Friday, July 2

Cherry pitting and cherry jelly

Hello friends! Summer is definitely here. I was at my dear friend Louisa's house this past weekend, and had the pleasure of picking cherries from her backyard cherry tree. The cherry tree has been there since Louisa was a child, and I was so happy to be able to share in the summer festivity. Then, her mother Fay, a crafting queen, shared this lovely tip with me for pitting cherries: Instead of using a cherry pitter that you might only use once a year, use a potato peeler! Genius! Using the pointed end of the potato peeler, scoop into the cherry where the stem connects. Then, scoop out the little seed on the inside, and you've got yourself a pitted cherry! Super simple, and efficient (and reduced the amount of kitchen appliances you need...)

After a couple days at Louisa's house, I hardly came home empty handed: in fact my hands were full, with cherries. Once I had successfully pitted my cherries, I used this recipe to make a delightful cherry jelly:
Cherry Jelly
4 cups of Pitted cherries
1 cup of water
1 package of pectin
4 1/2 cups of white sugar

1. Crush the cherries with a potato masher or a fork (or anything, really) and bring to a boil with water. Boil, covered for about 10 minutes.

2. Using a piece of cheese cloth or an old t-shirt, strain the cherry juice off of the pulp. You need 3 1/2 cups of cherry juice.

3. Bring the cherry juice and pectin to a hard boil and boil for one minute only. Then, add sugar and again boil for one minute. After boiling, pour into jars and seal the jars with a lid. Allow to set in room temperature until cooled.
A delightful summer treat, indeed!
Happy eating

1 comment:

  1. Not only does this jelly look delicious, but you are adorable!

    ReplyDelete