Most recipes for crabapple jelly found in cookbooks or web sites do not include pectin.  Interestingly, the insert in commercial pectin includes a recipe for apple and crabapple jelly – using pectin of course.  Apples and crabapples naturally have a very high amount of pectin and additional pectin should not be required.  

However, with my history of making jelly in a dry climate and high altitude, I did not have the confidence to risk my crabapples to failure.

The following recipe is for everyone who has carefully followed high altitude directions of pectin manufacturers or other modified recipes but ended up with syrup instead of jelly.  After a lot of trial and error, I have finally discovered a method that really results in jelly and have incorporated it into this recipe for crabapple jelly.  How to extract the juice needed for the jelly recipe is also included.

High Altitude Crabapple Jelly Recipe with Pectin

What you will need:
bucket for picking crabapples if picking your own
sharp knife
strainer, sieve, or cheesecloth
large pot (6-8 quart) for making juice and for cooking jelly (preferably stainless steel)
large spoon for cooking crabapples and jelly
timer
container for strained crabapple juice
ladle for filling jars
measuring cups
candy thermometer
6-7 8 oz. canning jars with rings and new lids
small pan to soak lids and keep warm until use
large canning pot with rack
labels

 Ingredients:
10 cups prepared crabapples (about 3 to 4 lbs)
5 cups water, possibly more if second extraction is required
5 cups of crabapple juice extracted from above crabapples
5 cups sugar
1 box pectin

Wash jars and rings in hot soapy water or in dishwasher and air dry.  

Preparing the Crabapples:
Place crabapples in a container for washing with water several inches above the crabapples.  Swish and let soak for at least 10 minutes.  Crabapples can have a tendency to hide worms which will escape from the crabapples and float to the top.  Change water until debris is washed from apples and rinse in a strainer.  
 

Crabapples will need to be halved (or quartered if bigger).  I found that the stems do not pull out easily or often break and discovered a very easy way to remove the stems while cutting the crabapples.  As shown in the picture, cut the crabapple just to the side of the stem.  The stem will then pull off very easily.  Do not peel or core.  Crabapples do turn brown when exposed to air like regular apples.  However, they do not turn quite as fast.  To minimize browning, place each chopped measured amount of crabapples into the cooking pot with the proper amount of water needed as you prepare all the crabapples.  For instance, chop 2 cups of crabapples and place into the cooking pot with 1 cup of water. Repeat with next 2 cups of crabapples until entire quantity is prepared. The water will prevent the crabapple’s exposure to air and browning prematurely.  Do not put the crabapples in a bowl of water to prepare the entire amount and then drain and discard water to measure the entire batch.  You will be discarding valuable pectin that leached from the inside of the chopped apples into the water.

Extracting the juice:
Add crabapples to the cooking pot with ½ the amount of water as crabapples.  Bring to a hard boil for 15 minutes, gently stirring every five minutes.  The crabapples will soften and begin to fall apart when stirred.  Be careful not to squish the crabapples and DO NOT MASH!  The recipe included with the pectin instructs to mash the crabapples after cooking.  This is a huge mistake.  My intention was to make jelly with half my crabapples and then apple butter with the other half.   Mashing the crabapples resulted in very thick pulp instead of juice.  Consequently, I set the pulp aside for the apple butter and started over with the rest of my crabapples for jelly.   

Strain juice from solids. Remaining pulp can be used to make crabapple butter so do not discard if also planning for crabapple butter.  The amount of juice extracted will be relative to how juicy the crabapples are and how much evaporation occurs from boiling (especially in drier climates). Up to half a cup of water can be added to the juice to make up the required amount of 5 cups.  If more than half a cup is needed, do not add water to the juice.  Instead, return all the pulp to the cooking pot.  Add the amount of water needed to make up 5 cups of juice PLUS an additional cup of water to compensate for evaporation.  Simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally to avoid sticking.  Again, be careful not to mash the crabapples. Repeat straining process.  The flavor in crabapples really goes a long way so even if they were cooked twice to extract the juice, the leftover pulp can still be used to make crabapple butter without compromising the full flavor for the butter.

Preparation for jelly:
Have the canning jars ready to be filled before you begin.  Also, pour hot water over lids and keep lukewarm until ready to seal jars.  

Fill canning pot 3/4 full of water.  Bring to a rolling boil.  Water bath must be boiling when adding full jars of jelly.   

Measure sugar in a bowl and set aside.  It must be added all at once during the process.

Making the jelly:
Add crabapple juice and pectin in a large pot.  Stir to dissolve pectin.    

From here on, instructions and times will vary from the instructions with pectin.  

Bring to a hard boil using a candy thermometer to reach 212F.  It will visually boil at a different temperature depending on your altitude.  Once it reaches 212F, boil for three minutes.

Add sugar all at once.  Stir until sugar dissolves.   Bring to a hard boil that cannot be stirred down.  When candy thermometer reaches 212F again, boil for 2 minutes.   

Remove from heat.  Mixture will still be thin like syrup but you should notice that it coats the spoon.   You can also drop a few drops onto a cold plate and let cool for a moment.  When cool, it should already resemble a very soft jelly.  It will gel more during the water bath process.  If it is still very thin syrup, return to heat, bring to 212F again, and boil for another 2 minutes.  However, be careful not to reach the candy stage or you will be making lollipops for the kids!  

Fill the jars to 1/4” from the top.  Add lids and rings, tightening slightly.

Water Bath:  
Load jars into canning rack.  Lower into the pot of boiling water.  Water may stop boiling momentarily.  Start timing the water bath after the water is at a rolling boil again and is 212F.  Process with lid on the canning pot.  

The following chart is from the Ball Sure-Jell Pectin.  The adjustments did not work for my altitude and dry climate.  What DID work is to go up to the next altitude.  Also, it doesn’t matter what type of pectin you are using.  I have used several brands now that listed even less time for the water bath but I used the Ball schedule plus the next altitude scale and finally had amazing jelly instead of syrup.  

Base time is 10 minutes

Altitude Feet       Increase Processing Time
1000-3000           5 minutes
3001-6000           10 minutes
6001-8000           15 minutes
8001-10000          20 minutes

As an example, I am at 3300 feet.  I would process for 10 minutes plus 15 minutes using the next higher altitude instead of 3300 feet.

At the end of the processing time, turn the heat off and remove lid.  Let jars stand for 5 minutes.

Remove jars from canner and set on a towel to cool, undisturbed for 12-24 hours.  Rings will be loose.  Do not retighten!   After cooling, test seals by pressing the center of each lid.  If a lid does not flex up and down, it is sealed.  If a lid is not sealed, refrigerate and use immediately within 3 weeks.  

Label jars with type of jelly and date.

Add sprigs of rosemary to the apples when cooking.   Delicious on toast as a compliment to venison, pork, or lamb. For a special touch, also add a small sprig to jars before sealing. To prepare, plunge rosemary in boiling water to kill any bacteria. Set aside to dry.   Add to jelly just before sealing jars.

Note:  It is not recommended to double the recipe or use pint jars.  I would never have attempted anything different before I finally had a successful batch of jelly.  However, we go through the small jars so quickly, I did do this with other jellies made this year.  I added another 15 minutes to the water bath to allow more processing time for the added amount of jelly in the bigger jars – perfect!   I did not test a double batch or pint jars for crabapple jelly since I did not have an abundance of crabapples, but I am sure it would work fine also.  

See my recipe for Crabapple Butter