To Preserve Gooseberries

Select 3 quarts of the largest gooseberries to preserve whole and set aside the rest for jelly.

Place the whole gooseberries in a pan, cover with water, and simmer slowly until tender but not bursting.

Carefully remove the gooseberries with a skimmer and place them in cold water to cool.

In a separate pot, combine the remaining gooseberries with 3 cups of water, boil until they break down, stirring and mashing with a spoon.

Strain the mixture through a jelly bag to extract the juice.

Measure the juice; for each pint of juice, add 1.5 pounds of sugar.

Break up the sugar and mix it with the juice in a preserving kettle.

Let the mixture sit to dissolve the sugar, stirring frequently.

Once dissolved, heat it over the fire.

Add the whole gooseberries to the kettle and boil for 20 minutes or until the jelly thickens and congeals on a spoon.

If the gooseberries start to break, remove them and let the jelly boil until finished.

Transfer the gooseberries and jelly into glass jars for storage.