Apple Jelly

Have you ever made anything so delicious with just two ingredients?   For my holiday let (Sappington Granary, listed on Airbnb as "Charming Romantic Hideaway just outside Canterbury", just in case you were wondering), I do a range of home made breakfasts, which always includes my own home-pressed apple juice.   Having some wonderful friends who grow apples commercially, I am allowed to wander among the orchard after the pickers have been through to collect all the apples my car boot can hold.   A lot of pressing and hard work later and... ta dah!!!!   Beautiful apple juice.  You must try it, although be prepared for a lot of work resulting in not a lot of juice.

This year, in the quest for a Stour Festival pudding I hadn't tried, I thought I'd use my beautiful juice to make a jelly.   Result?   A very, very delicately apple flavoured jelly, which was enthusiastically hoovered up by the singers, musicians and helpers (particularly the latter - singers prefer heartier food).    You must try it, if you try nothing else.   Commercial apple juice will work just as well.

Apple Jelly

Apple Jelly

6 gelatine leaves (enough to lightly set 1.5 pints liquid)

1.5 pints/775ml strong apple juice

Heat 4 fl oz/100ml of apple juice until it is steaming.   Soak the gelatine sheets in cold water until they are flexible, then squeeze off the water before dropping the soggy leaves into the hot apple juice and stirring to dissolve the leaves entirely.   

Pour this mixture into a jug and add the rest of the juice.  Stir well to combine it all – you don’t want a layered effect with a thicker jelly at the bottom.   Pour the jelly into a pretty bowl and leave it to set in the fridge for at least four hours.  Decorate just before serving with flowers. 

This has quite a delicate flavour, so if you wanted to add sharpness, you could try adding the strained juice of half a lemon.