Okay - the hedgerows of East Lothian have given up enough of their black jewels and this week, I've turned them into liquid black gold, which in turn, turned into glistening bramble jelly. Or brummle jeely as it's known in and around Port Seton. There really are plenty of berries around this year and I've definitely discovered a good spot on the disused railway line that once was the Longniddry-Gullane branch. There are still plenty left everywhere so why not get out there and collect enough for an apple and blackberry pie at least.
Making jelly is fairly straightforward but it takes a wee bit of patience because it's a two stage process. Thie first thing to do is get as much juice extracted as possible. I solved the problem I had by investing in a Kitchen Craft Jam Strainer Kit that conveniently sits on top of a pan or bowl. It makes the process a good bit easier.
I had about 2 kg (4 and a bit pounds) of brambles and I extracted about half a litre of juice from four small cooking apples that came from my mum's neighbour's garden. I also added the juice of a lemon, half a litre of water and boiled all of this together for about half an hour until it was really soft and pulpy. (You can just chop up the apples and put them in the pan to break down.) Then transfer the mashy pulp to a jelly bag and leave it to drip - overnight if possible.
Next, you have to measure the juice and for every 600ml, you'll need 450g of JAM sugar. It's easier in old money - 1lb of sugar for every pint of juice.
Then it's just a case of boiling it up in a big (really big) pot or jelly pan until you get a fierce 'rolling' boil. It can take up to half an hour to get to this point but once it does, timing is critical. Watch for it dripping off a wooden spoon in blade like globules. Or put some on a chilled saucer in the fridge for 2 minutes. It should crinkle when you push it along the plate. Remember, just because the boiling liquid seems very loose, it isn't going to stay like that once it's cooled.
Then all there is to do is skim off any scum that's on top of the jelly and use a heatproof jug to pour into jars that have been thoroughly washed and then dried in a low oven. Seal the jars while the jelly's still hot.
I know it seems like a bit of an effort but homemade jam is far better than anything you can buy in the shops AND . . . because it's a preserve, it keeps for ages. So next January or February ,when you're down in the dumps because it's always dark and you're feeling rubbish because you've got a cold, add a tablespoon of bramble jelly to a glass of hot water and you'll be right as rain in no time. (Add a wee shot of gin to this for increased impact!)
Money Saving Tip: If you don't have enough jars and are thinking about going to buy some empty ones, you might find that they're quite expensive. I like to go to the supermarket and look for the cheapest item you can find in the size of jar that you want. I once found own make mint sauce in a medium sized jar and it cost only 14p. So chuck out the contents and you've got 10 jars for £1.40 - result! And they were the perfect size for filling with Autumn Chutney for giving away to friends at Christmas. I know it seems like a waste of 10 jars worth of mint sauce, but having tasted it, I'm not sure that it was fit for human consumption anyway.
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