This is the Banana Bell Pepper Jelly Recipe I used (see previous post on jelly). The jelly came out GREAT. We tried it on crackers and it was fabulous - sweet with a little zing. I think it would taste even more amazing with a nice cream cheese or over a block of cheese. I did make a few small changes which I have noted. Given the number of peppers I have, I could probably make another 25 batches of this jelly. If you know me personally, guess what you are getting for Xmas??? <wink wink>
MRS. SMITH’S BANANA PEPPER JELLY
6 large sweet banana peppers* [I used all banana bell and sweet paprika peppers - about 2 cups chopped]
2 large hot banana peppers* [I did not use any hot peppers!]
* (Be sure to get 1-2 red or orange peppers in the batch, this will give the
jelly a beautiful blush shade.) [We used a mix of yellow, red and blush peppers and the shade is a beautiful orange red]
1 ½ cups apple cider vinegar
5 cups sugar [I used only 4 cups and this is plenty sweet]
1 package Certo (1/2 box)
[I also added a 1/2 of a tablespoon of crushed red pepper per the recipe in the certo box to give it some zing since I did not use any hot peppers]
1.. Sterilize 6 pint jars. [there is no way this recipe can give off 6 pint jars. I got 2 3/4 jars. If you use 1/2 pint jars - the standard jelly jar size, you should get 6 jars.]
2.. Cut the peppers in half and remove the seeds and the veins. Chop into
large chunks.
3.. Put all of the peppers and ¾ cup vinegar in the blender and blend
until it is finely chopped (still with some small chunks in it, not pureed).
4.. Pour the pepper-vinegar mixture into a pot and bring to a boil. Cook
for 2-3 minutes until it starts to look smooth.
5.. Add the remaining ¾ cup vinegar and all of the sugar. Stir and bring
it to a rolling boil for 1 minute. [add in the crushed red pepper at this point]
6.. Add 1 package certo, bring back to a rolling boil for 1 minute.
7.. Remove from heat, skim off any foam and allow the mixture to sit for 5
minutes.
8.. Fill and seal canning jars according to manufacturer’s directions.
