Homegrown Pepper Jelly

Summer is coming to a close and harvest is upon us! Every year my family and I grow a variety of fruits and vegetables, including an assortment of peppers. I am going to outline for you the steps to making pepper jelly! We will be using Poblanos, Banana Peppers, Cayenne, Chilli, and Jalapéno (pictured above), but any combination of what you buy or grew will work! 

This sweet and spicy jelly is great paired with goat cheese or crackers, crostinis, or even as a dressing for pork or shrimp! 
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1. Clean your work space! Clorox can be trusted to kill off most harmful germs or bacteria on your counters, dishes, and utensils you will be using throughout this process.

2. You will need to wash your jars and screw bands. For jelly, the standard size is 8oz (1/2 pint) or 12oz. But, any size will work! Keep in mind, once opened - the clock starts ticking to use it. Once washed, we need to sterilize them in boiling water to kill off any germs and bacteria.

3. Set your jars (upside down) and screw bands to dry in a clean area.

4. Pick your peppers! Depending on the variety - size and color will help you determine if they are ready. 

5. Remove cores and seeds from your peppers, then finely chop your peppers. The seeds contain a lot of the 'heat' - so if you don't mind the extra spicy kick, go ahead and leave some in.

5. Add your peppers to a large pan over high heat. Mix in vinegar and sugar. 

6. Stir constantly and let it reach to a rolling boil. Once it reaches a rolling boil, add the fruit pectin and stir for 1 minute. Remove from heat.

 7. Ladle jelly into jars filling to 1/4in from the top. Cover with flat lids and screw on bands. Using a special canning funnel helps prevent jelly from getting onto the sides of the jars! 

8. Place jars into canner. Water should cover jars completely. Water should be hot, but not boiling.  Bring water to boil and process 5 minutes. 

9. Pull jars out and cool. When you hear a 'popping' noise, this means the jars are sealed! When they are completely cool, check the seals by pressing the centers of the lids with your fingers. If the lid springs back, or you didn't hear a pop initially from that jar, this just means it will need refrigeration.

10. Over the next few days and weeks the jelly will start to thicken and the flavor develop even more! Enjoy!