Hi David!

This is the rare occasion when I can't sleep, so here's one for youu...from the NatCent for Home Fod Preservation.

Watermelon Rind Preserves

1½ quarts trimmed and cut watermelon rind pieces
4 tablespoons salt
2 quarts cold water
1 tablespoon ground ginger
4 cups sugar
¼ cup lemon juice
7 cups water
1 thinly sliced lemon (optional)
Yield: About 6 half-pint jars

Procedure:

To Prepare Watermelon Rind  Trim green skin and pink flesh from thick watermelon rind; cut into 1 inch pieces. Dissolve salt in 2 quarts water and pour over rind; let stand for 5 to 6 hours in refrigerator. Drain; rinse and drain again. Cover with cold water and let stand 30 minutes. Drain. Sprinkle ginger over rind; cover with water and cook until fork tender. Drain.

To Make Preserves - Sterilize canning jars. Combine sugar, lemon juice and 7 cups water. Boil 5 minutes; add prepared watermelon rind and boil gently for 30 minutes. Add sliced lemon and cook until the melon rind is clear. Pack hot preserves into hot jars, leaving ¼-inch headspace. Wipe rims of jars with a dampened clean paper towel; adjust two-piece metal canning lids. Process in a Boiling Water Canner.

Table 1. Recommended process time for Watermelon Rind Preserves in a boiling water canner.
Process Time at Altitudes of
Style of Pack Jar Size 0 - 1,000 ft 1,001 - 6,000 ft Above 6,000 ft
Hot Half-pints
or Pints 5 min 10 15

This document was adapted from "So Easy to Preserve", 4th ed. 1999. Bulletin 989, Cooperative Extension Service, The University of Georgia, Athens. Revised by Elizabeth L. Andress. Ph.D. and Judy A. Harrison, Ph.D., Extension Foods Specialists.

David!! Maureen!! I'm glad to see you both here. Ladies and gentlemen, let me tell you that David is really good with a pair of handcuffs. LOL

David, that's an awful lot of fruit, my strawberry rhubarb jam recipe has 4 cups total, 1 3/4 of rhubarb, 2 1/4 of strawberries. The sugar is about the same, and the pectin and lemon juice. Some jams do take longer to set up, like pepper jellies and marmalades, so don't give up yet.

Remember, pectin is not my friend. Even the jelly we made at Camp didn't set up, or at least one jar didn't. Just one of the reasons I've gone steadily away from the pectin based stuff and to the longer cooking jams and jellies.

Maureen, I've not seen a recipe for Ratatouille, but I'll look.

Happy Canning.

Annie

In general I have found with jams, that the folks who make the recipe are way too optomistic about it gelling. I usually cook my jams for about a half an hour to get them thick, which is basically evaporating out the water. But then again, I like thick jam.

I'm like Annie, I don't like the powdered pectin style jams. I go for the long cooked stuff. It does tend to taste a little less "juicy" and fresh because of the long cooking time. But IMHO the pectin jams are way too sweet. I usually make doctored jams anyway, like peach maple, plum orange cointreau, lime blueberry, strawberry lavendar, ginger marmelade, cardamom pear, etc. I give jam as Christmas gifts so I like to make stuff that you can't get just anywhere over the counter.

I've never made strawberry rhubarb though, and it is one of my all time favorites. I always seem to get super busy during strawberry season and miss it. This year I didn't even get to taste a homegrown one.

Thanks for the recipe Maureen!! I'll be serving watermelon on Labor Day Weekend and want to try to make the pickles.

Hey Annie! This is the recipe I followed.

-------- ------------ --------------------------------
4 cups strawberries -- washed and stemmed
2 cups chopped rhubarb
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 package powdered pectin
5 1/2 cups sugar

Crush strawberries; place in large saucepan. Stir in rhubarb, lemon juice and pectin.

Bring to a rolling boil over high heat. Add sugar and return to a rolling boil. Boil hard, stirring, for one minute.

Pour into hot jars. Process 10 minutes in a boiling water bath.

Source:
"Ball Blue Book, 1989"
Yield:
"6 half pints"
- - - - - - - - - - - -

Now, after a few cups of coffee I'm reading slip that was in the pectin box and it calls for two cups of each fruit. Oh well, it looks good if nothing else and I know I will not have any problems eating it! LOL!!

It's your salsa today. I know that will be great and fail proof. Just might add a few more peppers for a little more heat. : )

David

David, If I remember right, the measurements given in the pectin flyer are for already-crushed strawberries, so the amounts would be about the same. I sort of remember looking at that the first time I made this jam.

I liked this recipe because it didn't call for the rhubarb to be cooked first, so it's a little chunky. It could simply be that your rhubarb had a higher water content, especially if it was frozen...mine set up fine (for a change).

David,

Welcome! If you had lessons from Annie, you probably know more than most of us here....

