headspace is measured from the glass edge down to the contents. Thread height varies as you must know by now, so you measure from the top edge of the glass were the lid rests on it. Eye balling is easy to do, as you can go down to 1/2 inch and it will still be fine. You should not increase of double a jelly recipe when using commercial pectins like Sure Jel, Ball, and Certo. Sugar is also something that needs to be measured exactly. If you do like to double, triple or even more, you can give Pomona pectin a try too. Ponona doesn't need sugar to set lie regular pectins do. The sound you hear is the cooling of the contents of the jars that create a slight vacuum that pulls the 'dimple' in the lids down, and you hear that familiar 'tink' sound.

Thanks about the head space, I was unsure and I saw it can mess with the seal. But it all turned out well, that aspect anyway.

I've read a lot about remakes, but I just wanted to know if just re-boiling it might help, because it seems a bit syrupy.

Re-boiling might do the trick, but there is a risk of over-cooking and compromising the flavor. Usually it's better just to use it as ice cream topping, pancake syrup, thickened for cheesecake, etc.

In any case, it's a good idea to give the batch more time. Sometimes a jam will set up if you just wait - It can take as long as 6 weeks. You can re-cook it at any time, so there's no harm in letting it sit a while.

Carol

They can take a month or so to gel. May I ask which one gelled for you ? I prefer Sure Jel over the others, if I don't use Pomona's. I love Pomona's for my sugar free jams.
Glad you enjoyed the jam making !

jvnheavener,

Welcome and congratulations!
So, what kind didja make???

I agree with Carol that re-boiling is usually not worth it --- the texture often becomes overly "globby." Better to have it runny and use re-label it "syrup"!

One box of pectin might've been older than the other? Who knows --- it's a mysterious thing. But don't give up hope. I have had a batch suddenly thicken up after a week or two. But sometimes it just stays runny.

Keep us posted on your canning adventures!

Zabby

The one that I used the 2 packages of Ball original is the one that set, and the one that used the combo of Ball/Sure Jell is the one that did not!

I had about half a jar of jam leftover so instead of canning it I put it in a tupperware and put it in the fridge. That stayed decently firm without canning it, and that is from the second batch. So we have some sort of jam if we can eat it fast enough to not reach room temperature, lol.

I can't even eat the jam, I can't have sugar!!! My husband says it is "frickin' delicious", verbatim, lol. It is actually a strawberry/cranberry mixture, I can't believe I forgot to say that! I am looking forward to making some sugar free jam and am on the hunt for Pomona!

I made this for Christmas gifts. I guess if the second batch doesn't set I can give the set stuff to the PB&J eaters and the syrupy stuff to the pancake eaters! It's pretty chunky so I imagine that would be good enough to give as a gift. I just won't call it jam, hee hee!

The Pomona pectin is sold by many all natural food stores as well as buying on line from the maker. I use Splenda and some acid blend to give more 'character' to a jelly. Been using Pomona for several years now and have never had asingle failure yet. I like to make various sized batched ranging from 10 to 30 jars and Pomona doesn't seem to care about batch size or if there is any sugar added. A single box can make up to about 30 eight ounce jars.

Here is a link that might be useful: Main Pomona source

Cranberries have a lot of natural pectin, so that may help it set eventually.

I'd be interested in seeing the recipe. It's unusual for any single batch to require more than one box of pectin. What was the yield?

It's definitely possible that mixing two different brands was the problem. Even though they're both powdered pectin, they're not totally interchangeable.

Carol

Welcome! I, too, use the Pomona's since neither I nor DH can have sugar and the commercial sugar free jellies and jams just don't hack it. A little Splenda and we're happy.

Chunky syrup sounds great as a gift. Maybe you could make up your own dry pancake mix in another jar with instructions and that would make a super combination.

Most citrus based jellies will take a month or more to set up. I have seen this many times when I used to make marmalade with orange, tangerine, and clementines before I had to cut out the sugar. Give them some time and they should set. Sometimes just refrigeration will thicken a jelly if its very soft. As mentioned, a syrup can be served over ice cream waffles, pancakes, and any other uses, such as a glaze for ham or a cake.

Thanks for the great ideas! Maybe I just will give away some pancake batter, too!

the recipe:

Here is a link that might be useful: allrecipes.com

Good thing you didn't double the recipe. It's already been doubled. You might find you have more consistent results if you halve that recipe and use only one box of pectin.

Carol

I think I'll do that next time. But all the reviewers had no problems, so it's probably the 2 different types of pectin.

One other advantage of halving is the mixture comes up to temp much more quickly so the flavor is brighter and fresher because it's not been cooked so long.

Carol

Brighter flavor.. Thats why I like adding an acid blend to my jams. It does improve any jellies or jams that have only a little flavor, or are overly sweet.

acid blend, would that be lemon juice?

It's a powdered blend of equal amounts of citric, malic and tartaric acids. You can find it online or in brewing supply stores; winemakers use it to balance wine musts.

Carol

Lemon juice is simply a liquid form of citric acid with some lemon flavor. The acid blend is a mix as mentioned above, and has no noticable flavor overtones, only sourness. Here is the source I use.

Here is a link that might be useful: Acid blend