When I planted the two jalapeno pepper plants on the side of the house this past spring, I figured I’d can them for fresh salsa this coming winter. Never did I imagine that they would flourish the way they have and give us as many peppers as it has. Seeing all the flowers still blooming and all the tiny peppers yet to reach full-grown, I decided with the first peppers I harvested, I’d try something a little different.
For a couple of years now I have heard about hot pepper jelly and been intrigued, but leery. What would it taste like? How would I use it? Would anyone like it? Finally, with the promise of a bounty of peppers to come and peppers to spare, today was the day to give this recipe a shot.
Jalapeno Pepper Jelly
- 2/3 Cup Jalapeno Peppers, chopped in food processor
- 1 Green Bell Pepper
- 1 1/2 Cups White Vinegar
- 6 Cups Sugar
- 2 Packs Liquid Certo Pectin
- Green Food Coloring
- Chop peppers in food processor with vinegar.
- Put peppers, vinegar, and sugar into large stock pot.
- Bring mixture to boil and boil hard for 1 minute.
- Remove from heat and strain.
- Return liquid to pot and boil for 5 minutes.
- Add pectin and food coloring and boil for 1 minute more.
- Remove from heat and ladle into hot jars. Process in water bath canner for 10 minutes.
This is the first time this summer that I haven’t used Clear Jel as my setting agent for jams or jellies. I figured since I have no idea what this is supposed to taste like or how I am going to use it, it would be best to follow the directions as closely as possible. I did find a recipe for thumbprint cheddar cookies that use the pepper jelly that I plan on trying very soon.
Grace stuck her finger in the jelly to give it a taste test and her eyes watered. Very hot! She said it was good and thought spreading it over cream cheese on crackers would be a good way to use this or even dipping tortilla chips into it like salsa.
Trying new things is always fun, but a little scary. I’m glad I finally took the plunge and gave this recipe a shot. Now I have two things I can use the jalapeno peppers from my garden for, and for this I am — Simply Grateful.
Simply Grateful Housewife 