Frugal Food and Cooking

Re: Unripe black raspberries (blackcaps?)

littlepitcher — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 17:06:15 GMT

If you use very ripe fruit for jams and jellies, you run a serious risk of spoilage by yeast or mold. Underripe with a little extra sweetener keeps a bunch better. I envy you those blackcaps profoundly. Nobody here grows them at u-pick.

Re: Unripe black raspberries (blackcaps?)

karen kay — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 20:50:10 GMT

i was always told to make sure fruit is very ripe. i just follow the directions on the sure-jel box exactly as they say.

Re: Unripe black raspberries (blackcaps?)

zohnerfarms — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 19:55:38 GMT

seaturtle:
how do you make jam out of them?

You can make a simple jam by adding an equal amount of sugar & cooking until the mixture reaches the "jell point", where it falls off the spoon in a sheet, not a drop. This is how our grandmothers did it.

For small amounts, like this, I usually mix the fruit half & half with red currant juice, since it contains a lot of pectin, so I don't have to add any, & the mild flavor is covered by the flavor of any berry with which you mix it.

Today we make jame with sweetener, pectin & fruit. If you cannot use sugar, there are several pectins that will set with artificial sweetener. Read the labels on the boxes, then follow the directions, but you will have to cut down the recipe. Most jam recipes call for 4-6 cups of prepared fruit.

Hope this helps.

Unripe black raspberries (blackcaps?)

seaturtle — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 19:46:50 GMT

Hello, everyone,

I found a patch of berries - I guess black caps, ecause they are small. There are about a pint, and some are not quite ripe.

Can I just stew them with some sweetener in the microwave? Or, how do you make jam out of them?

Thanks again, Happy Fourth,

Seaturtle