Day 64: Between us, the person who owns the medlar tree and I are going to figure out a way to make jelly which is neither too watery or too firm. The last batch I made set up like concrete and I had to add water and reheat each jar to get it to a spreadable consistency. The issue seems to lie in the pectin content of this peculiar fruit. Some growers claim it has none, while others say the exact opposite. In my digging in the deepest caverns of the Google mine, I discovered the reason for the disparity. Unripe medlars are high in pectin, but as they soften and become mushy, the pectin content drops dramatically. One recipe suggested adding a few hard medlars when boiling to extract the juice, or alternately, adding an apple if using only soft medlars. This year, I'm trying something different. I've already rendered one cup of juice from ten squishy fruits. The others are bletting on racks in a corner of my kitchen. Once they have begun to deteriorate (the proper point for processing, believe it or not), I will boil them in batches until I have enough juice to substitute into a recipe for apple jelly which uses commercial pectin. Medlar jelly is fragrant and delicious, and makes a wonderful glaze for ham.
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