But I would suspect Katie is on to something. The way recipes are worded can be sneaky, but usually "4 cups strawberries, chopped" means you measure first, then chop, whereas "4 cups chopped strawberries" means you chop first, then measure; since prepared fruit generally is more dense in the measuring cup, the latter is a lot more fruit than the former, if you see what I mean!

Don't know if that helps explain your extra jam.

As for the setting up, sometimes it does and sometimes it doesn't. Often, like others have mentioned, I find I have to cook jam longer than the recipe says to get it to gel in the "plate" test. And sometimes it never does set, though it usually will thicken some as it cools. If it's runny, I call it a preserve or a sauce and eat it anyway!

Good luck, and congrats on your joining the canning corps.

I don't know if I want to know WHAT annie is referring to aobut the handcuffs, but I should warn you if she starts asking you how you are at folding towels and mixing drinks, beware --- she is always on the lookout for new cabana boys.

But maybe you should handcuff her to a bed so she can get some sleep....

Zabby

Zabby

I seem to recall another old post abouit pickling watermelon rinds. The search engne here is terrible, but I think if you just type in a single word it may show you more info.

David, with the powdered pectins, sometimes it's taken up to a month for my jams to set. Strawberry rhubarb topping for waffles or ice cream doesn't sound bad!

Glad to see some of my cooking forum friends visiting the Harvest forum.
:)

Here is a watermelon rind recipe from A GRACIOUS PLENTY, RECIPES & RECOLLECTIONS FROM THE AMERICAN SOUTH

Watermelon Rind Pickles - 3 pints

3 quarts prepared watermelon rind (1 inch pieces)
1 1/2 tablespoons pickling lime
1 gallon water
a few drops food color (optional)
4 cups sugar
2 cups white vinegar
1 (2 to 3 inch) stick cinnamon
1 tablespoon whole cloves

Add lime and water to rind. Mix well to dissolve. Soak overnight. Drain and rinse well. Boil in fresh water till tender, about 45 minutes. Add food coloring, if desired. Drain. Mix remaining ingredients and heat to boiling. Add rind. Boil till rind is transparent. Oack into sterilized jars with the syrup. (recipe ends here but you would need to BWB)
About the food color - my mother in law used to make some red and some green and some without color. The red and green were for Christmas and the uncolored for Thanksgiving. I think maybe you could add a drop or two of coloring to each jar as wanted. Also, my mother in law used cider vinegar.

Katie, I like the chunky effect too. The stuff in the fidge is not to runny. Maybe the jars will set with some time. I made your praline syrup too.

Lpink, I'll have to try a version of cooke jam without the pectin. I remember Annie mention this when she helped me out with my salsa after it was done. LOL! We had a hard time catching each other on the phone.

Zabby, I thought about cooking it down a little but I had already added the pectin and didn't know if that would effect the final results. Can you continue to cook it after adding the pectin? LOL about the cuffs! There was a whip and duct tape involved too but it didn't help anyone get any sleep!! LOL!

Hey Boo! I've been checking out some of the posts here over the weekend. Lots of good info. I'm sure I'll need more help once I get that pressure canner. The ice cream and waffle topping sounds like a great idea.

Missem, thanks for that recipe!! This may be closer to what I remember with the cinnamon and cloves in it. I forgot all about the Red and Green for Christmas. MY DGM did the same thing. I'm going to go for it over Labor Day Weekend. I'll have two or three watermelons to use if everyone can make it up for the final big party of the season.

On a postive note my Habanero Gold set up perfect. So like y'all have said more than once, sometimes it does, sometimes not. I would post a pic for of my efforts this weekend but I'm still fighting with a hotel in Chicago to get it returned. That's another post though

Do y'all post pics here? I don't see a gallery section, just wondering.

David

David, no gallery here, but we post photos sometimes, at least a couple of us do. Not the whip and cuffs picture of you and I, but some of the canned goods. (grin)

Here is the recipe for Habanero Gold that makes more, thanks again to Readinglady. It has a bit more dried apricots and still only uses one pouch of pectin. Other than the batch that didn't set during canning class, of course, it's always set up.

Rhubarb strawberry topping on ice cream or pound cake or even in tiny tart shells? Yum.

Hot 'N Sweet Confetti Jelly
(Habanero Gold based recipe)

1 cup minced dried apricots (1/8" dice)
Note: Could use dried peaches or pears instead.
1 1/4 total cups minced red sweet pepper and minced red onion (1/8" dice),> approximately half-and-half.
1/4 cup Habanero peppers
Note: For extra-hot, increase Habaneros to 1/2 cup and reduce red sweet pepper/red onion combination to 1 cup total.
1 1/2 cups white vinegar
6 cups sugar
1 3-oz. pouch liquid pectin (I used Ball, which I've decided I like better than Certo.)
>
Prep apricots, peppers and onion. Place in a large, stainless or other > non-reactive pot. Add sugar and vinegar. Bring to the boil and cook 5 minutes. Pull off the burner; allow to cool, cover and let sit overnight.
Stir occasionally if convenient.

