Concord Grape Conserve Food

GRAPE-WALNUT CONSERVE

Steps:

• Bring 1 1/2 pounds seedless green grapes, 3/4 cup sugar, 4 wide strips orange zest, 1/4 cup raisins, 2 tablespoons lemon juice and 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt to a boil in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring constantly and mashing the grapes against the side of the pan with a wooden spoon, until the mixture coats the spoon, 20 to 25 minutes. Stir in 1/4 cup chopped walnuts. Fill sterilized jars, leaving a 1/2-inch headspace, then seal and process (see Cook's Note) for 15 minutes.

CONCORD GRAPE JAM

Steps:

• Sterilize jars:
• Wash jars, lids, and screw bands in hot, soapy water, then rinse well. Dry screw bands. Put jars on a rack in canner or deep pot and add enough water to cover by 2 inches. Bring to a boil, covered, then boil for 10 minutes. Remove from heat, leaving jars in water. Heat lids in water to cover by 2 inches in a small saucepan until thermometer registers 180°F (do not let boil). Remove from heat, leaving lids in water. Keep the jars and lids submerged in hot water, covered, until ready to use.
• Cook jam:
• Chill 2 small plates (for testing jam).
• Slip skins from grapes and purée skins with 1 cup sugar in a food processor, then transfer to a 4- to 6-quart wide heavy pot. Stir in lemon juice, peeled grapes, and remaining 4 cups sugar and boil over moderate heat, stirring frequently and skimming foam, until pulp is broken down, about 20 minutes. Force jam through food mill set over a large bowl. Discard remaining solids. Return jam to pot and cook at a slow boil, skimming foam occasionally and stirring frequently as mixture thickens to prevent scorching, 35 minutes, then test for doneness.
• To test jam, remove from heat, then drop a teaspoonful on a chilled plate and chill 1 minute. Tilt plate: Jam should remain in a mound and not run. If jam runs, continue cooking at a slow boil, testing every 5 minutes, until done, up to 25 minutes more.
• Seal, process, and store jars:
• Drain jars upside down on a clean kitchen towel 1 minute, then invert. Ladle jam into jars, leaving 1/4 inch of space at top. Wipe off rims of filled jars with a clean damp kitchen towel, then top with lids and firmly screw on screw bands. Put sealed jars on rack in canner or pot and add enough water to cover by 2 inches. Bring to a boil, covered, then boil 10 minutes. With tongs, transfer jars to a towel-lined surface to cool.
• Jars will seal; if you hear a ping, it signals that vacuum formed at the top of cooling preserves has made lid concave. Remember that you may or may not be around to hear that ping (some jars make the sound after you remove them from water, and others in same batch may take a few hours); the important thing is for jars to eventually have concave lids. Preserves will thicken as they cool.
• After jars have cooled 12 to 24 hours, press center of each lid to check that it's concave, then remove screw band and try to lift off lid with your fingertips. If you can't, lid has a good seal. Replace screw band. Put any jars that haven't sealed properly in the refrigerator and use them first.

CONCORD GRAPE JELLY

Steps:

• In a large saucepan combine grape juice, lemon juice, butter, and pectin. Bring mixture to a rolling boil over high heat, stirring constantly. Boil for 1 minute. Add sugar and stir until dissolved. Keep stirring and bring mixture to a rolling boil and boil hard for no longer than 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and skim foam if necessary. Ladle hot jelly into hot sterilized jars leaving 1/4-inch head space. Adjust 2-piece caps. Process 5 minutes in hot boiling water canner.

CONCORD GRAPE CONSERVE

Steps:

• Slip skins off grapes and reserve.
• Bring pulp to a boil in a stainless or enamel saucepan.
• Simmer over low heat until seeds are loosened.
• Press Pulp through a food mill or ricer to remove seeds.
• Combine grape puree, grape skins, honey, lemon slices, raisins and pecans.
• Simmer over low heat to plump raisins, around 10-12 minutes.
• Pour into hot, sterile jars leaving 1/4 inch head space.
• Seal.
• Process for 10 minutes in a boiling water bath.
• Altitudes higher than 1000 feet see adjustment chart.

WINE (BLACKBERRY OR CONCORD GRAPE)

Steps:

• Make sure everything is washed clean in water, but do not ever use soap on anything that comes into contact with the wine.
• Remove grapes from stems. Either crush or beat in a food processor between 20 and 25 lbs. blackberries or grapes per 5 gal. vat.
• Pour juice and pulp into a 5 gallon vat.
• Crush 5 Campden tables and dump into vat.
• Dump 5 teaspoons of Pectic Enzyme into vat.
• Fill the vat with water up to the indented 5 gallon mark, which is about 4 or 5 inches from the top.
• Stir the mixture well and secure the lid and while pressing down to get as much air out as possible, cover the hole with scotch tape.
• Empty 1 package of wine yeast into a small glass half filled with water and place 2 teaspoons of orange or lemon juice into glass. Stir well and cover with saran wrap or plastic wrap, setting this aside over night.
• The next day, slowly dump the yeast mixture into the vat near one place at the edge. Make sure all of the yeast mixture gets into the vat. Do not stir at this time, as you want the yeast mixture to remain in one small area.
• Secure the lid and place the air lock into the hole thru the scotch tape and press down on the lid to expell the air from the vat.
• The next day begin stirring the wine twice a day, always replacing the lid and pressing out the air in the same manner. Repeat this for 7 days.
• After 7 days, remove all pulp from top of wine and strain it to save the juice through a cheese cloth or the like. Also strain the rest of the juice, so that you save as much of the juice as possible.
• Add 10 to 15 lbs. of sugar to the wine, depending on how sweet you desire the wine to be. This depends on your taste. The sugar also helps to increase the alcohol content.
• Let stand 3 weeks and then begin to rack the wine every 30 days. Racking is siphoning the wine into another vat, being careful not to siphon any of the sediment from the bottom, even if it means that you lose a little of the juice. By doing this every 30 days, the wine will become clearer.
• After about 4 or 6 months of racking, test the sweetness and add as much additional sugar as you require.
• At this time, also 1/2 oz. of Potassium Sorbate, which stops the fermenting process, and 5 teaspoons of Sparkolloid to the wine and stir.
• In 30 days rack again and bottle.

CONCORD GRAPE JAM

Steps:

• Wash and stem grapes.
• Place in a large stainless or enamel pot.
• With a potato masher or wooden spoon mash grapes.
• Bring to a gentle boil and reduce heat to an "active" simmer.
• Simmer 10 minutes-you want to be able to crush the center of grapes easily with a wooden spoon-no bouncing back.
• Run the grapes through a food mill to remove seeds.
• Return pulp to the saucepan.
• Bring to a boil and stir in honey.
• Stir often to prevent scorching.
• After about 10 minutes you should not be able to stir down the boil.
• Test for gel point.
• Jelly/puree will begin to darken and thicken up.
• This should take around 15 to 20 minutes from the boil point, but alot depends on the amount of juice your grapes are holding-you could go up to 35 minutes.
• Ladle into clean hot sterile jars leaving 1/4 inch head space, and seal.
• Process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes.