Weekend Project: Sour Cherry Pie Filling, Apricots in Vanilla Syrup, Cherries in Chipotle Syrup

It's Friday, and the weekend is upon us. Around here, that means contractor-free days. Not that the guys who've been here every day for the last three weeks aren't really nice, but it is such a treat to walk freely - no plastic door coverings - for a couple of days.

Last weekend, I celebrated the Fourth of July, and three full days without workmen, by canning. Saturday, I had the pleasure of participating in a fantastic Can-O-Rama, hosted by a food52 member - Christine - in her inviting Carlisle, PA, kitchen. Twelve of us gathered with half a bushel of apricots and 28 quarts of sour cherries to "put-up" old-style. 

There were moments that day, looking around, when I thought - anywhere in the world, almost any era, there would have been similar scenes of women gathering with the sole purpose of easing the enormous effort/burden of preserving the harvest.

Apricots and sour cherries are a great example of this. They ripen in two weeks and then they are gone. They are ambrosial fresh off the tree, but retain such a bright flavor when canned, they cry out to be put in jars. 

I love the taste of apricots fresh, but somehow they are even better with a little bit of cooking. I've included the recipe here for raw packed apricot halves in a very light vanilla syrup. These are sweet and tart and are perfect addition to a piece of pound cake, a bowl of vanilla ice cream, or even lowfat yogurt, if you're being virtuous. I've also used them with pork roasts and think they might be an interesting addition to barbeque sauce (I'll be testing that theory later this summer.) Scroll down for the apricot recipe.

Right around July 4th on the East Coast, for several years, I've canned 8 quarts of sour cherry pie filling. I taught the food52'ers all about canning, and divulged my very easy recipe for this pie filling, so now I thought I'd share it here. 

When Thanksgiving rolls around, I'll roll out a pie crust, empty a one quart jar into the crust, cover with another lattice-d crust, et voila - summer in every bite.

 

Sour Cherry Pie Filling

Sour, or tart, cherries, are available for two or three weeks in late June/early July. They are very delicate and should be pitted and used within two days, but preferably same day you get them.

You will never find sour cherries at the grocery store - you need to make a connection with a farmer/orchard. Once you know when your cherries will arrive, make sure you have all the ingredients on hand, including jars.

Make this pie at Thanksgiving and you will have a very happy crowd.

Makes one 9” pie, or a cobbler, buckle or crisp.

Per Quart:

5 c cherries

1/4 c water

3/4 c sugar

3 T cornstarch

2 T lemon juice

1/2 t almond extract (optional)

Clean and pit cherries. Pit over a bowl to capture all the juices.

Put water, sugar, lemon juice and cornstarch in a large, heavy pan and bring to a boil, stirring constantly.

Add the fruit, bring to a simmer and cook about 5 minutes. Add extract, stir well.

Funnel the filling into a quart jar leaving 1” headroom.

Wipe the rim clean, add lid and ring, finger tighten

Process in a boiling water bath for 30 minutes.

After processing, remove to a towel, separate the jars and allow them to cool naturally. 
Try not to disturb the jars for 24 hours, then test the seal.

To bake a pie, you’ll need two basic pie crusts. Roll out the bottom crust and line a 9” pan. Pour in the pie filling. Roll out the top crust, and cut into strips for a lattice for the top crust. Pinch the crusts together and make a pretty edge. Place the whole pie in the freezer for 20 minutes, or refrigerate for an hour.

Bake in a preheated 425° oven for 20 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 350° and bake another 45-55 minutes until the filling is bubbling.

curious about those pints? scroll down for another quick recipe with cherries!

Apricots in Vanilla Syrup

This is a beautiful jar to give as a gift, if you can bear to part with it. The apricots are delicious over ice cream, pound cake, or used for a sauce to serve with pork or chicken. I just eat them out of the jar, ice cold.

You must use exceptional, perfect, beautiful apricots for this recipe. Buy freshly picked apricots two or three days before canning and allow them to finish ripening in a cool spot (basement? garage?) but not the refrigerator. The scent of them ripening will drive you crazy.

