I've been canning, dehydrating and making goodies to fill the larder. It most definately can be a busy time since the fresh produce seems to breeze in, in all its glory, and then before you know it, it's gone.

I don't make heavily laden shelves of canned goods anymore, nor do I spend hours/days preparing the future cooking inventory. We do enjoy the flavours of summer when the frozen ground of winter settles in and a few jars of this and that, make all the difference when it comes to cooking through the snow season. 

​Dehydrating is one way I preserve freshness from the garden bounty. ​
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​Making jams and jellies with copious amounts of refined sugar and other commercial ingredients is not to my liking, anymore.  Alternatives to both, sweetener and pectin, are quite easy to come by.

The sweetener, for us, is a no brainer. Honey or maple syrup is our source. 

As for the pectin, the two choices are gooseberries and green apples. Since the gooseberry bush was literally hanging with berries this year, I chose to make my pectin from this fruit. It should be noted that when I say green apples, I do not mean Granny Smith apples from the store. I mean green, not ripened, still on the tree, any kind, green apples.

​The process of making your own pectin, is not a quick process, although preparing the fruit isn't as laborious as most home canning processes can be. Clean the fruit and put in a good metal pot with the water, and bring to a boil. Then it gets to simmer for about 45 minutes. Crush the fruit - only a little - and put it all into a jelly bag or cheesecloth to strain overnight or for at least 6 hours. 

How much fruit and water? I used 8 cups of gooseberries and 8 cups of water. Basically, cup for cup.

​The next day, I brought the gooseberry juice to a boil, letting it boil for about 10 minutes while I did the skim treatment. Finally, I let it simmer and reduce for an hour. It should be at that soft ball stage when it is ready to go into jars.

Use 3 tablespoons of gin, yes gin, and that's not lemon gin, to check to see if it's ready. Pour 1 teaspoon of hot juice into the gin. If it dissipates or threads out, it is not ready. Keep cooking in 10-minute increments until soft ball forms when you put the juice in the gin. This may take a while.

​Prepare jars as you would for jams or pickles. Pour boiling juice into each hot jar to 1/4 from the lip. Wipe the edges of jar and place lids and rings on. Process in hot water bath for 15 minutes, or if you cinch down the rings, let the jars cool on the counter until you hear the tinny pop which indicates they are sealed. 

 I like to use 4-ounce jars because the recipe I use for jam requires 4 ounces of pectin. 
 Store in a cool place until you need to make your next batch of jam.