Note: 4-6 hours would be plenty, so the time doesn't need to be any greater than the soaking time for apricots in the original recipe. (I've used as little as an hour without noticeable problems. Annie)
Next day, bring the mixture back to the boil. Stir in liquid pectin. Boil hard 1 minute.
Pull off the heat. If necessary, skim foam. (I did need to skim a bit.) Let cool 2 minutes, stirring to distribute solids (at Camp we let it set about 10 minutes and I didn't have to mess around getting the peppers suspended in the jelly, it got thick enough to keep the suspension) Pour into jars. Stir to distribute and remove air bubbles. Do the usual with the jars and lids, BWB 10 minutes.
When jars are sealed, "agitate" to distribute solids throughout the jelly.
Yield: 6 8-oz. jars.

OK, so David has a whip, cuffs, duct tape and some strawberry rhubarb jam that's not quite set. Hmmm....

Have you ever thought of applying for the cabana boy position? You're very helpful with seatbelts too. (grin)

Annie

Well, OK, ONE picture of the cuffs. You wouldn't believe how hard it is to chop veggies for salsa while wearing them!

Still, we made do...

Annie

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:932845}}

Some more ways to use watermelon rinds:

TO USE WATERMELON RINDS:
Cut the rinds, both green and white layers, into 2cm squares or strips. Drop into boiling sugar and water syrup and boil until transparent and tender. Remove rinds to another container, add a little lemon juice and/or ginger if liked, and continue to boil the syrup until fairly dense. Pour over rinds and serve as a dessert served with cream, ice cream or custard.

Crystallised Watermelon Rind
1.5kg watermelon rind, cubed
30g salt
1kg sugar
600ml water
600ml cider vinegar
45ml lemon juice
4 cinnamon sticks in 2.2cm pieces
20g cloves
20g whole allspice
10g white peppercorns
10g yellow mustard seeds

Toss watermelon rind with salt, cover with cold water and leave overnight. Drain and rinse well. Put rinds into a saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 10 minutes and drain. Boil remaining ingredients then simmer, stirring for 10 minutes until sugar dissolves. Add rinds and simmer for 45 minutes until rinds are transparent. Transfer rinds and syrup into jars, seal and store for 3 weeks before using.

Watermelon Rind Pie
2 sheets prepared pastry
3 cups chopped watermelon rind (green peel removed)
185g sweetened dried cranberries
3/4 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup cider vinegar
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon flour

Place rind in sauce pan; add water to cover. Heat to boiling; reduce heat and simmer until translucent and tender, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and drain. Heat oven to 220°C. Stir together cooked rind, cranberries, walnuts, sugar, vinegar, pumpkin pie spice, flour, and salt. Fit one sheet pastry into a 23cm glass pie pan. Pour rind mixture into crust. Cut remaining crust into 1cm-wide strips; arrange strips over filling to make lattice crust. Press ends of strips into edge of bottom crust. Fold edge of bottom crust over strips. Seal and flute edge. Bake until filling bubbles and crust is brown, about 40 minutes. If needed, cover edge with aluminum foil during baking to prevent excessive browning. Remove pie from oven; spoon Orange Glaze over hot pie.

Orange Glaze:
Stir together 1/2 cup icing sugar, 2 teaspoons grated orange peel, and 1 tablespoon orange juice until blended.

Hi this is to do with the candied watermelon recipes ive seen here and elsewhere on the web.

sorry if this may seem like a really silly question, i hope to get it right the first time round.

exactly which part of the melon am i after? the hard moist rind WITH its dark green skin or WITHOUT its dark green skin?

does anyone ever candy the sweet interior of a melon; and finally does this apply to only watermelons or all melons

thanks all!

Candied, like candied fruits for fruit cake? If its just a sweet pickled watermelon rind, you just use the skin and rinds. The center has way too much water in it, and will shrink away to nearly nothing if its candied or pickled.

Thanks for the reply,
yes candied as in like candied lemon/orange peel for fruitcakes/deserts,
so i leave the outer skin then,
is the flesh of say a rockmelon ever used for candying?
im asking because ive come across several recipes that make no distinction between which part of the melon is meant to be candied.

cheers,

No, you don't use the green part. The watermelon pickle is made from the inner peel (the white part). Also, if possible, these recipes work better with watermelon varieties that have thicker rinds.

What may be confusing is some recipes specify a starting measurement of watermelon peel but then should direct you to pare off the green part and any pink bits from the inside.

There are also old recipes for watermelon preserves (not pickles) that use the pink meat, but they are tricky.

Carol

I would think that the green part would be fine to candy, but for a jelly or pickle, no.