This method will also work for pears or peaches. Consider other flavorings - ginger, star anise, clove, cardamom.

Per Pint:

1-1/4 lbs. perfect apricots

3/4 c water

1/8 c sugar

1/2 vanilla bean

1 T lemon juice

3-4 additional lemons

Prepare syrup by combining sugar and water with whole vanilla beans, heating gently until the sugar has dissolved.

Wash, dry, halve and pit the apricots. Put them in a large bowl filled with water and the juice of three or four lemons, so they don't brown as you finish the process.

Pack the fruit directly into sterilized canning jars. Pack tightly, without bruising. You can nestle the apricots together, like spoons, to fit more in. The packing is the hard part of the recipe. After processing, the fruit will float to the surface, so try to get as many apricots as possible into your jar.

Pour lemon juice over the fruit.

Pour hot syrup over the fruit, leaving 1/2" headroom.

Wipe the rims of the jars, add lids and rings and finger tighten.

Process in a water bath for 25 minutes.

After processing, allow jars to rest on a folded towel. Try not to move them for 24 hours. Check seals.

Here's another quick recipe if you have any cherries leftover!

Cherries in Chipotle Syrup

3# sour cherries, weight before pitting
2 dried chipotle peppers, rinsed
2 c sugar
2 c water


Make a simple syrup by simmering the water, sugar and chipotle until the sugar is dissolved. Allow to steep for 1 hour.
Pit the cherries and pack into a sterilized pint jar.
Warm the syrup and pour over the cherries, leaving 1/2" headroom. 
Stem and seed the chipotle. Cut into 1/2" rings and place one ring in each jar.
Process for 25 minutes in a boiling water bath.
Remove from processor and allow to cool naturally. 
These are smoky, hot and wonderful cherries. I'm marinating some in maraschino liqueur for spicy Old Fashioneds. And I'll be making a bbq sauce for sure, as they'll be perfect with pork shoulder.

Four Cherry Preserves with St. Germain

Last weekend's farmer's market brought the sad news that the annual tart cherry crop I depend on was hit by hail at the blossom stage, and the crop was lost.

I nearly had a full on anxiety attack. Life without tart cherries? Tart cherries are - maybe - my favorite food on earth. And every summer, I can 8 quarts of sour cherry pie filling and 12 pints of tart cherry jam. The one that didn't gel, as I lamented in my post on apple pectin. My cherry pie is anticipated at Thanksgiving's Dead Poultry Society party.

Don't worry. I've located some cherries. Once again, food52 connections came through - there will be a Canorama in Pennsylvania next month, with a world of cherries ready to be canned.

In the meantime, when I saw first of the season sweet cherries last week, I brought home deep red, nearly maroon, super sweet, velvety cherries, bright red slightly tart cherries and Emperor Francis, a yellow heirloom beauty, streaked with pink that straddles tart and sweet with rare perfection. The next day, I spied two pints of tart cherries (Montmorency) at another market. I had the weight for jam, but not the recipe.

After consulting several canning books, I came right back to Christine Ferber, of course. She has a half sweet and half tart cherry preserves, flavored with Kirsch. As I am not a big fan of Kirsch, and I am a big fan of herbal tones in jam, I turned to my favorite cocktail enhancer, St. Germain. Elderflower liqueur. So French!

AND -- drumroll please -- I used my new apple pectin. And it worked. Perfectly. This preserves has a very nice gel that's soft set, with the whole cherries suspended in the gel. It's beautiful in the jar, on the spoon, on top of homemade ricotta, stirred into yogurt, spooned over ice cream or pound cake.

If you don't have apple pectin, substitute one package of commercial pectin and follow the directions on the box for finishing the preserves.

Oh, did I mention my beautiful new copper preserving pan? I love it. Yes, it really does make a difference.

