Redcurrant Jelly

Aren't these just so beautiful - the way they are so very red, and shiny, and translucent, against the green leaves? They are right at the end of the garden and I usually forget to net them so the birds often get them all. This year I draped a net over most of them and the birds enjoyed what they could reach, but I got the rest. There are still some ripening so we'll have another picking session next week.
Quality Control approved them:

then I had my fist go at redcurrant jelly. It was immensely cheering working with such a deep red liquid, here it is in the pan:

I heard you had to dissolve the sugar thoroughly before boiling so I stirred it for ages.

In the end I only had enough for one jar, but it does look very lovely when the light shines through it.

Sadly though I boiled it too long, it seems to need about a minute or even a bit less and I wasn't watching carefully enough - so it's set very, very firmly making it un-spreadable, in fact probably inedible in its current form. But I shall save it for Christmas recipes- you either need a spoonful for red cabbage or cranberry relish or both, can't remember without checking, and I'll have another go at the jelly next week!

Thank you all of you for your support after my last post, I'm feeling a little better and calmer and am also trying a healthier diet recommended by more than one person as helpful - basically it's no sugar at all, as little wheat as possible, preferably none, and lots of protein and vegetables. Strictly speaking you're supposed to leave out sugary fruit too for the first couple of weeks but I'm looking at my ripening pears knowing nobody else will eat them, so I'm going to have to give in a bit, I'll compromise by having them with some nuts to slow down the sugar release (all very scientific). I'm sure there are many eating plans that recommend this way of eating, I've certainly seen a few before - but it's putting it into practice that's the hard part. I think the main thing is the no sugar because processing it stresses your body and can worsen your mood when the levels dip again, so I'm trying to love nuts and seeds instead of cereal bars for snacks. Apart from a tiny taste of my redcurrant jelly I've left all other sugary things well alone, and I'll stick to it as long as I possibly can because eating unprocessed nuts, seeds, protein and vegetables has got to be better than eating biscuits and jam sandwiches at tea-time, which is what I was doing!
So I'm sure that will help - it also gives me something to focus on and means I'm concentrating on looking after myself, which we can tend to forget about when we're low. And if it doesn't quite help enough I won't hesitate to seek other solutions. Now I'm off to make a cup of (healthy packed-with-antioxidants green) tea and resist the tub of mini chocolate cakes my son wanted for himself yesterday!