Berry Roundup #2
Jul 14th, 2007 | By Gidget | Category: Gardening / Canning, RecipesYesterday, I posted a picture of what we rounded up from our blackberry bushes in the backyard. It was a meager few cups. The first real roundup was a good amount to try. They have alot of berries on them again but they still need to ripen. In the meantime, Muscadine vines are beginning to grow over the blackberry bushes. Yum!
Today, we went and checked out the vacant lots again and found a great deal more bushes. There were bushes for about 1/2 mile. This is what we were able to pick in about an hour.
This bowl is about 4qts. I’ll be mashing them down in a bit to make some jam, but I wanted to share the pretty picture before I do. What a wonderful find God had hidden around the neighborhood!!!
I’ve finally figured out why the last batch of jam didn’t set up as thick as it should have. It did thicken a little more after about 4 days but not to the consistency I was hoping for. In that batch, it was 4c. berries to 4c. sugar, boiled to 220. This time I’m trying the UGA’s site for liquid pectin, 4c. crushed berries, 7 c. sugar. This should work better, but the higher sugar, I’m not crazy about. The price I guess I’ll have to pay for pantry storage. At least there’s no high fructose corn syrup. As you can tell… I’m really new to this, so I’ll let you know if it works. Does anyone have a recipe for a good mint jelly? The mints are taking off like crazy too.
We just had a deluge of rain tonight, so I’m sure there will be a noticeable difference in the veggie garden in a few days. Hopefully for the better!
