Easy and Traditional Blackberry Jelly

By
Elaine Lemm
Elaine Lemm
Elaine Lemm
Elaine Lemm is a renowned British food writer, classically trained chef, teacher, and author with over 25 years of experience writing about British food and cooking.
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Updated on 07/10/21
blackberry jelly

eleonora galli / Getty Images

Prep: 30 mins
Cook: 60 mins
Total: 90 mins
Servings: 48 servings

Blackberries are perfect for making blackberry jelly, a delicious jelly to serve at an afternoon tea or as an accompaniment to cooked meats and game. Blackberries are a treat that are harvested in late summer and early autumn, along with other delicacies such as bilberries, plums, pumpkins, and wild mushrooms.

This jelly recipe uses cooking apples. These add not just flavor, but also deliver a hefty amount of pectin. Pectin is a starch (a heteropolysaccharide) that, when cooked with acid and sugar, forms a gel. Pectic is used in jam and jelly making and the apples provide a natural source of this starch.

Ingredients

  • 3 pounds blackberries

  • 2 Bramley apples, or any cooking apples, washed, cored, and diced

  • 1 pint water

  • 1 lemon, juiced

  • 1 pound granulated sugar, to taste

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients.

  2. Take a tea towel or jelly bag and wash in boiling water (the tea towels may be tainted with food or detergent smells and these can spoil the jelly). Leave to dry. An easy way to do this is to suspend the tea towel or jelly bag on an up-turned stool with a large bowl underneath to catch the drips. If you are a frequent jelly maker, use a jelly bag stand.

  3. Place the blackberries, apple, water, and lemon juice in a preserving or large, heavy-based saucepan that is big enough to hold both fruit and sugar.

  4. Bring the fruit to a boil and simmer for 20 minutes or until the fruit is soft. Avoid stirring as this will damage the fruit.

  5. Gently place the fruit and juice into the jelly bag or tea towel and leave to drip overnight. Do not be tempted to squeeze the bag at any time as this will make the jelly cloudy.

  6. Measure the juice. For every 2 1/2 cups of juice, use 1 pound of sugar.

  7. Place the juice and sugar into a preserving pan and stir until all the sugar has dissolved. Bring to a boil and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes or until the setting point is reached (see note below). Clear away any scum from time to time.

  8. Fill clean, sterilized jars with the hot liquid. Cover, seal, and store in a cool, dark place.

Tip

  • How to Test for Setting: Place a small plate or saucer into the fridge for 15 minutes. Pour 1 spoonful of the hot jelly onto the plate and return to the fridge for 5 minutes. Take out the plate and push the edges of the jelly with your index finger. It is set when it gets wrinkly and crinkly to the touch. If it doesn't, continue to simmer and test again in a few minutes.
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
53 Calories
0g Fat
13g Carbs
0g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 48
Amount per serving
Calories 53
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 0g 0%
Saturated Fat 0g 0%
Cholesterol 0mg 0%
Sodium 1mg 0%
Total Carbohydrate 13g 5%
Dietary Fiber 2g 6%
Total Sugars 12g
Protein 0g
Vitamin C 8mg 38%
Calcium 10mg 1%
Iron 0mg 1%
Potassium 58mg 1%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)