I was given this cooking apple bounty by my good friends over at Blackridge. As i said in a previous post, i love this time of year in which the land offers up it’s abundance and we give and receive from it and from each other. Last night was the striking annual harvest moon, ushering in the next season and bringing with it colder climes but the hope of cosy nights in, fireside.

I made a start on transforming them with a recipe from Hugh Fernly-Whittingstall for Herb Apple Jelly. This is truly delightful with pork or cold meats – a gentle sweetness, delicate herbal notes and a pleasing texture. (Hopefully).

Like the apple cheese, it’s quick to get started so you can pop it onto the stove in the morning without too much thought. The apples are quartered (whole and unpeeled), and simmered in water for a couple of hours. Add in whatever herbs you have languishing – i used rosemary, mint and majoram.

Strain it over a bowl for at least 2 hours. This is important as the pectin content increases the longer it is strained. I have a jam straining kit but i have started to use a more coarse muslin with the stand as it tends to leave less pulp (waste) afterwards.

To the pink nectar, add 3/4 sugar to liquid volume, and some freshly chopped herbs of choice. Boil hard for 10-15 mins, until set. This batch took about 20 mins of boiling to set properly. I hadn’t quite mastered this before but to get the herbs speckled through the jelly, stir after about 5 mins as it’s just beginning to set and they will stay put rather than float to the top.

Ok, so it could be time to stop preserving…. Space is becoming a problem!