mint jelly

you've probably heard that you should not plant mint with other herbs, as mint tends to get a little wild. i had heard that too, but did not believe it, i had to see...well, now we have quite a lot of mint jelly...







managed to do the picking with cast...







the autumn has been so warm that ladybugs are still flying about.







got all this, and left some in the bed.







certain someone picked the leaves off the stems...







...but then he got sidetracked...







...we had limes but no ice...nice without ice, too!







despite the drink i was able to handle a motorized gadget, mushing the leaves with immersion blender before simmering them for 10 mins.







strained out the mush...







...and got this poison green liquid. i searched the net for mint jelly recipes, found this and this, both not quite what i was looking for. there is a recipe for "any" jelly in the melatin sachet, by combining all three i got "my" recipe for the jelly.







3 cups water
350 gr / 12oz granulated sugar
30 gr mint leaves (picked off stems, weighed dry, rinsed if dirty)
1 sachet blue melatin (i couldn't find any pectin anywhere)
2 drops kelly green food coloring (optional)

like mentioned, simmer the mint leaves (i think it might not be necessary to mush them...) for 10 mins, take off heat and let cool for a few minutes, strain the liquid into a jug, pour liquid into a clean kettle, add the sugar (and food color if using) and bring the mix to a boil, then add melatin (i had saved some leaves, minced them and added them into liquid among the melatin and 2 tbsp sugar) and boil for 2 mins (start the time when the mixture comes to a boil), meanwhile...







...i had a big pot filled with water, empty jars and their lids, heated the water to a boil, added some atamon (preservative that contains E211 and E210) into water to make sure the jars were sterilised before filling them with the jelly.







i managed to get the jelly into jars with just one hand but needed certain someone to close the lids. there was so much mint that i made a double batch, it seems we'll be eating a lot of lamb this winter (if winter ever comes this way...) or i'll have to find creative ways to use the jelly, or i know already what i'll give as xmas presents...

there was enough mint to take some with me to the cottage where i'll make (with mom) some more jelly. i think i might try adding some fresh ginger to that batch...will let you know how that turns out.