Grandma's Red Pepper Jelly

Today I am going to be sharing a recipe that I got from my Grandma.  This was always one of my very favorite things that she bottled every year. It makes as a great appetizer that is easy to just pull a bottle out of the pantry and pour over a brick of cream cheese to serve with crackers.  It also does make more than one bottle, so it can easily be shared with your neighbors and friends.

Helen Thornton was an amazing woman, and a wonderful grandma.  She passed away a few months ago, and I miss her a lot.  She was a great example to me.  Her kidneys failed years ago, and she got a kidney transplant that failed years later.  She had diabetes to which she lost a leg and had to wear a prosthetic, congestive heart failure and had a pacemaker, and there towards the end she was losing her sight.  But despite all her health issues, she kept going!  She always had the attitude that there was something else to keep going for, be it a grandchild's wedding, a new great grandkid, a holiday, or just a church party she wanted to go to.  She LOVED hosting parties and making things look pretty.  Our family called her the "Nut-cup Queen" because she had hundreds of  nut-cups from different parties she had thrown for their Relief Society.  

She also loved to give.  She was often too weak to walk around or do much, but something that she COULD do and that she loved, was to sit on her chair in the kitchen with my grandpa and bottle their produce from the awesome garden my grandpa keeps. They would always share their bottled goods or casseroles made with their vegetables with all of their neighbors.  One summer she made and gave out 82 casseroles to their friends! Yeah.  82!!!  She loved it.  And they would always bring us down TONS of bottled veggies and fruit when they visited us.  This is one of the recipes that my family always requested.  It is perfect for any time of year.

What You'll Need:

1 cup coarsely chopped red bell pepper

2 red jalapenos, rinsed, quarter to remove veins and seeds

1/2 cup finely chopped red bell pepper

1 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

1 Tbs. vegetable oil (to prevent foam)

6 cups sugar

1 package of sure-jell pectin

Directions:

In blender, blend coarsely chopped, 1 cup peppers, jalapenos, and 1/4 c vinegar until smooth.  Pour into a 4 quart saucepan.  Add finely chopped red peppers, remaining vinegar, oil, and sure-jell.  Bring to a hard boil (that you can't stir down).  Add sugar and return to boil for one minute.  Remove from heat and let stand a few minutes.  Skim off foam, if any.  Pour into sterilized jars and process with the hot bath method for 5-10 minutes.  (Recipe can be doubled.  Doubled makes 14.5 pints)  Serve over a brick of cream cheese with crackers... YUM!!!

To print this recipe, click HERE

I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!