Turning lemons into lemonade

If anyone has been to Bell's Market in NE Philadelphia you can attest that they have the cheapest produce. Anthony thinks it's a cover up for the Russian Mafia. I don't care what it is, just keep on making those incredible half sour pickles. I treked all the way out there for my favorite pickles and grabbed a couple of unexpected items because I just couldn't pass them up. I was so proud to get a mini personal watermelon for $1.79. WHAT A DEAL. I brought it home and cracked into that thing like a pinata. I love chopping watermelon, there's a funny side story here...


The summer of Heather and Anthony's wedding 3 out of the 4 Socha sisters were living at Mom and Dad's plus Sophie. It was a summer of fun times. One evening Anthony's parents were out of town and so we headed over for some Friday night drinks and summer activities. Soon everyone was feeling pretty good and we noticed an untouched watermelon. Being hungry and flushed from alcohol we decided to break into it. If you have been around me while I am drunk you can attest to the fact that even when I am sloshed, I don't think I'm that far gone and that I can still do all skilled tasks as well as sober Ashley can. Unfortunately that couldn't be further from the truth. When I am sober and cutting up watermelon I like to have a bit of fun and grab the largest knife, bring it over my head and pretend I'm chopping wood. "Hey watermelon, I'm gonna split you like a log!" Normally that is fine, except that I insisted that I be the one to cut up the watermelon on that Friday evening. All I can say is that Anthony got real wide eyed as I made my karate chop into that melon, I did slice it but no where near the middle like I had intended. That's when he decided I did enough and passed the torch onto someone else with a bit more eye/hand coordination.

Back to my watermelon fiasco. I popped open that watermelon only to discover the reason it was $1.79, it was a bit over ripe. It was still good but a bit soft and in need of being consumed ASAP. I decided to try out a new summer jam recipe from Food in Jars for Watermelon Jam. It literally took me less than an hour to make this stuff and it tastes so good! Not sickly sweet, just the right amount. IT'S SUMMER IN A JAR! I put what I could into hot jars but I always end up with just enough jam leftover that I can't quite make a full jar to finish it up in the canner and so I stuck the last little bit into a mason jar I found at a garage sale and called it a day.

I also added a couple of pics from around my NC residence. There is a plot of clover that I thought looked very picturesque this afternoon.

Watermelon Jelly


From Food in Jars

Yield: Makes 2 1/2 to 2 3/4 pints



Ingredients

• 6 cups pureed watermelon (remove any seeds prior to pureeing)
• 5 cups white sugar
• 1/2 cup bottled lemon juice
• 1 packet powdered pectin

Instructions

1. Whisk together sugar and powdered pectin until they are fully integrated. Combine watermelon puree, sugar/pectin and lemon juice in a large, non-reactive pot.
2. Bring to a boil and let cook until the temperature of the nascent jelly reaches 220 degrees. This can take anywhere from 15-30 minutes, depending on the width of your pot, the heat of your stove and even the weather you’re having. Check set using saucer test before removing it from the heat, to ensure that it will set.
3. Remove from the heat and pour into prepared jars. Wipe rims, apply lids and screw on bands. Process in a boiling water canner for 10 minutes.
4. When time is up, remove from canner and let jars cool. When they’re cool enough to handle, remove rings and test seals. You can eat immediately or store unopened jars in a cool, dark place for up to a year.

Notes

*This jelly can take up to one week to set. Please give it time.