
faster, and make for better quality.We made peach-sumac jam with
peaches from the fruit market trash
bin and sumac extract from roadside
staghom sumac (Rhus glabra); elder-
berry-sumac jelly with elderberries
from a friend and sumac extract;
grape jelly from wild sour grapes;
grape jam from sweet grapes we
gathered on an island in Lake
Pymatuning; and spiced grape jam
from the Pymatuning grapes and
some sour crab apples we foraged.
For all of these concoctions, we used
essentially the same recipe:Prepare and measure the fruit or
juice. We make batches the size
recommended in the instructions
of the Sure-Jell package, and we’ve
had good results with a pound-for-
pound substitution of honey for the
sugar called for in the instructions.
We use the amount of juice speci-
fied per lot, less one-quarter cup
of liquid for each pound of honey.With strong wild fruit, you may want
more sweetener, in which case you
should use proportionately less
fluid. You needn’t be exact, though,
as the process isn’t all that scientific.
For one thing, you don’t know the
natural pectin content of the juice.Mix the honey, fruit, and pectin in a
deep pan. Bring these ingredients to
a full rolling boil, and boil them hard
until the combination passes the
“jelly test,” usually 15 minutes or so.
The mixture will bubble up to about
double its original volume.To be honest, the “jelly test” is a sore
point with us. We have trouble with
the old “sheets off a spoon” version,so we devised our own test: Drip a
few drops of “jelly to be” onto a cold
saucer. If it sets to the proper con-
sistency within a minute or so, away
from the steamy heat, it’s ready.
This indicator works well for us and
seems to agree both with the spoon
business (at which my mother is
proficient) and the verdict of a jelly
thermometer.When the mixture passes whatever
test you use, ladle it into hot, steril-
ized jars, and seal them. Be sure the
jars are hot. It’s heartbreaking to
have a jar shatter in your hand when
you’re filling it with your creation.
If you’re fussy about looks, you can
skim the liquid before jarring it.Sept/Oct 2019 43
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✽ Honey Wine ✽
Create your own delicious sweet
wine from natural honey.
Honey makes great wine, also
known as mead. We recommend
using 1 to 1^1 ⁄ 2 pints of honey per
gallon jug. Also, we sometimes add
about 2 cups of fruit juice
(we’re partial to currant)
to the basic mead recipe for a
light fruit drink.