Day 21 (friday): Continued 114 | Needlework | Cross-Stitch | Wall Hanging.
Day 22 (saturday): Continued 114 | Needlework | Cross-Stitch | Wall Hanging [UNSTITCHING].
Day 23 (sunday): Attempted 64 | Food | Jelly | Misc. Jelly [FAILURE]; Continued 114 | Needlework | Cross-Stitch | Wall Hanging [UNSTITCHING].
Day 24 (monday): Sanity knitting.
Day 25 (today): Sleep.

Saturday, we spent all day making apple cider. Sunday, I decided to whip up 64 | Food | Jelly | Misc. Jelly — apple jelly. I figured the hardest part was getting the juice out of the fruit, and that was already done the day before. What could go wrong? My recipe didn’t include pectin because apples are so pectiny, so I had to get the gel setty part on my own. I pulled out my thermometer and brought the liquid up to “jelling” point and then some. It didn’t pass the “sheeting” test with a spoon, but I had faith it would jell. I filled the jars and processed them. When they came out, they were about as liquidy as water. I let them set for several hours, but they were still fluid. Thinking I hadn’t cooked them enough, I popped the lids, poured the stuff back into the pot, and started cooking again. Things were looking okay until I started listening to Andy and his internet apply jelly research. I added some pectin. The extra cooking or the pectin alone would probably have been fine. Together, I got The Blob. Still, I put the goop in jars and processed it thinking it would make everything better. I’m still not sure why. Reminds me of a post from the Yarn Harlot where she was knitting something and she knew the gauge/size was way off, but she kept knitting and knitting, like sticking with it will make it turn out right.

In the end, I spent a couple of hours and four cups of precious apple juice, and all I had to show for it was two and a half tiny jars of what sorta seems like apple caramel. It’s tasty, but don’t try and heat it up and pour over ice cream unless you like apple caramel plastic. Which it turns out I do.