Hawberry Jelly
4 ingredient jelly made from hawthorn berries - simple, delicious and affordable.
Equipment
- Strainer
- Muslin cloth or cheesecloth
Ingredients
- 400 g Hawberries
- 1/2 cup Sugar
- 2 cups Water
- 1/2 Lemon or 1.5 tbps lemon juice
Instructions
- Clean and prepare your freshly foraged hawberries by separating them from the stems, before washing them with water and baking soda.
- In a pot, cover the hawberries with 2 cups of water (if you’ve picked more or less hawberries, for every 400g, place 2 cups of water).
- Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 30 minutes.
- Once cooked, use a masher to break up the berries even further.
- Strain the berries by placing a sieve over a bowl and lining it with cheesecloth - pour the berries into the lined sieve and leave to strain for a few hours (or once no more liquid drips). Discard the pulp and seeds. Tip - for a clear jelly, do not squeeze the contents of the cloth.
- Place the hawberry juice into a pot with sugar and lemon juice and bring to a boil for 5 mins, until set. (if working with a larger batch, boil for 10 mins)
- Pour the jelly into a clean jar and let cool at room temperature before placing in the fridge to store.
Notes
- Add 1/2 lemon for every 400g of berries to prevent crystallization. The lemon also helps jelly become more well balanced - the citrus notes should balance out the sweet.
- If storing in a glass jar, be sure to sterilise it by pre-heating the jar with boiling water before pouring in the jelly.
- Tip - if you over or under cook your jelly, crystallisation may occur. But don't worry! All you have to do is top it up with a little water and lemon juice before placing it into the microwave at 30 sec intervals. Stir, then repeat until smooth. Once a homogeneous texture has been reached, place the jelly in a new jar and let set.