Pineapple Guava, one cut to show cross-section
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Guava Jelly (no jam recipe in pectin package)
5 lbs guava
1/2 c lemon juice
3 c boiling water
1 package pectin
6 c sugar
supposedly yields ~7 cups = really yielded 7 half-pint jars, 1 smaller jar, plus 3 full marshmallow creme jars
Measure the sugar into a separate bowl. Prepare fruit with liquid. Add pectin & bring to a full rolling boil over high heat. Immediately add all the sugar, bring back to a full rolling boil, then continue to boil for 4 minutes exactly. Ladle into canning jars & seal.
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Cut each fruit in half across first, then start scooping
Hulling method with a normal size spoon
Pineapple Guava Scoop
Pineapple Guava Goop
Completed Pineapple Guava Preserves
Only a small amount of juice drained off into the liquid measurement, like 1/2 cup, since I'd have to mash it up or squeeze it to get more juice to come away from the pulp, so I put the lemon juice in first, added the guava juice I could drain off, then used the boiling water as instructed to fill up to 3.5c liquid. Even after following the instructions from the pectin box, it still seemed very syrupy vs. jam-like, so we'll see what I get when it fully cools. The syrup is tasty though!
It was a good-sized tree, and we ended up with seventeen jars of guava jelly that first year. Unfortunately, in the next twelve months we used up... maybe one jar. The stuff didn't taste bad or anything, (although guava is a unique flavor that not everyone cares for), but the jelly was runny enough that it tended to get messy and drip off anything it was spread upon - not great for sandwiches or crackers. And of course we teenagers (the primary jelly-eaters of the household) preferred the sweeter store-bought varieties.
So the jelly-making experiment was not repeated the following year. And sadly, eventually the guava tree turned out to be more of a liability than an asset. I will give this advice: be sure to pick the guavas promptly once they are ripe, preferably *before* they fall from the tree. It sounds like your tree is small, but ours used to dump approximately one metric ton of guavas on our front steps every year (which inevitably got stepped on and attracted clouds of fruit flies). I spent several unhappy Saturdays as a teenager cleaning up piles of squishy, fermented, sticky guavas, and I don't recommend the experience to anyone! Not to mention it may have ruined me for life when it comes to enjoying guavas. Anyway, here's hoping your guava experience is more favorable!
(Also, no one ever eats that much of the same flavor jelly on their own anyway...that's why canning projets so often end up as gifts! ;)
So *that's* what they are!
-idogcow
Pineapple Guava Makes Great 'marmalade'
I also like to make a marmalade by peeling the thin outer skin off with a potato peeler (it is a lot like lemon zest) then slicing it into strips and combining it with the scooped-out pulp. Combine roughly 1 part fruit pulp/zest mixture to 1 part sugar, bring to a boil, simmer 'till zest is tender, then put extra pectin if you want and can it up. (I don't remember needing to add pectin for either of these recipes.)
To get really fancy, you can add finely grated fresh ginger and strips of lemon zest to the marmalade, for a Lemon Ginger Feijoa marmalade that people will go nuts over. It makes great Christmas presents. I often add a few teaspoons of raspberry juice, too, just to give it a faint pink glow.
I really think you can't go wrong with preserves using feijoas (pineapple guavas) as long as you use the peel. I have heard, though, that some varieties have strongly wintergreen-scented peels. If that's what you have, you probably need to do your own experiments.
Re: Pineapple Guava Makes Great 'marmalade'
thanks for all the great ideas,
missmorae- san jose
pineapple guava jam
I have made jam with this fruit a couple of times. You don't need to use pectin. The fruit must have a lot in it because it jells well with just boiling much faster than other fruits I usually make jam with. One point: I made jam with just this fruit and the color and consistency are like "snot" if I do say so. I added some strawberries to the latest batch and am much happier with the visual result. Again--it jells without added pectin very quickly.
pineapple guava jam
Just about to make some pineapple guava jam and thought that I would see how other people made it. After reading a couple of responses, thought I would share how I do it.
The way I make it is to peel the outer layer away, leaving some of the pith in tact so that its a little ball after peeling. When cooking them, I mash them up to make smaller chunks of fruit for the jam. The pith or rind, gives it more of a "jam" consistency (I do not strain it)and with the sugar and flavoring from the gel of the fruit. Its very good and not runny at all.
Good luck with your jam making....now back to peeling several more pounds of pineapple guava!
Thanks for sharing...
Priscilla/Tallahassee, FL
Re: pineapple guava jam