American Beautyberry Jelly With Shiso

Beautyberries well deserve their name with their iridescent-purple fruit arriving early Autumn. Pretty purple berries. This is a bland sweet jelly on it's own. But with the addition of shiso giving both more color and a very light herbal taste. Native American's used root and leaf tea in sweat baths for rheumatism, fevers, and malaria. Root tea used for dysentery, stomach aches. Root and berry tea used for colic. Pretty to be served at a Bridal Shower Brunch.

• Ready In: 1 hr 15 mins
• Serves: 50
• Yields: 46-7 1/2 pints

Ingredients

• 4  cups  packed red  shiso leaves
• 1  quart  american beauty berries, washed (That is all my plant gave me but if you have more go for 2 quarts)
• 2  quarts water
• 1⁄4 cup bottled lemon juice
• 1 3⁄4 ounces  dry pectin
• 4  cups sugar
•  sliver butter, optional for foaming
• 6 -7  shiso leaves

Directions

1. Place shiso leaves in pot pour enough water to cover bring to boil and remove from heat. Once cooled place in refrigerator overnight.
2. Strain the liquid from the leaves. remove leave to a mulch pile.
3. Boil berries in the steeped liquid adding 4 cups water for 20 minutes and strain.
4. Mix pectin with 1/4 cup of the sugar.
5. Measure 5 cups of the infusion place back into the pot add pectin/sugar mixture and lemon juice bring to a rolling boil stirring to dissolve the pectin.
6. Add remaining sugar and butter.
7. Stir and boil hard for 1 1/2 minutes, or until mixture sheets from a wooden spoon, skim.
8. Remove from burner and skim off foam.
9. Place one optional shiso leaf in each jar.
10. Pour jelly into sterilized jars, cap and seal.
11. Process in boiling bath 10 minutes.
12. Remove the jars from the hot water without tilting and set aside to cool.
13. Leave for 12 hours then check the seals on the jars by pressing on the centers of the lids. If the lids do not spring back, they are vacuum sealed and the jelly can be stored at room temperature.
14. Another way to check is to remove the ring and try to lift the lid.
15. If it lifts up, it wasn't sealed properly.
16. If the lid flexes, there is no seal, so store the jar in the refrigerator.
17. enjoy.