When something, no matter how seemingly insignificant, turns out just right it lifts us up and makes our day.

Monday night my friend came over to make to make apple jelly. I had picked up some tart green apples at the Farmer's Market on Saturday. Sunday night I cut them up and boiled them with some water and let the juice drain off overnight. I read in several books to expect 1 cup of juice from 1 pound of apples. We started out with a little over 3 pounds of apples and ended up with about 11 cups of juice. I was certain the juice was too watery. I wanted to add just enough water to cover the apples, but of course the apples floated to the top (duh!) so I ended up with more water in the pot than I had intended.

We cooked some of the juice down some more and had 9 cups when we started making the jelly. We divided it into two batches and decided to make one batch plain and one batch scented with lemon verbena. We used three cups of sugar and one lemon per batch. Each batch yielded four jars of the most delightful jelly, with a perfect set and just sweet enough to bring out the fresh slightly tart apple flavor without overpowering it.

And the lemon verbena is so wonderful and subtle. I think the flavor of the verbena has changed over the summer. When I tried it earlier in the season (I used it for tea and for flavoring ice cream) it a somewhat coarser, more herbal flavor. Now its aroma is very light and heady. Some of that may be due to boiling it with sugar in jelly, but I noticed a difference even when I used it in tea.

I am so amazed that the jellies turned out so beautiful. It was easy and everything was just right. The hard part is reproducing the experience. It is impossible because there are so many unpredictable variables involved: how ripe are the apples and how much pectin do they have? How acid are they? How tart? How easily do they release their juice? And my lemon verbena will never be precisely the same.

With all of these variables, recipes can only be guidelines. I try not to use commercial pectin anymore, not only because I like a challenge and because, on a lucky day, the end result is superior, but because, paradoxically, using a jelling agent gives you less control over the process. You have to rely more on the recipe more and less on your instincts.

Instructions for Apple Jelly (with Optional Herbal Flavor)

Quarter or chop apples coarsely. Do not peel or core but cut off any brown spots. Put in large pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil and simmer for 30 minutes or until apples are soft and the skins come off. Pour apples through a fine sieve to collect juice. Let juice drain freely, do not push down pulp. Moisten four layers of cheesecloth or jelly bag. Fill remaining pulp in cheesecloth or jelly bag and find a way so that the bag can be suspended bag over a bowl and the juices can drain. For example, you can hang the bag from a cabinet handle and put the bowl under it. (There are also commercial stands for jelly bags you can buy.) Let juice drain overnight.

The juice you last drained will be thicker and has more pectin. If you have enough juice for several batches, make sure you mix all the juice together before to dividing it into different batches.

(The pulp that remains in the bag can be pushed through a food mill or strainer and used as applesauce. You may want to add some apple juice to it, or sweeten or season it, e.g. with cinnamon.)

Get canning equipment and jars ready. Put several small plates into freezer.

Measure the juice into a large heavy saucepan. Preferably, don't work with more than 6 cups of juice in one batch. Add a two-third (2/3) cup of sugar for each 1 cup of juice. Add strained juice of one lemon. If you want to flavor the jelly, tie about 3-5 large sprigs of herb (e.g lemon verbena, lemon balm, mint, lavender, rosemary etc.) into a bundle with kitchen twine. If using dried herbs tie ca. 2 tablespoons in a piece of cheesecloth or cotton tea bag. Add to the juice.

Bring juice to a boil over high heat. Stir and watch it closely. It should boil vigorously. When it gets thicker (it may take anywhere from 5 to 20 minutes) pour a small spoonful on one of the plates from the freezer and put it back into the freezer for a minute or two. Stop cooking when jelly on the test plate is only slightly runnier than you would like it (It will continue cooking in the pot a bit as it cools off). It should wobble a bit when you shake the plat and when you pull a finger through it it should not run together anymore.

Discard herbs if there are any. If there is a lot of foam you may want to skim it off and save it for immediate use. Pour jelly into hot jars leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Adjust lids and process in a boiling water bath canner for 10 minutes.

Let jars cool off for at least twelve hours. The jelly should be jiggly but not totally firm. If it seems too soft give it some more time. It may take up to two weeks to completely set. Putting it in the refrigerator may help. If a batch is really too soft you can either use it as sauce on pancakes, ice cream etc. Or you can cook it again to a firmer consistency. It is better to err on the soft side though, because there is not much you can do if it is too hard.

Please familiarize yourself with basic canning procedures and food-safety guidelines.  10:29:06 AM