Quote:
WINE?
Yea thats what I usually do with them every year, Im trying to find a good jelly recipe too.
Ask & ye shall receive:
BTW I've won 1st place Rapides Parish Fair AND 1st place La State Fair w/my muscadine jelly, back when we all used to compete every year. Still use the same recipes though - as noted, I don't strain them several times any more since I'm not competing them:
Muscadine Jelly
1 quart grapes (about 1 1/2 pounds) to 2/3 cup water = about 2 cups juice
3 quarts grapes (about 4 1/2 lbs) to 2 cups water = 5 1/2 cups juice
1 gallon grapes (5 1/2 -6 lbs) to 2 2/3 cups water = 7 1/3 cups juice
*Note: 2 gallon ziplocs of grapes yielded 10 cups juice (I freeze extra grapes each year in case they don't make the following year - they will keep, frozen, for one year). *Note: if you are a little bit short on measurements, you can add a little Welch's grape juice to the muscadine juice to make up the difference.
Sort & wash grapes
Place a single layer in bottom of stockpot. Crush grapes. Continue to layer & crush all grapes.
Add water according to guidelines above & bring to a boil.
Reduce heat cover & simmer about 15 minutes until hulls are tender. Cool.
Use a colander to drain juice into another container, press pulp to release more juice.
Take the juice stock & strain through a cheesecloth to make a nice, clear juice for jelly.
(*note* I do not do this unless I am going to compete the jelly in the fair)
Store & freeze pulp & hulls for jam.
Allow juice stock to stand undisturbed overnight. You can freeze this up to one year before making jelly out of it.
Strain one more time leaving sediment in bottom. (again, I skip this step if not competing. It may look cloudy right up until you start the "hard boil" part of the process; but then it will clear up. It's just that when they judge it in the fair, they don't want to see any white "foam" bits in it. I do add a pat of butter when I start cooking it, & also I do skim most of the foam off (we eat that part right away)!
Jelly:
5 cups juice
1 box surejell
1 tablespoon lemonjuice
7 cups sugar
yields 8 jars (1/2 pints)
Follow directions on surejell for grape jelly.
Jam:
6 cups chopped hulls & pulp**
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 box surejell
7 1/2 cups sugar
** Put hulls in pan, cover w/water & cook 15 minutes, add 1/2 cup hull juice to pulp for color.
Strain pulp through a colander to get seeds out.
