Saltbox House Creations: Jalapeno Jelly

The growing season starts early here in Texas (I planted in February) so everything is really setting on. We have one jalapeno plant which is very ambitious. Sent the kids out yesterday and there were 20 peppers ready to be picked! So I decided to make some jalapeno jelly. My husband likes to dip his jalapeno poppers in it. I like it when you thaw a brick of cream cheese and smother in the jelly, then eat with crackers.

First de-seed and de-vein about 12 jalapenos. Please wear gloves and don't touch your face. Ouch! My method is to cut the top of, cut in half and use my thumb to just push the seeds out.

Throw the peppers in a food processor or blender with 1 cup of cider vinegar. Give it a whirl and make a puree.

At this point, I washed all the jars and lids in the sink and then put them in the canner (with the burner on, covered in hot water) to keep warm until they were used.

Pour the puree into a deep stainless steel pot (it will grow at least double in volume) and add another cup of cider vinegar and 6 cups of sugar. Get this to a rolling boil and boil 10 minutes. Add 2 packages of pectin and boil another minute.

Take off heat and add food coloring (optional). Skim foam off top.

Ladle jelly into hot jars. I love my funnel that came with my set of canning accessories. If fits perfect! Make sure to leave a little room at the top of the jar (unlike the jar in the front of the picture below). I had to take a little out of that one.