Grape Jelly - You Really Ought to Try Making Some
Ernest Miller
It has been a busy week at the Farmer's Kitchen
(http://www.hollywoodfarmerskitchen.com/) as I settle into my new job.
I'm really having a good time.
This past Wednesday the Farmer's Kitchen and SEE-LA were participants
in “Good Food for All,” a fundraiser for a dollar matching program for
farmer's markets. EBT (aka “food stamp”) holders will soon be able to
come to a farmer's market and get a matching dollar for every dollar
they spend in the market. Not only do those in need get access to
more fresh produce, but the farmers also benefit from the increase in
spending. It is a win-win-win program (those who donate win because
their donations do double duty).
The benefit was also the public unveiling of the report from the LA
Food Policy Task Force: “Good Food for All” and the launch of the Food
Policy Council, which is tasked with implementing the recommendations
of the task force. The report is a must for anyone interested in
creating a viable, local and sustainable foodshed here in Los Angeles.
Read the whole report here: http://goodfoodla.org/
I was excited just to be at the event, meeting and interacting with
some of the top chefs and farmers in the greater Los Angeles
metropolis. And, heck, LA Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa ate some of the
food I prepared.
Just to let you know, we prepared Baba Ganoush (using some of the last
of the summer eggplant) and Muhammara (peak of the season red bell
peppers and walnuts just coming into season) with Farmer's Market
crudités (in order to really highlight the wonderful produce we get
from local farmers). We also made goat cheese crostinis topped with
roasted cherry tomatoes. The goat cheese (from Soledad Goats -
http://www.localharvest.org/goat-cheese-creations-soledad-goats-M19874
) had not been refrigerated, since it had been made just that morning.
How cool is it to work with ingredients like that?
We brought some of our preserves to display, of course, but I was
excited to see some other preservers at the event as well. Chef
Akasha Richmond of Akasha Restaurant fame was sampling some of her
preserves there. They were all excellent, but her McGrath Strawberry
Jam was amazing!
Last word on the event … I just want to give a shout out to all the
members of this email list I saw there! How wonderful that so many of
you care so much about food policy here in Los Angeles. Thanks for
coming!
Ok, so perhaps these emails will digress a bit from food preservation,
I can't help but be excited about my new position. On to the food
preservation.
Go into any supermarket and look at their preserves. Inevitably, even
in the smallest store, you will see two items: strawberry jam and
grape jelly (usually made from Concord grapes). Most preservers try
their hand at a homemade strawberry jam and discover how much better
homemade is compared to the commercial product. But how many of you
have made grape jelly at home?
If you haven't, you really ought to give it a try. The stuff in the
store is flavorless compared to the incredibly rich, deep flavors you
can achieve at home.
First, if you want some amazing grape jelly, you need to start with
good grapes. Supermarket Thompson Seedless isn't going to cut it. Go
into your local farmers market to find grapes with real flavor (and
don't worry about grapes with seeds, you're going to be juicing them
anyway). Concord is the classic, of course, but there are many other
grapes varietals that can blow your socks off when turned into jelly.
And don't forget to check with your gardening neighbors. I know
someone who is growing Gewurztraminer grapes on a North-facing slope
in the City Terrace neighborhood. Maybe next year I'll get a chance
to harvest some for jelly making. Or, check Craigslist. I saw an add
a few weeks ago from someone with homegrown grapes they needed taken
off their hands here in the LA area.
Of course, I have access to some amazing grapes thanks to the
Hollywood Farmer's Market. This week I got to turn two cases of
Cabernet Sauvignon grapes (yep, the ones they make wine from) into
jelly. Thank you, Mill Road Orchard.
Probably the most intimidating thing about jellies is that you have to
juice the fruit and then filter it. I'll admit, it does take more
time and effort than mashing some berries for jam, but your efforts
will be rewarded.
In the case of my wine grapes, I first ran them through a food mill to
get the juice out. I diligently saved all the skins and seeds
however. That is where most of the color and flavor are. Many people
are surprised that the juice from red grapes is actually pretty pale,
almost clear. The color in red wines comes from the grape skins. The
same with jellies.
Next, I took all those grape skins and seeds added enough water to
almost cover and then boiled them for about ten minutes so that they
would release their color and flavor. And then I pressed and
strained. And strained again. And again. And one more time.
You see, for a crystal clear jelly, you need to really strain the heck
out of the juice. I use progressively finer strainers every time. I
start with a large perforated strainer, then a smaller one, then a
smaller one and so on, until I finally strain with a fine-mesh
strainer or jelly bag (yep, that's what jelly bags are for).
The final step is to let the juice rest overnight in the refrigerator.
Smaller particles left in the juice will settle out overnight. The
next morning, carefully pour the beautifully clear juice into another
container without disturbing the sediment. Now your juice is ready to
make jelly.
Of course, you can skip however many steps you want in clarifying the
juice if you don't mind a less-than-perfectly transparent jelly. Don't
let perfection be the enemy of the good.
As for the rest … follow your recipe. Many juices require additional
pectin to set as jellies, but a few do not. Grape juice can go either
way, especially with the thicker skinned varieties.
That's it for this week – this email is probably already too long.
Thanks for reading to the end!
If you have any questions about canning, pressure canning,
fermentation, dehydration, freezing, pickling,
curing, smoking or brewing, feel free to email me at
ernest...@gmail.com.
Be sure to check out the blog, which is updated several times a week
(usually): http://preservenation.blogspot.com/
And/or join the Facebook group:
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=280846286958
Thanks,
Ernie