This is a print preview of "Mulberry Jelly" recipe.

Mulberry Jelly Recipe
by Turnips2Tangerines

My son Bob and his beautiful wife Kim, live in a gorgeous old home that has been in her Dads family for over 60+ years. They live in the upper half and her Grandpa lives in the lower half. He is 87+ years old, so they help him out, even though he is really quite independent. I love talking to older people, listening to them talk about the past and the lives they have lived. Grandpa is a WW II Veteran and recently took part in the Old Glory Honor Flight. Old Glory Honor Flights are dedicated to transporting our WW II Veterans to Washington, D.C. to see the memorials built in their honor. What a wonderful way to Honor the Men and Women who served in World War II. "It's Never To Late To Say Thank-You"

This picture was taken while looking through a window!

The property on which the house sits on is huge. It is full of old trees, lilac bushes, flowers and plants that seem to change with the seasons. There is a garden behind the garage where Kim spent summers helping her Grandma. It has a small pond with fish, a small foot bridge that is over a creek that flows into Lake Winnebago and 2 sheds full of "grandpa's treasures" There is antique farm equipment scattered around the property and a large weather vane. There is also a 3 car garage. They even have a Smokehouse on the property that hasn't been used in years. It has an old fireplace with a built in wood stove, where they cooked pizza, I do believe. On the property, they also have wild life....I live in the woods, of Northern WI, and I have never seen a deer or any other animal, except rabbits, in my yard. They live in the city and have a yard full of deer, raccoon's and a family of owls!

Another thing they have in their yard are 4 humongous Mulberry trees! I mean these babies are Huge! In June, we had planned a thrift shopping day. When we got back from our adventurous day thrift shopping, we were walking around the yard and I noticed these blackish, purplish stains on the driveway. I walked over to get a better look, and there were a million berries all over the ground. At first I thought they were blackberries, but nope, they don't grow on trees, so I asked Kim," What kind of berries are these?" " I don't know" she said. I said, "Let's go ask Grandpa" Well Grandpa thought they were boysenberries, and he was sure the weren't poisonous. I ate a few and they tasted pretty good to me:) I took a sample home with me and goggled it:) Well, they weren't boysenberries, but they were Mulberry Trees! Yippee!! I found a wonderful blog called Century Farmhouse where they share, A Little Mulberry Heaven.

I immediately called Kim and told her what they were. Like any good wife, she sent Bob back outside to pick the berries! He picked a gallon size, zip-lock baggie full of berries. I told him to freeze them until I could get back. Evidently, according to Bobby, ( Yes, I still call him Bobby even though he is 35 years old) they aren't much fun to "pick" They stain your hands, clothes and anything else they come in contact with. I think it was a few weeks later before I got back for a visit and we (me, Kim and Bobby) picked a 5 quart ice cream pail 3/4 full. These yummy berries aren't fun at all to pick! Our hands were stained black, we were getting bitten up by mosquitoes, bees also loved the berries and the berries were hard to reach! BUT, they are so worth it!! Lesson learned~ Next year, we are going to lay a large tarp on the ground and bang on the limbs with a bat.....that should make it easier:) I ended up with 2 gallon size baggies full of berries. If your wondering what Mulberries taste like, to me they taste like blackberries, blueberries and acai berries, all wrapped into one delicious berry. I came home and froze the berries until I was ready to make jam.

Since Mulberries are loaded with seeds, I decided to cook the frozen berries down, stems and all. After I cooked down the berries, I squeezed the pulp and I ended up with a 1/2 gallon of juice, and stained hands!! (Recipe follows) The recipe I used to make jelly called for 4 cups juice, per batch. So I had plenty of juice for jelly. Next year, and now that I am more familiar with the berries, I want to harvest as many berries as possible. I want to freeze some whole to use in breads, muffins, scones and pancakes. I want to dry some of the berries in my food dehydrator, to use in baking, salads or to snack on, and make more jelly and jam. I even want to make Mulberry pie filling!! The possibilities are endless!! Pssst, They also have some Hickory Nut Trees:) Can't wait!!

Now on to the Recipe~

Juice for Jelly~

Soft Fruits~ Grapes, Cherries, Berries, etc. Select top-quality fruit. Wash and stem fruit. Slightly crush fruit. Add 1/4 to 1/2 cup water for each quart prepared fruit in a large saucepan. Cover; simmer fruit until soft. Strain mixture through a damp jelly bag or several layers of cheesecloth to extract juice. Juice may be used fresh, canned or frozen for later use.

To Make Jelly: Combine mulberry juice, classic pectin and lemon juice in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat. Add sugar, stirring constantly until dissolved. Return to a rolling boil. Boil hard 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Skim foam if necessary. Ladle hot jelly into hot jars, leaving 1/4 inch head-space. Adjust two-piece caps. Process 10 minutes in a boiling water canner. Recipes found in: Ball Blue Book, Guide to Preserving

A Special Thanks to Cindy at Just North of Wiarton for answering my call for Help!!