Apple jelly

I've made apple jelly before, but it always amazes me how much better the flavor is than the store bought kind.  I forget how much I like apple jelly until I taste it again, too! 

Ingredients:
7 C prepared juice (buy about 5 lbs of tart apples)
5 C water
1 box powdered fruit pectin
1/2 tsp butter or margarine
9 C granulated sugar, measured in to a separate bowl

VERY large pot ( I use a 6 qt stock pot, and it boiled over a little)

10 to 12 half pint jars and 2 piece lids, and all of your canning supplies.

Bring the boiling water canner, half full or water to a simmer.  Wash the jars and screw bands with hot soapy water, rinse with warm water.  Go ahead and get your jars in the hot water to sterilize and stay hot.  Get the bands in a sauce pot of water simmering.  You do want to drain both the jars and the lids well before you put jelly in them. 

Wash your apples in some warm soapy water and rinse well.  You don't want any of the insecticides that they use in orchards in your jelly.  Go ahead and get the fruit working by cutting out any bruised or bad places in them, and core them.
  

There is a running debate on whether you have to core apples for jelly, since one of the best places for fruit pectin (the stuff that makes jam and jelly gel)is in apple seeds, but I use my food processor to get a good fine chop on the fruit, so I go ahead and cut out the core, stems and blossom ends. DO NOT PEEL THE APPLES >.>  If you don't have a food processor, just get a good small chop on the apples.  Chopping smaller makes it easier later, though. 

Place the prepared fruit into a large pot and add the water.  There is not going to be a lot of liquid at this point.  Bring the apples to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover them, and simmer for 10 minutes.  Give them a good stir every once in a while to prevent sticking or burning. 

While the apples are simmering, go ahead and get your jelly bag or cheesecloth ready.  If you have made jelly before, you know what a good investment a jelly bag is.  If you haven't I bet you go buy one if you want to make jelly again.  Once the 10 minutes is up, crush up the cooked apples, cover and simmer for another 5 minutes. Remove from heat.  

You can now scoop the hot apples into your jelly bag (or damp, triple-layered cheesecloth), which should be positioned over a large bowl. 

This recipe makes a large batch, so go slowly.  Gently press the apples every scoop or so to help with the draining process.  Also, if you have never made apple jelly before; fresh apple juice is a bit cloudy, and looks more like cider.  

You need 7 cups of juice into you large pot.  You want to be careful in your measurements, since canning and making jelly is somewhat of a science.  You can add up to 1/2 cup of water to get your measurement exact, if you need to.

Stir the powdered pectin into your measured juice, stir to dissolve. Add butter to reduce foaming and bring it up to a full rolling boil on high heat, stirring constantly. Pour in the sugar, all at once, and bring the mixture to a full, rolling boil.  Boil for exactly 1 minute, and then remove from heat. Skim off any foam with a metal spoon.

Ladle the hot jelly immediately into hot jars, leaving about 1/4 inch head space.  Wipe the rims and threads of the jars with a clean, dampened dish towel to remove any jelly, and place your hot flat lid, then screw down the metal rings finger tight.

Place your jars onto the rack in your canner.  Add enough water to cover the jars by 1-2 inches.  Bring the water up to a boil, and process for 10 minutes. Turn the heat off.  Leave the jars to sit in the water for another 5 minutes before gently lifting them out to a clean kitchen towel, in a draft-free space.

Let your jars cool overnight, then wipe them down and refrigerate any jars where the lid springs back up when pressed (these are not sealed properly).  Make sure you label and date your jelly!