~Positively Zinful!~ A tribute to the opening of Walla Walla Wine!

Despite the early cold and the VERY slow spring we had here in little Walleyville, the valley grape population has finally decided it's ready and the harvest is on!  From Cabernet to Zinfandel, the Walla Walla valley is in hot pursuit of standing in the same circle as some of the finest from anywhere on earth!  Here is my little attempt to pay homage to my little town and its fine wines!

~Zinful Mulled Jelly~

printable recipe

750 ml (1 standard bottle) Zinfandel (Sangiovese or Zinfandel works) 

⅓ cup cherry juice

2 Teaspoons Mulling Spice "Bouquet de Garnis" 

   10 Whole cardamom seeds (decorticated)

   1 Tablespoon whole cloves

   1 ½ Tablespoons allspice berries

   1 Teaspoon dried Valencia orange peel

   1 Tablespoon pink peppercorns 

3 2" cinnamon sticks

½ Cup fresh squeezed lemon juice

2 oz (3 tbsp) pectin powder

1 3/4 - 2 cups white sugar

SPECIAL TOOLS:  Copper-bottom sauce pot w/Lid

                                 Fine mesh strainer

                                 Cans, lids and rings

                                 Canning tools kit, Canning boiler vessel

                                 Cheese cloth/Empty teabags & Twine

                                  

Yield - 4 or 5 Half-pints

This recipe is very simple but I can say from experience trying this recipe a few times with as many errors that this one falls in the category of recipes I call "slippery."  Slippery in the sense that it tends to fly away if you try to squeeze it (or stretch for that matter.)

Due to the way the pectin dissolves into the wine and the natural compounds that are present in the wine itself that affect the gelling process, the gel will not form properly if you try to make too much at once.  The time it takes to boil a larger quantity of liquid also plays a role.  Simply put, if you are feeling like you want to make a larger quantity of this jelly rather than change ratios and levels, just make two batches and all will be well.  Now for a recipe, eh?


A take on a classic seasonal refreshment, this recipe makes a spicy warm jelly that pairs well with spiced cookies and cakes of all kinds.  Try it as a cookie jam filling or warmed slightly over your favorite autumn cake or even good vanilla ice cream!

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Just like all canning recipes, begin by preparing your jars!  Wash your jars, lids, and rings in hot, soapy water then place the jars and lids in your canning vessel.  Fill the vessel and jars with cold tap water and place the whole lot on the 

First and simplest, make up your mulling spice bouquet de garnis:

A bouquet de garnis is a herb/spice bag, usually made from cheese cloth or other fine cloth mesh often used in soups or other liquid base recipes.  The bag allows the introduction of all kinds of flavors while preventing the escape of unwanted bits of stuff that you would normally need to strain out.  

In a small mixing bowl, combine your various spices then crush them just a bit with a make shift pestle like a large spoon or end of a rolling dowel.  This spice mixture will keep just as long as its components but if you have a jar with a lid (especially an old spice jar) it will retain its essential oils much better!  Just like pre-ground spices, the oils want to escape and with them go the flavors.  

Next make your bouquet de garnis!

Cheese cloth is the most common way to make a spice packet but I like to use a teabag!  If you're a big tea drinker like myself, you've most likely seen the teabags made not from cloth but from a fine resin mesh.  Since these baggies are about the right size AND have the added benefit of being designed to withstand boiling liquids, I think they can't be beat for this purpose!

Cut a small corner off of one of your teabags and pour out the dry tea.  Give the baggie a rinse in warm h2o then pat it dry with a paper towel.  Place a couple of teaspoons of your mulling spice in the bag and give the cut corner a twist like twisting a candy wrapper.  Tie your twist with a bit of twine, leaving a length of twin to ease removal.  For the cinnamon sticks, just tie them together with a bit more kitchen twine.

Next get your wine going!

Open up your wine and pour it into your pot over medium heat.  Add your cherry juice, and bring the lot to a low boil.

Add your bouquet de garnis, reduce heat to low and cover the pot with your lid to let the spices steep 12 minutes to impart their flavor.  If you want a spicier blend, just let the mix sit for longer rather than add more.  Be careful though!  12 minutes should be enough but if you want more, go 1 minute at a time as you can go too far and start heading toward bitter...  no fun...  Never forget your best tools here: nose and taste buds!  When the mixture is spiced just right, remove the spices and discard them.
Return your spiced wine mixture to a low boil then add your lemon juice.  Return the liquid a low simmer.

