Granddaughter SELENA JADE SEATE doesn’t open her homemade biscuits, shares CAROL ANN RUPP CRAWLEY (Alton, Virginia); she just spreads the jelly all over the top of a whole warm one! Selena’s most favorite food is homemade biscuits with freezer strawberry jelly, so this favorite is now known as “Selena Jelly” to this family. Selena and her younger sister, Brett, spent the summer of 2012 in Alton, Virginia, living with their grandparents, whom they affectionately refer to as Old Mommie and Ampy. Selena is the oldest grandchild, and she lived with her grandparents most of her first year of life, as her daddy was in the Marines, serving in Cuba. Old Mommie kept her a great deal while her mama worked evenings and weekends, so Selena started calling her Mama. No matter what other usual grandmother name they tried, Selena could not pronounce the “grrrr” sound. They explained to her that she only had one official “mommy”—so they finally decided grandma would be her “Old Mommie.” And that is what Carol has been to Selena and the other eight grandkids ever since.
2 pints strawberries, cleaned, capped, and mashed (about 2 cups crushed berries)*
4 cups sugar
1 (1.75 ounce) box fruit pectin
¾ cup water
1 Place the strawberries in a large bowl. Add the sugar to the crushed berries and allow to sit for 10 minutes, stirring every few minutes to dissolve the sugar.
2 In a small saucepan bring the fruit pectin and water to a boil and gradually add to the berry mixture. Stir until the mixture is no longer grainy, about 3 minutes.
3 Pour the jelly into freezer-safe glass jars with tight-fitting metal lids or rigid plastic containers with tight-fitting lids, leaving ½-inch space at the top for expansion when frozen. Screw the lids on and let stand at room temperature for 24 hours until set. Refrigerate up to 3 weeks or freeze up to a year.
FILLS 8 (½ CUP) OR 4 (1 CUP) CONTAINERS.
* It’s best to use the strawberries at room temperature. When preparing the berries, mash and crush with a fork or potato masher instead of a food processor, as it will puree the fruit too much. Use only the amount of fruit called for in this recipe. Using more than two cups can affect how the jelly will set.