Blackberry & Apple Jelly

You will need:

Blackberries

Bramley apples

Water

Granulated sugar

An old tea towel or piece of muslin

Jars with lids

Method:

1. Weigh out your blackberry haul on your scales. The ratio for apples to blackberries is 1:1, so if you have 4lbs of blackberries, weigh out 4lbs of apples. Chop the apples.

2. Put chopped apples and blackberries into a large pot with the water – 1 pint for every 4lbs of fruit (for 4lbs blackberries with 4lbs apples, add 2 pints of water and so on).

3. Put the pot on the stove and bring to a simmer for an hour. It should now be the texture of a fruit smoothie, with all the fruit disintegrated (my sister refers to this as ‘mashy’).

4. The straining. The best way to do this is to turn a chair upside down, and attach your old tea towel or muslin to each leg with string, like a hammock, tied as tightly as possible. Place a large bowl underneath and pour your fruit mixture onto the material so that it drains into the bowl below. Don’t squeeze the bag! If you do, you run the risk of cloudy jelly. Leave this to drain overnight.

5. Measure the drained liquid. You will need 1lb sugar for every pint measured. Put both into a pot on the stove and stir on a low heat until the sugar has dissolved. Bring to the boil for 10 minutes, or until ‘setting point’. Scoop off any pink scum that appears at this point and discard.

6. Setting point is the point when the liquid is ready to pour into jars. To find it, put a saucer into the fridge until cool. When you want to know if you are at setting point, take a spoonful of liquid out of the pan and spoon onto the saucer. Leave for a few seconds and push it carefully with your finger – if it wrinkles, it’s time to pour.

7. Sterilize your jars by placing them in a bowl of boiling water. Use a jug to pour the liquid into the jars and close tightly. Leave jars to cool and set, and then serve!