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April 27, 2010

2nd Attempt.... "Rosemary Mint Wine Jelly"

Ok, here's my second attempt at the 'herb' thing for April! I found this recipe at Epicurious.com purely by accident and I was very excited to find that I had already bought the rosemary & mint for other recipes that I had opted NOT to try!
 
Rosemary Mint Wine Jelly                        
(yield: four 1/2 pints)

2 1/2 cups firmly packed fresh mint leaves
1/4 cup fresh rosemary leaves
2 cups dry white wine
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (plus additional if needed)
3 1/2 cups sugar
3 ounce pouch liquid pectin.        
                     
In a food processor or blender blend together the mint, rosemary and 1 cup of wine until the herbs are chopped fine and transfer the mixture to a bowl. In a small saucepan bring the remaining 1 cup wine to a boil, add it to the herb mixture. Let it stand, covered, for 45 minutes. (I put all the wine in a small saucepan and used a knife to cut up the herbs. I was looking for a mild flavor so I didnt' wait the 45 minutes.) Over a large measuring cup strain through a sieve lined with several layers of rinsed & squeezed cheesecloth. Press the solids to get all the liquid and add 1/4 cup lemon juice. (I used a reusable coffee filter with wonderful resuts.) There should be exactly 2 cups of liquids... if there is less, add additional lemon juice to measure 2 cups.

 Transfer the liquid to a kettle, stir in the sugar, stirrring until the mixture is combined well. Bring to a rolling boil over high heat, stirring constantly. Stir in the pectin quickly, bring the mixture again to a full rolling boil, stirring constantly, for 1 minute. Remove from heat, skim off any foam with a large spoon and ladle the mixture immediately into 4 sterilized 1/2 pint Mason-type jars. Fill to within 1/8 inch from top. Wipe the rims and seal the jars with lids. Process in a boiling water bath for 5 minutes. Store jars in a cool, dark place.  ENJOY!

Not being a wine drinker, I had NO idea how this would work out. I had everyone taste this, and we all agree, it has a wonderful flavor! Again, thanks Tigress for the reminder to post even though I missed the deadline!

4 comments:

Kathleen said...

This jam sounds delicious to me. I saw on epicurious some people had trouble with it setting up. Did you or did you do something to compensate for this possibility?

Melanie said...

Hi Kathleen, I was wondering how it would set up myself, but this morning when I came out to check on it, I discovered it had! :) I didn't do anything other then to make sure I brought it to a rolling boil before adding the pectin and then again afterwards. I tend to add a minute to each boil, more then the recipe calls for! It does have a sweet flavor! Can't wait to try it on something other then a spoon! :) Thanks for asking!

mad4books said...

Yes, please! This sounds amazing, but as a Texan, I have to rub this in...you BOUGHT rosemary and mint? BOUGHT?

What a shame! I have them growing in a giant container outside my back door!

Frost is just a memory...it's gonna' be 88 tomorrow...BWAAH HAH HAH!

tigress said...

nice! :)