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This Jalapeno Pepper Jelly recipe is ideal for appetizers, cheese tray, bacon candy or sandwiches. This is a hot pepper jelly recipe perfect for those new to canning. Includes a video tutorial.

What do you do when you purchased a bottle of wine that you really just don’t love? I know, first world problems.  Be that as it may, I had several bottles of a wine that I just really didn’t like.

Before you label me as some wine diva…let me dispel you of that notion.  We are in a wine club and my typical qualifier when I order wine is ‘around $10 a bottle’…so I’m not some high-fallutin wine drinker who only has to have some varietal that has been sitting in some underground wine place for 100’s of years.

I’m pretty simple…I just don’t like real acidic wines…and this wine was pretty acidic…and I had several bottles of it.

I used one bottle of it when I made my Meyer Lemon and Dried Fig Conserve...which by the way is HEAVENLY.

But I still had one more bottle to use up.  Coincidentally, or not, I also needed to make some pepper jelly as my daughter and her Physics lab group have discovered the value of noshing whilst studying and one of their go-to treats is hot pepper jam over cream cheese.  So…

Jalapeno Pepper Jelly!

Before we dive in to the recipe, let me give a little disclaimer here.  I will experiment with just about ANYTHING, except when I am canning.  There is a part of me that thinks that the USDA might be a tad overboard on putting the fear of God into everyone when it comes to canning, but botulism is a real thing and I’m not one to tempt it.

So, when I ‘invent’ a canning recipe, I usually rely pretty heavily on tried and true sources, only altering those things that don’t effect Ph which is especially important when water bath canning.

High Acid Foods (those with a Ph of 4.6 or lower) are safe for water bath canning, while those low-acid foods (Ph greater than 4.6) must be pressure canned due to the ability to reach a higher temperature to kill off any molds, bacteria and yeasts.

So for this recipe, I leaned on Benardin’s Wine Jelly Inferno, taking a little creative license, in a non-Ph altering kind of way, of course.

You know those times when you just need a quick appetizer? Keep a jar of this Jalapeno Pepper Jelly and you will surely take your ‘cheese and cracker’ routine to new heights! Trust me, you will keep finding new ways to enjoy this hot pepper jelly recipe!

Supplies I Use for Canning this Pepper Jelly:

Some of these are affiliate links and I will earn a small commission off of the sale of these products, but the price you are charged is not affected. You can see my full disclosure policy here.

• Kilner Jam Pan or Kitchencraft Jam Pan
• Wide Mouth Funnel
• Weck Can Lifter or  Ball Can Lifter
• Magnetic Lid Lifter
• Headspace Gauge
• Jars: Lately I’m loving Weck Jars, but I also like to use Ball Jars.
• Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving

Jalapeno Pepper Jelly

Yield: 5 1/2 pint jars

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour

Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes

Jalapeno Pepper Jelly is perfect on cheese, meats and makes the delicious bacon. This hot pepper jam will satisfy your wine pepper jelly cravings.

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Ingredients

• 5 Jalapeno Peppers, chopped finely, Can use hotter peppers for more heat
• 1 750 ml bottle white wine, I use a Sauvignon Blanc
• 2 cups sugar, divided, 1 1/2 cups and 1/2 cup
• 1 pkg Less or No Sugar Needed Pectin, I used Sure-Jell...in the pink box
• 1/2 cup White Balsamic Vinegar or other White Wine Vinegar, at least 5% acidity

