Originally Posted by raedar63
I think my grandma used cornstarch and cooked it for a long time.She also just used wax to seal the jars .
So did my mother! After she poured the wax on top of the jelly we would stick our fingers in it to make wax finger puppets. I used wax on my jelly within first few years of marriage. Then life happened. Last year I started again but I now use the lids and rings. I like using honey instead of sugar int he recipes. The longer you cook it, the thicker the jams get. And just adding a wee bit more of pectin can also thicken it up. I use very little sugar in my recipes. Good ripe fruit doesn't need much. After you put it on toasted homemade bread with a dollop of real Land O Lakes butter you don't notice the lack of sugar.