Editor's note: These instructions are excerpted from The Complete Book of Year-Round Small-Batch Preserving by Ellie Topp and Margaret Howard. They originally accompanied the following recipes:

Old-Fashioned Raspberry Jam
Jalapeño Mint Jelly
Sweet and Chunky Apple Butter

Below is the step-by-step procedure for processing foods that require less than 10 minutes processing time. Use this procedure for all sweet spreads as directed in the recipes.

If the recipe requires a preparation and cooking time longer than 20 minutes, begin preparation of the ingredients first. Then sterilize the jars while the prepared food is cooking. If the ingredients require a shorter preparation and cooking time, begin heating the canner before you start your recipe.

Recipe notes

Dulce de Leche

Make this versatile caramel at home with our slow-simmered method using milk and sugar—or take one of two sweetened condensed milk shortcuts.

XO Sauce

Developed in the 1980s by a chef in Hong Kong, this sauce is all about umami.

Wampanoaug Clam Fritters

The clams’ natural briny sweetness serves as a surprising foil for the tender fritter batter—just be sure to pull off the tough outer coating of the siphon.