When I was much younger and had small children at home I did a lot of canning. We were living in a small southern town where gardens were in every other yard and I had only to drive a couple of miles from my house to find a produce stand. Then I was all about saving money so I could afford to feed those hungry kids!Today I don't have to feed hungry children, at least not in my home, but I find great satisfaction in "going back to my roots" and doing some canning, not because I have to, but because I want to. This summer I've been blessed with garden produce from two wonderful neighbors, Betty and Ross. They aren't wonderful because they give me produce, though I do love receiving it, but are wonderful because they are good Christian people and good friends and neighbors. In fact, I'm hoping God lets them live on my street in Heaven too.
This week they brought me a gallon bag of muscadines. Ya'll they were so sweet and good that we wanted to eat every single one of them at one sitting! We restrained ourselves, though it was hard, so we could make muscadine jam.
First we separated the insides from the outsides. :) I had to have some help with this because my hands don't have a lot of strenth since Arthur came to visit. That's what my grandmother always called arthritis. Anyway, Jerry loved helping me. Didn't you honey? Honey? You did, didn't you?
Then I cooked them, separately, for just a few minutes. I added some water to the peels but the pulp didn't need any. They had lots of juice. The pulp cooks up kind of clear but the peels cook up a beautiful purple.
After pressing all of it through a sieve and combining it this is what it looks like. I added sugar, lots of sugar, and pectin.
I poured all that beautiful jam into hot jars and gave it a water bath and ended up with.....
this gorgeous stuff! And ya'll it's so good it'll make you slap your mama...well not really, but you get my drift. Now don't you wish you had this to spread on my good homemade sourdough bread toasted with real butter? You are so jealous.
18 comments:
Looks so yummy!!
Marlene, I'm on my way over RIGHT NOW. Get it ready, my friend! Wish I really could sit and enjoy sourdough and your sweet jam while we chat. ~Adrienne~
I'm coming over with Adrienne. Yum, yum! You are just so BAD to show us good stuff like that, and we can't even SMELL it from here! HOWEVER, my sweetie made us oatmeal waffles and scrambled eggs again this morning, and my kitchen just smells so GOOD!!!
Be blessed and have a wonderful day! Michelle
I don't even know what muscadines are but jam sounds lovely to me.
You are so talented, you not only make your own laundry soap, you make JAM??? I wish I lived on your street...Alivia would constantly be sent to Miss Marlene's house with an empty cup. She's so sweet, you wouldn't be able to tell her "no" and then I'd have homemade laundry soap, jam and maybe she could "borrow" a quilt! ;) Forget the cup, I'm sending her over with a bucket.
All kidding aside, you really are full of a LOT of God given talent!
Oh that does look good!!
Alright this is not fair. I am sooooo jealous. Makes my mouth water.
It looks lovely, there's nothing like homemade jam. I've never heard of a muscadine before, though!
If Adrienne and Michelle are coming, and then there's me - maybe we could just get up a bus trip?
What are muscadines?
love, Angie, xx
Count me in on the bus trip, but someone please tell me what muscadines are! Never heard of them here in Minnesota!
Oh, my Mama made muscadine jam every year. I found some down at the village in Star City this summer. My brother will be making some, but not sure he will share.
Enjoy it.
It sounds absolutely YUMMO! (and I don't even know what muscardines are...)
Those jars just look so wonderful. Good job, Marlene! (and hubby).
Are muscadines some sort of grape?
Friends,
Susannah
You've been a busy blogger as well as a busy jelly maker (muscadine, that is). Very cool. Last weekend I made blackberry/boysenberry/raspberry jelly, which I called Triple Berry Jelly. I decided to open a jar on Saturday, dipped out a little bit of jelly to warm in the microwave, poured it into a little cream pitcher and poured it over hot pancakes. OMG! I-Hop, eat your heart out.
I'm so jealous that you get to go to Estes Park, CO. My family used to vacation at Rocky Mtn. Natl. Park every summer. Such wonderful memories. I'd love to see the Aspens in full fall color. You are sooo lucky! Have a blast. Please, please, please send pictures. -Megan-
Oh, yum. Muscadines always remind me of my grandfather. He had miles of vines and my cousins and I would stand under those things and eat muscadines and scuppernog grapes until we were sick....and then we'd eat some more.
Looks good. I have done quite a bit of canning, freezing, made jelly and pickles in the past and expect to do so again when my Honey Bear retires.
Mama Bear
Muscadines? I am at a loss. Please explain. Thanks.
That's what I've been doing all summer, except I've been doing it with blackberries and concord grapes.It sure is good.
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