I have gotten the jelly VERY clear and am very impressed.

In reading the guidelines for the Colorado State Fair, you should not have any bubbles.

I tried another batch last week. I had the jars standing there waiting. I poured it thru the funnel with the ladle next to the funnel to avoid "splashing."

But how do you:

1. Skim off the foam
2. Ladle the jelly

Without either a skin forming on the top while you skim...and ladling (sp?) without bubbles? It was warm last weekend (90's) and kitchen was warm tho I was running the swamp cooler. The final product should have no bubbles, no foam on the top...and be clear. I still had a few bubbles and residual foam on the top.

I've never had a skin form while skimming, so can't speak to that. The only thing I can think of is skim as soon as foam appears while the jelly is still cooking. Try to work fast. Don't let it sit at the end and cool while you skim. (Cooling also leads to bubbles.)

Minimize the distance between pan and jar rim so there's less chance for the jelly to aerate and pour it in quickly. Again, a good pan that's a manageable size you can pour directly from is your best bet. (And a funnel is helpful of course.) Avoid the ladle. Too slow and too much movement down into pan, up again, down to jars.

I have sometimes found a thin layer of bubbles on the very top of the jar at the end. I skim that off by hand with a spoon, just as I did in the pan.

So to sum up, don't let jelly cool, get it into the jars fast and keep the distance from pan to jar rim at the minimum.

I hope this helps.

Carol

It tastes wonderful, but then I'm not entering it in a fair. I does look strange. When I've made other jellies, I put 1/2 teaspoon of butter in to prevent foaming, just like the Sur-Jel directions say. I didn't do that with my apple jelly. I wasn't sure if that would affect the ability of the natural apple pectin to jelly. Next time, I will try it. Carmellia

Carol

As far as the foam is concerned; when I am done boiling the jelly for 1 minute, I remove it from the burner (mine is electric). I then "putter" for a couple of minutes, then if I place a metal spoon in and slowly go at the foam it sticks completely. I go through a couple of spoons, but remove most of the foam. The last couple of jars get foamy because I am getting low and have to tilt the kettle (what is on the side starts getting caught up. But sometimes if I let it sit 30 seconds, I can even remove it from the jar using a teaspoon).

GOOD BYE CHEESE CLOTH!!!

I haven't been on the forum in a long time and came on to leave this message. I can my raspberry jelly with no seeds, so go through a lot of cheese cloth. This week I realize I didn't have any and my local store was out so I used a substitution that turned out wonderful!

They are called Paint Strainers with Eleastic Edge made by Trimaco. They look like a nylon net shower can, but really tall (to fit a gallon container). They are meant to be used when you pour a gallon of paint into a spray can, to catch dry pieces, etc.

So I tried it. I use a 4 cup measuring cup when making them, so just laddled in 3 scoops, and squeezed and kneading it gently. (I wear laytex gloves to do this). Then when done I turned it inside out an shook it out in my trash can (be sure its empty, you need it deep so seeds don't fly). Enough came out to rinse (inside right so lingering seeds stay in) and repeat.

I used it three times for the batch and then the seam split so slightly I didn't see it until trying to strain the second batch. But then again, I was pushing the issue to see how strong they were. I just did another batch three times and its still strong and clean as a whistle.

Hope this helps someone

Jelly is the most labor-intensive and wasteful of preserves because all you're using is the juice, no pulp at all. The upside is its beauty and delicacy.

Carol

I also agree Carol...jelly is wasteful. I had made a mental note to squeeze the excess for all the juice to make a separate batch. I hate wasting.

Carmellia - it was strawberry jelly. Sure looks pretty!