Combine your sugar and pectin in a small bowl and stir or shake up in a jar with a lid to be absolutely sure the mixture is homogenized.  Remember your gravy science!  Lumps are no respecters of savory/sweet borders!  Lumps of pectin here will stay lumps of pectin in your jelly if you're not careful.

Add your sweetener/pectin mix to your slowly simmering wine and stir vigorously to dissolve.  Bring the liquid to a good boil for one full minute, continuing to stir with plenty of zeal!  DON'T START YOUR TIMER UNTIL THE LIQUID IS AT A SOLID BOIL!  This is key to proper gelling so don't rush through.

  

Ladle your hot mixture into prepared ½ pint jars, leaving ½" of head space.  Process 5 minutes in boiling water.  Remove your jars to a cooling rack and wipe any excess water off the tops.  Tighten your lids and let them cool to seal!

~~~***~~~

Recipes like these are fun because they're unorthodox.  Canning by it's nature was created to make things like fresh fruit, meats, nuts, vegetables even things like nuts and grains keep much longer than they normally would in room temperature storage.  With things like this, the reasoning behind canning is turned slightly sideways.  Wine doesn't need to be canned, doesn't need to be jellied but we say they do so we do it anyhow!  Huzzah!  


This recipe is a base to start with but can be taken in many directions.  Try without the mulling for a fresher flavor or try mixing up the juice component for pairing with other foods.  You can also, of course, make it with any wine you like best, making it nearly infinite in its variability!  Maybe even try a whole different base...  mead perhaps...  Keep on experimenting, everyone!

ENJOY!

~Jam On!~ Preserve the summertime goodness!

Summer Berries!!

Blackberries from the local Farmers' Market!

There really isn't anything much better AND depending on where you live, you'll find them growing for FREE!  This year, despite the late frosts, my berry bushes and vines produced enough fruit that I couldn't use it all and I had to freeze it.  

This week, let's start off my canning barrage with fresh WallaBerry Preserves!  Why WallaBerry?  Why not?  Named for the local berries grown and picked right here in my Walla Walla home town!

~4-Berry (WallaBerry) Preserves~

printable recipe

3 Cups Frozen Strawberries 

3 Cups Frozen Blueberries

3 Cups Frozen raspberries 

3 Cups Frozen Blackberries 

2 Tablespoons Pear juice 

3 Tablespoons Cognac Brandy 

2 Tablespoons Lemon juice

5 Teaspoons Calcium Water 

2 ½ Cups Honey 

5 Teaspoons Pectin Powder 

1 2" Cinnamon Stick (optional)

SPECIAL TOOLS: Large copper bottom sauce pot

                                 Large whisk or Potato masher

                                 Canning tool kit, Jars, Lids&rings, Boiler

Yield - 10-12 half-pint jars

NOTE: This recipe is written using a low sugar active pectin powder and a calcium water activator. You may also use a low sugar pectin powder and make minor adjustments based on the instructions

For this recipe, I went with a strait mix of equal parts raspberry, blackberry, blueberry, strawberry but feel free to ...mix it up...  Just keep in mind that different fruits have different sugar levels and different natural pectin levels.  It shouldn't affect your recipe too much changing the ratios but experiment with it a bit if the first batch doesn't come out exactly to your liking.  Now lets get started!

First wash jars, lids and rings in hot soapy water to remove any gunk/residue from the factory or packaging.  Get your canning vessel with water simmering very slowly and immerse your jars and rings in it to sterilize them.  Natural yeast that exists everywhere air is usually your biggest enemy but there are other things that are less common but are, in fact more deadly like botulism toxin.  When boiling to sterilize, be careful to not  actually boil your water as the excess heat can deform the lids and prevent sealing!  Lot of work wasted in potentia...

Next for the berries themselves!  I personally like to use fresh blackberries for their better natural flavor, sweetness and pectin content but if you can only get frozen, go for the frozen, no worries.  Combine all of your fruit as well as lemon juice, pear juice, and cognac in a large pot.

I like to add a little bit of cognac to this recipe but feel free to use any liquor you like or simply leave it out all together.  Most of the alcohol in this quantity will boil off in the cooking process. leaving just a subtle flavor accent.

Bring the whole lot to a slow simmer and cook until your berries are slightly softened.  Add your calcium water (if following a recipe where it is called for)  

Take a large whisk or a wire potato masher and gently mash your fruit.  This is a totally optional step but I think it helps to bring out and combine the flavors inside the berries.  Simply a matter of surface area in contact with the liquid!  Reduce heat to low to avoid overcooking your fruit. 

If you like a little bit of spice, you can add a small cinnamon stick here to steep and impart a little sweet spiciness!

Now for the gelling agents and sweetener!  I like to use honey for this one and luckily I was able to pick up some Raw Wildflower honey at the market!

