So my pectin was probably OK, like I said I reduced it from 3C to 2C *after* testing it (I didn't want to cool it down to test again before canning, though I suppose I could have put a little in the fridge, pulled the rest off the heat while I tested it and then it wouldn't reduce much more bringing it back up again). I'll test it straight out of the jar before I use the rest of it. Thanks - it looks like 12 oz of pectin may be enough for 4-6C of fruit, or 1 batch of jam. So at least I canned it in the right size jar! You *do* mean sugar = fruit + pectin? So 1C fruit + 4 T (which equals 1/4C) pectin would use 1 1/4C sugar? Not 3/4C that Small Batch calls for? The Joy of Jams uses that as a "rule of thumb" but says you need more for high-pectin fruits, less for low-pectin. I know strawberries are low-pectin (esp. frozen ones that were probably really ripe when frozen), but I don't know if adding pectin (an ounce or 2 at a time, testing for gel) made it into a "high-pectin" mixture so I should have added more sugar? The berries were frozen with no sugar (Trader Joe's), and may still have had quite a bit of water in them even though I thawed them in a colander and cooked/mashed them with sugar before even adding the pectin. It may work out better with fresh berries.

OK Helen... Here's mini jam for Dummies. :-) It's soooooo simple. PECTIN: Get some green apples. That's under ripe, NOT ripe green cooking apples. Wash em (don't peel or core), quarter em, throw em in the kettle. For each pound of apples add about 2 cups of water and 1 TBS lemon juice. Cook the stuff for about one hour. I cooked my first batch until it was like applesauce... several hours. It's not as good as the batch I cooked until just soft enough to mash it all up. Put through a food mill or mash up with your favorite mashing device. Dump it all in a jelly bag or a strainer lined with a couple double layers of cheese cloth. Leave it dripping overnight. THAT'S IT. If you want to preserve it, heat it up and put in appropriate size jars. Process in BWB for 10 minutes. I did most of mine in 1/2 pint jars so I could do 1 cup of jam at a time. For my meager 1/2 cup of berries I used 1/2 jar of my pectin. TO MAKE JAM For acid fruits put this in a pan: 1 cup cut up fruit 1 cup homemade pectin 3/4 cup sugar (For low acid fruit, add 1 tsp lemon juice per cup of fruit. I made peach jam this way.) Bring the mixture to a boil. I punch my timer when it boils. Boil until it's jam, about 8 to 10 minutes. I find keeping a spoon on top of ice cubes, using my stir spoon to drop a teaspoon full onto the cold spoon, waiting a few seconds until the test cools down, and THEN dripping it back into the kettle makes it easier to know when it's ready. When ready it'll sheet from the spoon rather than drip, drip, drip. NOTE: -You don't have to use a jelly bag or cheese cloth. It just makes a clearer pectin. -There is absolutely no 'apple' taste to the jam, which seems odd when half the jam is apple juice. -You'd think you'd end up with a couple of cups of jam but I end up with just a bit more than the amount of fruit I use. -I save my lemon and lime rinds in the fridge. I just quartered what I had and threw them in. Let me know if you try it and how it works for you!

The peanut brittle turned out really well. I powdered up two chilis for the batch. The longer the brittle stays stuck in your teeth, the more the heat spreads. Will be interesting when I share this with coworkers today. Who would suspect brittle?!

Casey, if it's stiff, it got cooked just a bit too long. I'm assuming you are talking about the "no pectin" jam with just sugar and fruit. I got a batch of pear taffy once, and some other jams that were a bit too soft. Now I can tell pretty much by the way they look, but it took some practice. I use the "frozen plate" test. I put a plate in the freezer, when I think the jam is nearly ready I put a dab on the plate and put it back in the freezer for a minute. If it's the right consistency after a minute or so of cooling, it's ready. I did learn to turn off the pan while I was waiting for the dab on the plate to cool, jam can go from "just right" to "gummy bears" in that couple of minutes. Good luck, and keep on jamming. I didn't get any blackberries this year either, it was such a hot, dry summer that grdens and berries didn't do so well.... Annie