Champagne Blush Jelly

  This is my final canning project of the 2010 season. I saved this jelly as my final project because the recipe sounded amazing. Raspberries are my favorite fruit and champagne is wonderful. I wanted this final canning project to be relaxing. No mindless chopping or peeling of vegetables. I also wanted my final project to be something sweet. I made the raspberry juice fresh from raspberries that I froze when the raspberries were in peak season since bottled raspberry juice is expensive, and I did not want any additives in my jelly.

The results were awesome. The jelly is sweet yet a little tart like a raspberry. The color of the jelly is pretty deep red color. I loved this project. It is the perfect ending to the canning season.   Ingredients for Champagne Blush Jelly modified from Blue Book Guide to Canning p 80

40 ounces frozen raspberries
1 cup water
¼ cup lemon juice
1 package-powder pectin
4 cups sugar
1 ¼ cups Champagne

Directions

Place frozen raspberries in a large pot and heat on medium for 10 minutes or until all the raspberries have burst open and the pot contains a lot of raspberry juice. Strain the juice and raspberries through a fine mesh strainer or a cheesecloth overnight in the refrigerator. Do not push the raspberries through the strainer because your jelly will be cloudy if you do. Measure 2 cups of raspberry juice plus one cup of water in a large saucepot. Stir in powder pectin. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Add sugar, stirring until dissolved. Return to rolling boil. Boil hard 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Stir in champagne. Skim foam if necessary. Ladle hot jelly into hot jars, leaving ¼-inch headspace. Adjust two-piece caps. Process 10 minutes in a boiling water canner.   http://creatingnirvanatoday.blogspot.com/2010/11/champagne-blush-jelly.html