PREP: 45 minutes STAND: 30 minutes PROCESS: 5 minutes MAKES: 9 half-pints
1 cup firmly packed fresh mint leaves
½ cup water
3 cups chopped yellow sweet peppers
1½ cups cider vinegar
3 fresh habanero chile peppers, seeded and finely chopped (tip, page 107)
2 Tbsp. finely chopped shallot
7 cups sugar (tip, page 231)
3 Tbsp. lemon juice
½ of a 6-oz. pkg. (1 foil pouch) liquid fruit pectin*
1. In a small saucepan bring mint leaves and the water to boiling. Remove from heat. Cover and let stand 30 minutes. Pour mint mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a 5- to 6-qt. heavy pot (tip, page 228), pressing mint with a spoon to remove excess liquid. Discard mint.
2. In a food processor or blender combine sweet peppers, ½ cup of the vinegar, the habanero peppers, and shallot. Cover and process or blend until finely chopped. Add pepper mixture to mint liquid in pot. Stir in the remaining 1 cup vinegar, sugar, and lemon juice. Bring to a full rolling boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly. Stir in pectin. Return to a full rolling boil, stirring constantly (tip, page 238). Boil hard 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Quickly skim off foam with a metal spoon.
3. Ladle hot jelly into nine hot sterilized half-pint canning jars, leaving a ¼-inch headspace. Wipe jar rims; adjust lids and screw bands.
4. Process filled jars in a boiling-water canner 5 minutes (start timing when water returns to boiling). Remove jars from canner; cool on wire racks. (Canning tips, pages 461–466.)
*Test Kitchen Tip: Pectin is a natural substance found in many fruits that gives preserves a thick, gelled texture. Fruit pectin is available in several forms, including powdered, liquid, and instant. Be sure to use the kind specified in your recipe to get the correct results. Pectin is usually available wherever other canning supplies are sold.
PER 1 TBSP. JELLY: 40 cal., 0 g fat, 0 mg chol., 1 mg sodium, 10 g carb., 0 g fiber, 0 g pro.