- 4 lbs of fresh bell peppers (8-10 medium)*
- 2 cups Mrs. Wages® White Distilled Vinegar (5% acidity)
- ¼ cup bottled lemon juice
- 1 pouch Mrs. Wages® Pepper Jelly Mix
- 9 cups sugar
PREPARE & PROCESS home canning jars and lids according to manufacturer’s instructions for sterilized jars. Keep jars hot.
WASH bell peppers, seed and chop. Place chopped peppers in a juicer to extract pepper juice into a 2-quart container. Skim off foam. Or, place chopped peppers in a food processor and puree to smooth. Gently strain puree through cheesecloth into a 2-quart container. If needed, add water to pepper juice to yield 5 cups (40 fl oz) of juice.
COMBINE prepared pepper juice, Mrs. Wages® White Distilled Vinegar and lemon juice in a large non-reactive saucepan. Do not use aluminum. Stir in Mrs. Wages® Pectin Blend and Mrs. Wages® Pepper Jelly Mix. Heat mixture to a boil, stirring frequently. Stir in sugar all at once, and return mixture to a full rolling boil. Boil hard for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat.
LADLE hot mixture carefully into hot jars, filling evenly. Leave ¼-inch headspace. Remove air bubbles, wipe rim and cap each jar as it is filled.
PROCESS half-pints 5 minutes** in a boiling water bath canner. Turn off heat, carefully remove canner lid and let jars stand for 5 minutes in canner. Remove jars. Let jars sit undisturbed to cool at room temperature for 12 to 24 hours. Test jars for airtight seals according to manufacturer’s directions. If jars do not completely seal, refrigerate and consume within 1 week.
Product is ready to eat after 24 hours. Before serving, chill to enhance flavor. Store properly processed shelf-stable product in a cool place, and use within 1 year.
*Please note, combining green bell peppers with red, yellow or orange bell peppers may result in an unappealing jelly color.
