Hungry Couple: Homemade Cherry Preserves

Yesterday I told you about the cherry challenge issued by the folks at OXO and North West Cherry Growers. And part of the bounty of cherries they sent me went toward creating some brandied cherries. The next recipe I had planned was for one of my favorite treats. Every single day I look forward to my afternoon snack of Greek yogurt with a dollop of sweet cherry preserves. So, why not make my own?

Most store bought jars of jams and preserves are a little too sticky sweet for me so the benefit of making my own is the ability to control the amount of sugar. I still wanted it sweet but I balanced it with both lemon juice and fresh lemon zest. I would also advise that you determine the amount of sugar based on how sweet your cherries are. The cherries I received were extremely sweet so I took that into account.

The preserves tasted good freshly made but much better the next day when the flavors had a chance to meld. I found myself not only mixing them into my beloved yogurt snack but also spreading them on pretty much every available surface. Gee, I wonder how they taste on crackers or on this type of bread or that bread or if they go well with goat cheese. Yup, there was a lot of excessive cherry preserves tasting going on around here. And, for the record, they taste wonderful spread on toast with goat cheese. A little too wonderful, actually. Enjoy!

Ingredients
2 Cups cherries, pitted and sliced in half if large
1/2 Cup sugar
1/2 Cup water
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
Zest of half a lemon
Pinch of salt

Add the cherries, sugar, water, lemon juice, lemon zest and salt to a pot. Simmer on low heat for approximately 45 minutes or until the mixture has thickened. Allow to cool and transfer to a lidded jar. Since this is not a sterilized canning recipe, I kept the amount small. Store the preserves in the refrigerator and use within a couple of weeks. Makes approximately 12 oz. of preserves.

Check out all the folks participating in the 10 lb. Cherry Challenge:

9 comments:

Mr. & Mrs. PAugust 8, 2013 at 11:34 AM
Looks so delicious anita!! You have us drooling over here...
CQUEKAugust 8, 2013 at 1:50 PM
I am so hungry now
Angie - Big Bears WifeAugust 8, 2013 at 3:05 PM
I'd love to have a few jars of this in the fridge.
Jennie @themessybakerblogAugust 8, 2013 at 3:41 PM
Anita, how I want a jar of this to slather on, well, on everything. I love that you drizzled it over yogurt. I'll be making this just so I can eat it on my Cho in the am.
Kelli DavidsonAugust 8, 2013 at 7:55 PM
Those are beautiful! Cherry preserves are favorites of mine. I think those would be fantastic as an ice cream topping although the do look lovely on the yogurt!
UnknownAugust 9, 2013 at 12:51 AM
I love home made jams and preserves, this looks good.
BecHeflinAugust 9, 2013 at 9:40 AM
Anita, I can hardly stand the goodness that's been coming from your kitchen lately! I want to pile some of those preserves onto any available means of transport!
StephAugust 9, 2013 at 10:10 AM
I can think of 100 ways to eat this!! So good!
AnonymousAugust 20, 2013 at 10:52 AM
I'm making these right now and I know they'll be delish! Thanks for the small quantity recipe; so great for Hubby and I. Other recipes stated add almond extract, I'll try it next batch.

Amber

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Thursday, August 8, 2013

Homemade Cherry Preserves

9 comments: