Peanut...Peanut Butter...

...And Jelly!
Anyone else remember this song? I was going to give you a sample here, but the one I found on the web was by Barney...so we'll skip the sound clip, ok?

Anyway, the boys have been asking me to make more grape jelly for a while now, and it just kept getting put farther down the list. (Read: PROCRASTINATOR) I actually have concord grape juice that I canned last summer, so there really was no excuse. And seeing as the boys will take peanut butter and jelly over and over and OVER for lunch, I thought it was about time I made them their favorite sugary spread.

Easy Grape Jelly

Makes 7 to 8 half-pint jars

4 cups bottled Concord grape juice

7 cups sugar

2 (3-ounce pouches) liquid pectin

 {jar funnel, lid wand, and jar lifter}

Wash jars and put in canning pot. Cover with water and heat on stove to boiling.

Put lids and rings in a small pot and cover with water. Heat on stove just to boiling. Turn off heat and put a lid on the pot to keep the lids and rings hot.

 Measure out your grape juice.

Heat the juice on medium until warm. Add sugar and heat, stirring constantly, until the sugar is completely dissolved. 

This is the sugar we use for everything. We don't use granulated white sugar. In the past, however, I would buy the granulated white stuff for making jelly. I decided to try it with mine this time.

Increase heat to medium-high and bring the mixture to a full rolling boil, stirring constantly. Stir in entire contents of both pectin pouches. Return mixture to a full rolling boil, stirring constantly. Boil, stirring constantly, for 1 minute. Remove the pan from the heat. (Sorry...too much going on to snap a pic)

Quickly skim off any foam.

Immediately ladle the hot jelly into hot jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace. (This is where the jar lifter, lid wand, and funnel come in very handy.)

Wipe the jar rims and threads with a clean, damp cloth. Cover with hot lids and apply screw rings. Put the jars of jelly down into the water-filled canner and boil for 10 minutes.

Lift jars out and gently place on a towel to rest for 24 hours. Listen for the sweet sound of lids popping to let you know they're happily sealed. (my favorite part)

Now, I just need to tackle the laundry pile, bake something with my brown bananas, set up my compost bin, plant my potatoes, and paint the hallway appreciate the sweetness of being a stay-at-home mom.

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