Cantaloupe Jam With Vanilla Food

CANTALOUPE JAM WITH VANILLA

Steps:

• Prepare a boiling water bath and 3 half-pint/250 ml jars (see process below). Place the lids in a small saucepan, cover them with water, and simmer over very low heat.
• Combine the cantaloupe pulp, sugar, and vanilla bean seeds in a nonreactive pot. Bring to a boil over high heat and cook for 8 to 10 minutes.
• Add the lemon zest, lemon juice, and the packet of liquid pectin. Return to a vigorous boil. Cook for an additional 3 to 4 minutes, until the bubbles look thick.
• Remove the pot from the heat and ladle the jam into the prepared jars. Wipe the rims, apply the lids and rings, and process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes.
• How to Process:
• If you're starting with brand-new jars, remove their lids and rings. If you're using older jars, check the rims to make sure there are no chips or cracks.
• Put the rack into the canning pot and put the jars on top.
• Fill the pot (and jars) with water to cover and bring to a boil. I have found that this is the very easiest way to heat up the jars in preparation for canning because you're going to have to heat up the canning pot anyway. Why not use that energy to heat up the jars as well?
• Put the lids in a small saucepan, cover with water, and bring them to the barest simmer on the back of the stove.
• While the canning pot comes to a boil, prepare your product.
• When your recipe is complete, remove the jars from the canning pot (pouring the water back into the pot as you remove the jars) and set them on a clean towel on the counter. There's no need to invert them; the jars will be so hot that any remaining water will rapidly evaporate. Remove the lids with tongs or a magnetic lid wand and lay them out on the clean towel.
• Carefully fill the jars with your product. Depending on the recipe, you'll need to leave between 1/4 and 1/2 inch/6 mm and 12 mm of headspace (that's the room between the surface of the product and the top of the jar). Jams and jellies typically get 1/4 inch/6 mm, while thicker products and pickles get 1/2 inch/12 mm.
• Wipe the rims of the jar with a clean, damp paper towel or the edge of a clean kitchen towel. If the product you're working with is very sticky, you can dip the edge of the cloth in distilled white vinegar for a bit of a cleaning boost.
• Apply the lids and screw the bands on the jars to hold the lids down during processing. Tighten the bands with the tips of your fingers to ensure that they aren't overly tight. This process is known as "fingertip tight."
• Carefully lower the filled jars into the canning pot. You may need to remove some water as you put the jars in the pot. A heat-resistant measuring cup is the best tool for this job, as it won't transfer heat to your hand.
• Once the pot has returned to a rolling boil, start your timer. The length of the processing time will vary from recipe to recipe.
• When your timer goes off, promptly remove the jars from the water bath. Gently place them back on the towel-lined countertop and let them cool.
• The jar lids should begin to ping soon after they've been removed from the pot. The pinging is the sound of the seals forming; the center of the lids will become concave as the vacuum seal takes hold.
• After the jars have cooled for 24 hours, remove the bands and check the seals. You do this by grasping the jar by the edges of the lid and gently lifting it an inch or two off the countertop. The lid should hold fast. Once you've determined that your seals are good, you can store your jars in a cool, dark place (with the rings off, please) for up to a year. Any jars with bad seals can still be used -- just store them in the refrigerator and use within 2 weeks.

SALTED HONEY CANTALOUPE JAM

Steps:

• Bring cantaloupe and 1 cup water to a boil in a medium saucepan, mashing lightly with a potato masher; add sugar and lemon juice and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Cook, stirring, until mixture is thick, 15-20 minutes. Stir in honey, salt, and pectin and boil vigorously, stirring, 2 minutes. Let cool. Transfer jam to a glass jar, cover, and chill.
• Do Ahead
• Jam can be made 1 month ahead. Keep chilled.

CANTALOUPE JAM

Steps:

• In an 8-quart pan, combine the cantaloupe, lemon juice, sugar, and butter.
• Over med-low heat, stirring constantly, heat the mixture until the sugar is completely dissolved.
• Increase heat to med-high and bring the mixture to a full rolling boil, stirring constantly.
• Stir in the entire contents of both pectin pouches; return mixture to a full rolling boil, stirring constantly.
• Boil, stirring constantly, for 1 minute.
• Remove pan from the heat; skim off any foam.
• To prevent jam from separating in the jars, allow the jam to cool for 5 minutes before filling the jars.
• Gently stir the jam every minute or so to distribute the fruit.
• Ladle the hot jam into hot jars, leaving 1/4-inch headspace.
• Wipe jar rims and threads with a clean, damp cloth; cover with hot lids and apply screw rings.
• Process half-pint jars in a 200°F water bath for 10 minutes; pint jars for 15 minutes.