Instructions

1. Prepare canner, jars, and lids. See The Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving for guidance. If you are using Weck Jars, I do boil the glass jars and lids for at least 10 minutes and put the rubber rings separately in boiling water for 2-3 minutes. After the 2-3 minutes, I leave the rings in the hot water until ready to use them.
2. Chop jalapenos finely. I removed the white pith, which also removed a good number of seeds. I recommend wearing rubber gloves (that you have cleaned well) for this step
3. Put a plate with 4 spoons in the freezer to be able to check the gel state of your jelly.
4. Mix 1/2 cup of sugar with a package of pectin.
5. Add wine to a bottom pot, I use a Kilner Jam Pan
6. Stir in pectin/sugar mix and whisk well until fully dissolved.
7. Add chopped peppers and remaining sugar and whisk well until sugar is dissolved.
8. Stirring frequently, bring to a rolling boil that can't be stirred down. Boil hard for 2 minutes.
9. Turn off heat and add balsamic vinegar. Stir well.
10. Put a dollop of jelly on your plate and put back in freezer for 1 minute. After a minute, if you can push the jelly and it wrinkles, it is done and ready to be canned.
11. Spoon your jam into hot jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace if using Ball/Kerr jars or 1/2 inch if using Weck jars
12. Remove air bubbles and wipe rim with white vinegar.
13. Center lid on jar and screw band down until resistance is met, then increase to fingertip tight. Or, if using Weck Jar, place rubber gasket, glass lid and metal clips on the jar.
14. Place jars in canner, making sure they are completely covered with water by at least one inch.
15. Cover pot and bring to a boil
16. Boil for 10 full minutes, or adjust for altitude via Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving. The time to bring your pot to a boil should not be counted in the minute boil time.
17. Turn heat off, remove lid and let sit for 5 minutes
18. Remove your jars from the pot and let them sit, undisturbed for 24 hours. Your Ball/Kerr jar lid centers should pop down when sealed and the orange tab on the Weck jars will slightly curve down.
19. Now...here's where I might have gone off of the USDA reservation a bit...and it's completely up to you on if you want to follow me. Most likely, unless you have been blessed by the canning fairy who skipped over me, your peppers will be floating at the top of your jelly. The USDA would recommend that you just let it be and stir it up when you open the jar. 
20. Once I knew that my jars had sealed, within a half hour of removing them from the pot, I shook them a couple of times to disperse the pepper pieces throughout. I chatted with a representative from Ball who told me the risk of doing what I did was that I might cause the seals to break. I checked my seals and they were still intact 24 hours later, so I am not concerned. I am not recommending anything...just telling you what I did.
21. I'm sure a lawyer would advise me to tell you to do so at your own risk or something to that extent. Consider yourself told.

Notes

This recipe assumes some knowledge of proper and safe canning techniques. Please see the Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving for guidance.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 20 Serving Size: 2
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 73 Total Fat: 0g Saturated Fat: 0g Trans Fat: 0g Unsaturated Fat: 0g Cholesterol: 0mg Sodium: 9mg Carbohydrates: 10g Fiber: 0g Sugar: 7g Protein: 0g

For what it’s worth, the next time I make pepper jelly, I will probably swap out a couple of jalapenos for serrano peppers.  I would like a tad more heat and don’t think I can get that by just adding more jalapenos. This is a personal preference of course.  You can check out the relative heat of different peppers on a Scoville Chart like this one.

OK…you have your Jalapeno Pepper Wine Jelly…now what? What an I gonna do with this Jalapeno jelly?

• Of course, it’s perfect on just about any cheese.  My preference is a hard cheese, like Gruyere or Manchego.  But I know there are many who love a good Jalapeno Pepper Jelly on cream cheese, as well as Brie.
• Use it in a vinaigrette as a substitute for honey or sugar.
• Glaze your pork tenderloin or chicken
• Use as a sandwich spread
• Use as a dip for eggrolls
• And maybe my all time favorite…Make Bacon Candy! Simply smear some Jalapeno Pepper Wine Jelly over your uncooked bacon and pop into 325′ oven…20-30 minutes for thick bacon, 10-15 for thinner.  Watch carefully…the sugar in the jelly will burn quickly.  Hmmm…hot pepper jam and bacon? Yep!

So…when I stop and think of the many pluses of blogging, making and eating bacon candy for breakfast and lunch today will surely top the list of ‘great things about blogging’.  Coincidentally, it also tops the list of ‘the perils of blogging’.

So, you’ve made this jalapeno jelly recipe, you might also like these other canning, preserves and jam recipes:

• Nectarine Jam with Elderflower
• Spiced Golden Plum Jam
• Savory Red Onion Jam
• Rum Spiced Pear Jam
• Blueberry Jam with Chamomile
• Navel Orange Marmalade
• Smoky Spiced Tomato Jam Recipe
• Meyer Lemon and Dried Fig Conserve
• Spiced Winter Cranberry Conserve
• Blood Orange and Plum Preserves
• Jalapeno Pepper Wine Jelly

Need to see this Jalapeno Pepper Jelly recipe in action?  Here it is….

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