[lacewing]

Are all  fruit jellies clear?, by clear I mean see through. I know they end up the colour of the fruit used,  but my blackberry jelly looks more like jam in the pot.  I am wondering if perhaps I boiled it too much, a very good set but dense in colour.

[mumofstig]

if they are allowed to drip through muslin - they usually all end up clear.

They tend to go dark/cloudy if you squeeze the bag to try to get the last drips through quickly.

It doesn't matter in the end cos they all taste lovely

[Kleftiwallah]

If you are thinking of going down the "Home Preserves" route at the local Horticultural show, don't squeeze the muslin bag at all. 

Once you have enough liquid to make up a jar or two for the competition, then you can squeeze away to get the most from your hedgerow gatherings,

Cheers,     Tony.

[lacewing]

Thank you both for the reply. I let the bag drip and did not squeeze, the liquid was very dark before the final boiling but the smell was devine. I like to give a jar of preserve as an extra Christmas present, hopefully my friends will enjoy the taste enough not to worry about the colour.

[cheshirecheese]

Is the texture like a jelly or a jam?  If the latter, re-brand it 'jam' rather than 'jelly', and no-one will be any the wiser!! 

[lacewing]

Yes it is more like jam, thanks for the tip! I love the taste of blckberrys but the pips do not agree with me, and so I thought jelly would be the answer. But ha-ho I have ended up with pots delivious tasting jam- like spread, without the pips.  I'm happy!

[Madame Cholet]

sounds delicious

[lacewing]

Had some tonight on scones, deffo recommend it!

[hamstergbert]

If in doubt, a good check on the really dark coloured jellies is to put a torch against the back of it - you may well find that it is in fact pretty clear and transparent after all, just very, very dark...... 

If not then at least it will help you assess the cloudiness level to aid in deciding if the jam-jelly rebranding is required!

[Debz]

That's a great tip about using a torch.  I am going to try that tonight when I pot up my blackcurrant jelly. 

[lacewing]

Debz, wait until you taste it, it's yum!

[Debz]

I already have.  I used the bit that I had left on a saucer to test the set.  It really was good and not too sweet.