Day before yesterday neighbor Phyllis brought me a paper grocery bag half full (11.5 pounds) of grapes off the vines in her yard. Well the old waste not want not feeling kicked in so I set about to make jam yesterday morning. Starting around 10am and finishing last night after 11pm I am here to declare I’m glad grape ain’t my favorite flavor because it is a pain in the butt to make.
The prep time with the grapes to be cleaned up and taken off the stems was the first clue that I wasn’t going to like the project.
Next the instructions said to place the grape between your thumb and index finger, squeeze the insides into one pan and place the empties skin in another.
I now swear that I have picked Blueberries that were bigger than these grapes. I won’t bore you with the next steps. I’m trying to remove them from my memory right now
No amount of anticipation of their flavor could equal to the work that is involved in prepping them to even start cooking the jam.
This morning I put all the pots, bowls, measuring cups and assorted utensils away and have only to mop the kitchen floor. Then all that will be left is 20 half pints of jam to go to the food room and the jobs not done yesterday to do today.
An update on my jobs to do before the third are as follows.
The yard has been cut (front and back).
The brush pile has been burned.
Brandy’s haircut is set up for next Tuesday.
There is also 31 half pints of raspberry jam that was made on Monday.
So now you know why I haven’t been around. There is still much to be accomplished so I leave now to take the next step!
Those grapes look about the size of the Concord grapes that my father raised here on the desert after he left Minnesota. He was so proud of those graps because as he said, “No one at the Senior Citizen Center thought they would grow.”
I bet the jam is going to taste simply wonderful after all that work.
Now REST!
Glad to see you posting…was about to give you a call just to ‘check up on ya’! I remember, as a kid, sitting on the ground in front of a Concord grape arbor and just pigging down on their tangy/tart goodness (I even liked the skins!). Yep, done the ‘squeeze the grape and the innards will pop out’ MANY times (good memories but I’m sure if I had to do all the extra steps in making them into jam/jelly, I wouldn’t really want to do them!) Glad you got THAT task done; now you won’t worry about all those ‘free’ grapes going to waste!
Yum, grape jelly is my favorite flavor….
The neighbor who had a grape arbor for my free grapes sold the house and moved to a condo.
The folks who bought the property, first thing they did was cut down the vine and hedges and put up a fence.
When I am able to make it, I just cook down the grapes like blackberries, then run them through my long colander like I’m making applesauce, to take out the seeds and skins.
It makes a thicker jam-like substance because of the pulp, but works out well on toast in January
Sometimes, I add in some 100% storebought bottle grape juice to up the jar-filled goodness.