Rose Hip Jelly

For months Lynda has been telling me about fields of rose hips, just ripe for the picking, right near our house. Rose hips are the cherry sized red fruits of the rose bush, left behind after the bloom has died. The ones Lynda knows about are wild white roses from the Rosa rugosa variety. These are the tastiest rose hips. The flavor is described as fruity and spicy, much like the cranberry. You cannot eat the whole berry, as they contain very hairy seeds that are rough on digestion. The best part of rose hips is that they're loaded with vitamin C, so do not use any metal pans or utensils other than stainless steel or risk discoloration of the fruit and loss of the precious vitamin stores. Thanks, Lynda, for encouraging me to harvest the rose hips and make the jelly. Thanks for your help, too. You provided the buckets, clippers, gloves, and most of the labor, and of course, you knew the secret place where the rose hips were hiding. I wanted to go through the process of making rose hip jelly, which I did, but would not do again. It's very labor intensive, and although the end result is delicious, it's not worth the effort. I have a recipe here for you, just so you know what's involved. As you can see, just getting the rose hips ready to use is a big process. Before you begin the recipe you must harvest the rose hips, wash thoroughly, and trim them. You must remove the stem (cut it off) and the little bit of brown stuff (looks like a dead leaf) at the other end. Pick the red or orange rose hips, as the green ones are not ripe. Rose Hip Jelly INGREDIENTS Rosehip Jelly Ingredients 2 quarts rose hips 1 1/2 quarts water 1/2 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice(I used orange juice) 1 package SureJell pectin(I used a different brand 1/4 teaspoon butter 3 1/2 cups sugar 6 8-ounce canning jars and fresh lids METHOD Rosehip Jelly Method 1 Rinse the rose hips thoroughly. Cut off the scraggly ends and discard. 2 Place rose hips in a large pot. Add 1 1/2 quarts of water. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to simmer. Cover and cook for 1 hour (or longer), until rose hips are soft and mashable. rosehip-jelly-smashing.jpg rosehip-jelly-straining.jpg 3 Use a potato masher to mash up the rose hips into a rough purée. (I used a blender to puree). Set up a jelly bag, or a large very fine mesh strainer over a bowl or large pot. Transfer the rose hip mixture into the jelly bag/strainer/cheesecloth. Let strain into the bowl for at least an hour. Squeeze the jelly bag or cheesecloth to get more remaining juice out. I actually used a spoon to push through the pureed mixture through a fine strainer. 4 Measure the juice. You will need 3 cups of juice for this recipe, so if you have less than 3 cups, add more water to the mixture (you can also add some boiling water to the jelly bag if you still have it set up, allowing more liquid to drain out). 5 Prepare canning jars. You'll need 5 to 6 half-pint canning jars and lids. Sterilize the jars by either running them through the dishwasher, right before canning, or placing them on a rack in a large pot of water that you bring to a boil for 10 minutes, or by placing them in a 200°F oven for 10 minutes. To sterilize the lids, bring a kettle of a couple cups of water to a boil. Place lids in a shallow bowl and pour the boiling water over them. 6 Place 3 cups of the rose hip juice in a large, wide pot. Add the lemon juice and pectin. Bring to a boil, dissolving all of the pectin. Add the sugar. Once the sugar has dissolved, add the butter. Bring to a hard boil (one that you can not reduce by stirring). The mixture will bubble up considerably. Boil for exactly one minute. Then remove from heat and pour off into prepared canning jars, leaving 1/4-inch headspace from the rim. 7 If any jelly falls on the rim as your pour it into the jars, wipe the rim with a damp paper towel. Place sterilized lids on jars and rings to secure. To ensure a good seal, and to guard against mold, you can process the jars in a water bath for 10 minutes (bacteria is already killed by the sugar). To process, place the jars on a rack in a large, tall stock pot. Cover with an inch of water and bring to a rolling boil for 10 minutes. Then turn off the heat, remove the jars from the water, and let cool. As the jars cool you should hear a popping sound as the lids seal. The lids should seal; if not, store in the refrigerator. Makes 5 8-ounce jars.