Basil Banana Pepper Jelly

I planted basil and banana peppers in the garden this year. Both have done really well, and I couldn't wait to make this jelly. We love pepper jelly around here. This recipe makes a very beautiful jelly.

Isn't that just one of the loveliest things you've ever seen!?

Before I give you my adventure in pictures, I'll give you the recipe.

Basil Banana Pepper Jelly 
1/2 c thinly sliced and seeded hot banana peppers 
1/4 c seeded and thinly sliced hot red peppers
1/4 c finely chopped red onion
4 large basil leaves cut into thin ribbons
1/4 t dried basil
3/4 c white vinegar 
3 c granulated sugar
1 pouch liquid pectin 

Prepare the canner, jars, and lids. In a large saucepan, combine the peppers, herbs, and vinegar. Stir in the sugar. Place the pan on high heat, and bring the mixture to a rolling boil. Stir in the pectin quickly. Bring back to a rolling boil, stirring constantly. Boil exactly one minute. Remove the pan from heat. Quickly skim off any foam that has formed. Then quickly pour the jelly into hot jars. Clean the rim of each jar, and seal them with a lid and ring. Place the jars back into the canner, making sure they are covered by at least an inch of water. Place the lid on the canner, and bring the water up to a rolling boil. Process pint and quarter pint jars for ten minutes. After ten minutes, turn off the heat and remove the canner lid. Let the water rest for about five minutes before removing the jars with a jar lifter. Place the jars on a doubled towel to rest for 24 hours. See the description below for tips on suspending the particles in the jelly.


Before I got started on this recipe, I prepared my jars in the canner. I started heating them so they would come to a boil and boil ten minutes before I was ready to use them. Once they boiled ten minutes, I turned the heat down and left them in the canner so they would stay hot until I needed them. While they boiled I got busy preparing the ingredients.

I seeded and chopped the peppers and onion. Next, I stacked and rolled four large basil leaves in a tube and sliced them into thin ribbons. I placed all these ingredients plus the dried basil into a large saucepan.

When it looks this pretty
This early in the process,
I can't help but get excited!

To this, I added 3/4 of a cup of white vinegar.

To that, I stirred in 3 cups of granulated sugar.

Next, this was placed on the stove. In the photo, you can see I have everything ready and waiting for when I pull the hot jelly off the heat. The lids are in a small pan behind the enamel canner.

To keep my pectin from spilling before I need it,
I place it in a cup by the stove as shown. Works like
A charm!

The mixture was placed on high heat, and stirred constantly, (except when I took this photo! 😜) until it came to a rolling boil. Then the pectin was stirred in, stirred constantly as it returned to a rolling boil, and was boiled exactly one minute.

The jelly was removed from the heat after it had boiled one minute. There was a lot of foam on the jelly.

The foam was quickly skimmed off. Then the jelly was quickly poured into hot jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace. The jars were sealed with a lid and a ring. The jars were then placed in the canner with an inch of water covering the jars. The lid was placed on the canner, and the water was brought up to a rolling boil. The jars were processed for ten minutes. After ten minutes, the heat was turned off, and the lid to the canner was removed. I let the water come to a rest for about five minutes before I removed the jars from the canner and placed them on a doubled towel for 24 hours. I did let them cool for about thirty minutes and made sure the lids were concave before I gently tilted and twisted them to distribute the particles of herbs and peppers.  I did this a couple times, every few minutes, until the particles were nicely distributed.  Normally, with regular jellies or other canned items the jars shouldn't be disturbed.

Happy canning!!

Until we meet again, may you be blessed!
*To ensure the safety of your canned foods, make sure you follow all safety guidelines issued by the USDA.