I managed to land myself 2 free nearly ready to eat cantaloupes yesterday. I'm not a fan. Hubby already had a large amount of watermelon to eat and probably would not get to these before they were past edible. So what to do? Hit the books and google searches. I didn't like most of what I saw, especially the ones where you cook it for an hour. Then I found this little
gem
Source: Southern Living July '99 (Carolyne M. Carnevale, Ormand Beach, FL
| 3 |
| lemons -- thinly sliced |
| 2 | cups | water |
| 2 1/2 | cups | white vinegar -- 5% acidity |
| 7 |
| cinnamon sticks -- 2 inches each |
| 24 |
| whole cloves |
| 2 | large | cantaloupes -- cut into bite-size pieces |
- Bring first 5 ingredients to a boil in a large saucepan; reduce heat, and simmer 5 to 7 minutes.
- Pack cantaloupes into hot jars; add hot syrup, filling to within 1/2 inch from top. Remove air bubbles; wipe jar rims. Cover at once with metal lids, screw on bands.
- Process in boiling-water bath 10 minutes. Yield: 6 pints
This one I had to try. I didn't have any cinnamon sticks on hand and wasn't about to pay a fortune for that amount so I used ground cinnamon instead, 3 tablespoons. And apparently I had extra large cantaloupes because I ended up having to double the liquids to fill all the jars. Ended up with 6 pints and 6 half pints. I made sure to add a lemon slice or two to each jar as well.
For the cinnamon sticks, I usually get them from the "Mexican spices" section in the grocery store. The 7 2" sticks the recipe requires would be on the order of a dollar or two.
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