Peach Preserves

I am very proud of myself! This was the first time I have ever made preserves and it turned out wonderful. I had planned to make strawberry, but couldn't resist the box of peaches for $9.00! The first batch turned out okay but I didn't like how chunky the fruit was. So for the next batch I chopped the peaches up finer and was very happy with it's consistency. The following recipe is soooo easy.

1 quart any kind of fruit

1 quart boiling water

4 cups sugar

Pour boiling water over fruit and drain at once. Put the fruit into pan and add 2 cups sugar. Bring to a boil and cook 5 minutes, stirring often. Add 2 more cups sugar and boil 5 minutes. Take off the stove and pour into jars. Let the mixture cool and freeze. This keeps for a long time in the freezer. Just take out of freezer and put in fridge before using.

Now some helpful advice! I doubled the recipe to get nine, 1/2 pint jars. My first batch was made following the recipe and it only gave me 3 jars. Also remember there are 4 cups in a quart! You can chop your fruit as chunky or fine as you want. For me it seemed the finer the fruit the better it turned out. I just used 2 colanders when I strained the fruit, but you could also use a large seive. Lastly remember to stir this often so it doesn't scorch. Happy preserve making!!