~~~INGREDIENTS NOTES: Raw Honey~~~

Grocery store honey is pasteurized and filtered for everyday consumption

Raw Honey!  This is the kind of honey you will likely only find at a local outdoor market or in a health food/herbal shop.  This honey is pure and direct from the comb extractor.  It is unpasteurized and contains many things that grocery store honey does not such as bee pollen, comb wax, bee wing, royal jelly, bee proteins, and propolis (a powerful, natural antibiotic derived from coniferous buds.)

a pollen laden honey bee working over a sunflower in her search for nectar

These extra ingredients in local raw honey can have many good-health factors ranging from natural cures for digestive upset and motion sickness to more complex problems like immune hyperactivity and chronic vitamin deficiencies.  

The pollens (from local allergen sources) combine with certain bee enzyme compounds to help to "inoculate" against chronic allergies.  Many other enzymes can help to activate vitamins in food and ones stored in inert forms in your body.  Further, raw honey contains amylase, an enzyme that can help predigest heavy gluten foods like bread and pastries, lessening the impact of gluten on sensitive tissues in the gut.

Next time you're out shopping and looking for a home remedy or just a delicious, natural sweetener, don't forget to keep an eye out for raw honey!

~~~!INGREDIENT NOTES: Raw Honey~~~

Combine your room temperature honey and pectin powder in a large bowl, mixing vigorously to ensure proper homogenization.  Just like when making gravy, large dry bits of pectin powder will give you large lumps of hard, snotty gel in your end product so be sure to get it thoroughly mixed!

~~~Food Science Notes (Pectin Powder): Small Particle Distribution in Thickeners~~~

~RULES TO LIVE BY (Canning): When canning with pectin, always mix pectin into an amount of sweetener no more than 1/2 the amount of fruit/juice you are adding it to. This is to maintain even mixing as well as even homogenization of jelling agents in the final product.~

Now that your sweetener mixture is ready, set it aside and return your fruit to a slow boil.  Add your sweetener/thickener and stir vigorously until it completely dissolves, about 2 minutes.  Bring the whole lot back to a good boil for 1 minute then remove from heat.

Now its time to fill and seal your jars!  Remove your jars and rings from the boiling water with your lifters and set them on a clean towel to dry.
Fill your jars with fruit and liquid, leaving just 1/4" of head space for proper vacuum.  Wipe the rims of the jars (to ensure you get proper contact) add lids, then adjust your rings.  You want to go just about finger tight. Too tight can actually cause the lids to deform in the boiling process.  Bring your processing pot to a moderate boil.

With your canning rack or basket in place, process your jars in boiling water for 10 minutes, allowing for altitude change.

~RULES TO LIVE BY (Canning): Increase in altitude affects standard atmospheric pressure and thus affects the boiling point of water. When canning, this change in pressure and heat is overcome by increasing the boiling time by 1 minute per 1000 ft above sea level.~


When time is up, gently remove your jars from the boiler and place them on a cooling rack or on the counter.  Dry the ops of the lids and tighten the rings down moderately tight.  You will want to check the jars again after the vacuum seals form to tighten the lids again as the glass and liquid contracts during cooling.

This is a great, all-around, semi-tart preserve/jam combo of summer flavor for toast, pancakes even ice cream or cake filling!  It has a lot of flavor but is still a very basic format recipe so it has a lot of opportunity for changing it up in all kinds of ways!  Adding or subtracting to change the berry ratios is the most basic way but keep in mind things like sweetener types, citrus types (orange juice or grapefruit juice instead of lemon) sugar quantities...  Even adding spices or spiced liquors during initial cooking.  Maybe try adding some whole zest and/or fruit pieces.  So many ways to mess with it makes it a good recipe in my book!  Keep on experimenting, everyone!

ENJOY!