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jar of jelly surrounded by berries

Autumn Olive Berry Jelly

4.75 from 8 votes
This delicious foraged autumn olive jelly tastes somewhat like peach or apricot, with a hint of cherry.
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Prep Time 45 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Servings: 2.5 8 ounce jars
Course: Jams & Jellies
Ingredients Equipment Method

Ingredients
  

  • 4 cups autumn olive berries, without stems
  • 1/2 cup water, plus extra as needed
  • 1/2 packet low to no sugar pectin (25 grams)
  • 1 1/2 cups sugar, divided
  • 1/4 tsp butter, optional - to reduce foaming

Equipment

  • Medium Sized Heavy Pot
  • Large colander or strainer
  • Pyrex pitcher or bowl, to fit under colander
  • Cheesecloth
  • Canning jars: 3 eight-ounce jars, or 5 four-ounce jars, plus lids

Method
 

To make the juice:
  1. Place the autumn olive berries and water in a medium pot.
  2. Using your hands, squish as many berries as you can to help the fruit get crushed.
  3. Place the pot over high heat and bring to a boil.
  4. Once boiling, reduce heat and simmer for 7 to 8 minutes.
  5. Stir occasionally while boiling, and attempt to crush any whole berries you spot, using the back of a spatula against the sides of the pot.
  6. While the berries boil, prepare the colander by thickly lining it with cheesecloth. We use one unfolded piece in the bottom of the colander, and 3 folded pieces on top.
  7. After the berries have simmered, pour the contents of the pot through the cheesecloth lined strainer, into the Pyrex pitcher or bowl below.
  8. Let drip until cool enough to handle.
  9. Red pulp will be left in the cheesecloth-lined colander, while a beige juice will drip into the bowl or pitcher below.
  10. Once the fruit stops dripping, bundle up the pulp in the cheesecloth and squeeze all of the juice from the pulp.
  11. Be careful not to let any red pulp squeeze into the juice. The pulp will separate from the juice when turned into jelly if that happens.
  12. Add enough water to the resulting juice so that you have 2 cups of liquid total.
To make the jelly:
  1. Prepare the jars by running them through a sanitize dishwasher cycle, or boiling them in a pot of water for 10 minutes, then keeping them in the hot water until needed.
  2. Add the 2 cups of berry juice to the pot.
  3. In a small bowl, combine 1/4 cup of sugar with the 1/2 pack (25 grams) of low or no sugar pectin.
  4. Stir the pectin/sugar mixture into the berry juice.
  5. Place the remaining 1 1/4 cup sugar near the stove, so you can grab it easily when needed.
  6. Place the pot of juice over a burner turned to medium-high or high heat.
  7. Stir constantly until a hard rolling boil is reached.
  8. If the jelly starts to foam, optionally add the 1/4 tsp butter to help reduce or eliminate the foam.
  9. Once boiling, dump all of the sugar in at once, and stir to dissolve.
  10. Return the berry juice to a full boil, and boil for 1 minute.
  11. Immediately remove from heat and pour into the hot jars. You may find it easier to pour the liquid jelly from the pot into a 4 cup Pyrex measuring cup first, to make pouring into the jars easier.
  12. Cover with lids and leave at room temperature until cool.
  13. Store in your refrigerator for 2 to 3 weeks. Jelly can also be frozen for about 6 months, though sometimes the texture may change.