A historical preserve from The White House cook book; a comprehensive cyclopedia of information for the home .. (1913). The sugar should be very hot when added to the boiling juice. Roll glasses and cups in hot water before filling. The jelly will form within an hour.
Preserved exactly as written in the original source
Take a stone jar and put in the fruit, place this in a kettle of tepid water and set on the fire
Let it boil, closely covered, until the fruit is broken to pieces
Strain, pressing the bag, a stout, coarse one, hard, putting in a few handfuls each time, and between each squeezing turning it inside out to scald off the pulp and skins
To each pint of juice allow a pound of loaf sugar
Set the juice on alone to boil, and, while it is boiling, put the sugar into shallow dishes or pans, and heat it in the oven, watching and stirring it to prevent burning
Boil the juice just twenty minutes from the time it begins fairly to boil
By this time the sugar should be very hot; throw it into the boiling juice, stirring rapidly all the time
Withdraw the spoon when all is thoroughly dissolved
Let the jelly come to a boil to make all certain
Withdraw the kettle instantly from the fire
Roll your glasses and cups in hot water, and fill with the scalding liquid
The jelly will form within an hour
When cold, close and tie up as you do preserves
Modern guidance to help you succeed with this vintage recipe
Heating fruit in a water bath (bain-marie) gently extracts pectin without scorching, which is essential for gel formation. Pre-heating the sugar separately prevents temperature drop when added to the boiling juice—maintaining the rolling boil is critical because pectin only forms a proper gel structure at 220°F. The rapid stirring when combining hot sugar with hot juice ensures complete dissolution while preserving the molecular bonds needed for jelling, and the short 20-minute boil concentrates the mixture to the proper sugar-to-pectin ratio without breaking down the pectin chains.
The fruit juice can be extracted and strained up to 24 hours ahead; refrigerate in a covered container until ready to make the jelly. Bring the juice back to room temperature before proceeding with the boiling and sugar addition steps.
Once set and completely cooled, cover jelly glasses with a thin layer of melted paraffin wax (traditional method) or use sterilized jar lids. Store in a cool, dark place for up to 1 year. Once opened, refrigerate and use within 3 weeks. If mold develops on the surface, discard the entire jar.
AI-generated tips from Chef Cecil's culinary database
The fruit juice can be extracted and strained up to 24 hours ahead; refrigerate in a covered container until ready to make the jelly. Bring the juice back to room temperature before proceeding with the boiling and sugar addition steps.
Once set and completely cooled, cover jelly glasses with a thin layer of melted paraffin wax (traditional method) or use sterilized jar lids. Store in a cool, dark place for up to 1 year. Once opened, refrigerate and use within 3 weeks. If mold develops on the surface, discard the entire jar.
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