Christmas tea jelly

Perfect for gifting – at least I most sincerely hope so. I’m making the ever-popular Rioja wine jelly for some friends this Christmas, and I wanted an equally special option for those who avoid alcohol. When I tried the Stash Christmas Eve tea at my book club (yes, I finally joined a book club!), I fell in love with it right away. So here we go!

You’ll need: 

• 8 herbal tea bags (I used Stash Christmas Eve Tea; pick your fav)

• 1 box Pomona’s Pectin
  4 teaspoons calcium water
  4 teaspoons Pomona’s Pectin powder

• Cinnamon stick, if desired

• ½ t peppermint extract, if desired

• 1/4 c lemon juice

• 2 c sugar (or a little less or a little more, to taste)

• 4 250ml (half-pint) jars, 125 ml jar

• 5 snap lids and rings 

Cooking and Canning:

1. Prepare calcium water. To do this, combine ½ teaspoon calcium powder (in the small packet in your box of Pomona’s pectin) with ½ cup water in a small, clear jar with a lid. Shake well. Extra calcium water should be stored in the refrigerator for future use.

2. Make 4 cups strong herbal tea using your preferred tea bags and any additional spices you choose. I used 8 tea bags for 5 cups of water and added a cinnamon stick and peppermint extract to complement the flavours of the tea. After coming to a boil and then simmering for maybe an hour or so, I was down to about 4.5 cups of tea. Next time, I might add another couple of teabags to make the flavour even stronger.  

3.  Wash jars, lids, and bands. Place jars in canner, fill canner 2/3 full with water (add a splash of white vinegar if your water is hard), and bring to a boil. Turn off heat, cover, and keep jars in hot canner water until ready to use. 

4. Pour the tea into a large pot.  (I strained at this step to ensure it was clear.) Add 4 tsp calcium water and the lemon juice and mix well.

5. Measure sugar into a bowl. Thoroughly mix pectin powder into sugar. Set aside.

6. Bring tea mixture to a full boil. Add pectin-sugar mixture, stirring vigorously for 1 to 2 minutes to dissolve the pectin while the jelly comes back up to a boil. Once the jelly returns to a full boil, remove it from the heat.

7. Fish your jars out of the hot water and put your lids in for at least two minutes. (They don’t need to boil.) 

8. Fill hot jars to ½ cm of top with jelly. Bubble each jar with a chopstick. Wipe rims clean with dampened paper towel. 

9. Screw on lids to fingertip tight. Put filled jars in waterbath, covered to at least 1 inch over their heads. Don’t start timer until the water is boiling. Boil 10 minutes. Remove from water. Let jars cool. 

10. Listen for pops. Any jars not sealed within 24 hours should be refrigerated.