Crab Apple Jelly

5 pounds whole crab apples
5 cups water
2 (4 ounce) blocks paraffin
1 (1 3/4 ounce) box Sure-Jell
8 cups granulated sugar

Wash apples and remove blossom ends. Leave crab apples whole. Do not peel or core. Add water to apples; cover and simmer for 15 minutes. Crush with masher and simmer 5 minutes longer. Place in jelly bag and allow to drip overnight for clearest jelly. (A man's cotton handkerchief clipped with clothes pins to a strainer or colander makes a very handy jelly bag.)

If in a hurry, juice may be squeezed out. There should be about 7 cups of juice. If there is a slight shortage of juice, add water. Sterilize jars and lids; drain.

Melt paraffin in heavy glass jar in boiling water. Mix fruit pectin with juice in a 6 to 8-quart saucepan over high heat. Bring to a hard boil, stirring occasionally. Add sugar at once. Bring to a hard rolling boil that cannot be stirred down, stirring constantly. Boil 1 minute, remove from heat and skim off foam with a metal spoon. Pour into jelly glasses, leaving 1/2 inch space at top, and cover with melted paraffin. Jelly will keep in refrigerator for 2 months without paraffin but sealed with lid. Allow jelly to sit for 24 hours before moving to storage. Crab apples make a tart jelly.

Yields 12 to 13 half pints.