PieSusan
02-07-2009, 08:39 PM
This recipe is tried and true. My dad loved it. If any of your jars don't seal properly store in the fridge and use at once. This was one of my father's favorites.
Concord Grape Jam
Based on a recipe by Jeanne Lesem
Yield: 4 cups
Ingredients:
3 pounds ripe Concord grapes, or a 2-quart basket containing about 3 to 3-1/4 pounds
3 cups sugar
Directions:
Wash, drain, and stem grapes and place in a wide 4-quart saucepan. Smash them with a potato masher to release their juice and then bring them to a quick boil while stirring to prevent burning and sticking. Boil for roughly ten minutes, or until the grape pulp whitens and the grape skins are tender.
Quickly remove from the heat and strain out the seeds (I use a mouli) until you have 4 cups of grape puree. Be sure that you do not scrape or crack the seeds as that will cause your grape jam to be bitter.
Wash the saucepan well and return the puree to a quick boil and stir in the sugar all at once. Continue to stir until the sugar dissolves. Boil rapidly for about 20 minutes while continuously stirring so that the jam doesn't burn, or until the gel tests almost done.
Concord grapes are so rich in pectin that they are easy to overcook. Should this happen, to save your jam, return it to the washed saucepan and add a spoonful or two of water, reheat to boil and retest. Immediately, ladle the grape jam into hot, sterilized jars, with sterilized seals and sterilized lids. Put the jars of jam in a hot water bath and let them boil for 10 minutes or however long according to where you live. Cool the jam, label and store.
Concord Grape Jam
Based on a recipe by Jeanne Lesem
Yield: 4 cups
Ingredients:
3 pounds ripe Concord grapes, or a 2-quart basket containing about 3 to 3-1/4 pounds
3 cups sugar
Directions:
Wash, drain, and stem grapes and place in a wide 4-quart saucepan. Smash them with a potato masher to release their juice and then bring them to a quick boil while stirring to prevent burning and sticking. Boil for roughly ten minutes, or until the grape pulp whitens and the grape skins are tender.
Quickly remove from the heat and strain out the seeds (I use a mouli) until you have 4 cups of grape puree. Be sure that you do not scrape or crack the seeds as that will cause your grape jam to be bitter.
Wash the saucepan well and return the puree to a quick boil and stir in the sugar all at once. Continue to stir until the sugar dissolves. Boil rapidly for about 20 minutes while continuously stirring so that the jam doesn't burn, or until the gel tests almost done.
Concord grapes are so rich in pectin that they are easy to overcook. Should this happen, to save your jam, return it to the washed saucepan and add a spoonful or two of water, reheat to boil and retest. Immediately, ladle the grape jam into hot, sterilized jars, with sterilized seals and sterilized lids. Put the jars of jam in a hot water bath and let them boil for 10 minutes or however long according to where you live. Cool the jam, label and store.