Four Cherry Preserves with St. Germain
makes six half-pint jars

1.25# sweet cherries, preferably varied in taste and color
1.25# tart cherries
2.5 c sugar
Juice of one lemon
2-5oz packages of apple pectin
1/2 tsp butter
1 oz St. Germain liqueur

Pit the cherries over a bowl, capturing all the juices.* Add the sugar and lemon juice and allow the mixture to sit for an hour.

In a preserving or other wide and deep pan bring the mixture to a simmer. Remove from the heat and pour the jam into a glass or ceramic bowl, cover with parchment and allow to develop overnight.

The next day, strain out the cherries, capturing all the juices in your preserving pan. Bring this to a full, rolling boil. Described in most preserving books as 'a boil you can't stir down.'

Allow the syrup to boil for 5 minutes and skim the foam as completely as possible.

Add in the fruit, bring the preserves back up to a boil, then add 2-5oz packages of apple pectin and the butter. Butter added at this point will break down any remaining foam.

Bring back to a boil for one minute, test the set. Once the preserves forms a jelly, turn off the heat, add the liqueur, stir well, and allow the preserves to rest for five minutes. This will keep the fruit from floating to the top of your jars.

Fill half-pint jars, leaving 1/2" headspace. Seal with lids and rings. Process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes.

Remove to a towel on the counter and allow to sit, undisturbed, for 24 hours. The preserves will further set up during the resting period.

*I have never used a cherry pitter, but I've only canned tart cherries, the ones that need only the thumbnail to pluck the pit out. The sweet cherries are a whole different beast. Now, I'm in the market for a cherry pitter. Anyone have a favorite?

Feeling Jammy: First Crop Strawberry Preserves

The very first crop of strawberries arrived at the market this week. I could smell the berries long before I saw them; they are sweet and ruby red. And the perfect size for preserves.

I've been influenced in so many ways by Mes Confitures (Christine Ferber.) She taught me to approach making jams slowly. To taste the fruit at the market before deciding to preserve. And when I bring the fruit home, sometimes I let it ripen another day, until the scent of fresh berries fills the kitchen.

Mme. Ferber (do you think I could call her Christine? I've been cooking with her for awhile now) taught me to macerate the fruit overnight, then strain the fruit out, and thicken the juices until syrupy, adding back the fruit at the end. This preserves the shape of the fruit and accents the color. You get jewel-tone jars with sparkly clear jam and whole fruit that tastes just-picked. This is preserves. Not jam.

Mme. Ferber also taught me about using spices and herbs in jam. She writes recipes using ginger, pepper, star anise. She adds mint, rosemary, thyme, and - a real revelation - lemon verbena. I have these herbs in the garden now, readily available for flavoring jams.

I've fiddled a little with the sugar, as I like to err on the side of less sweet and let the fruit shine through. But these are recipes inspired by Mme. Ferber's brilliance.

Here's what I'm making with first crop strawberries this year.

(If you're just getting started canning, this post has some basics.)

Each recipe will make 4 or 5 half-pint jars.

I'm all about small batches. Half of each batch is destined to be given away, because I'm all about giving gifts of love. Is there any more obvious jar of love than strawberry preserves?

Won't you let me know how you do with this project? Just leave a message in the comment section.

Strawberry Preserves with Mint and Black Pepper
recipe from Mes Confitures, with slight adaptations

Try to find real peppermint, not spearmint. Most better nurseries will sell peppermint plants at this time of year. It's a far better behaved plant in the garden, grows happily in a pot, and makes really good minty lemonade.

3 lbs. first crop strawberries, rinsed and hulled (if later, larger crop berries, halve or quarter)
2.5 c sugar
Juice of one lemon
10 black peppercorns, crushed
Ten peppermint leaves

In a large glass or ceramic bowl, gently toss the berries with the sugar and lemon juice. Cover with parchment and refrigerate overnight.

The next day, put the contents of the bowl, including any sugar that has accumulated at the bottom, in a heavy bottomed preserving pot (I like a 5 qt or larger heavy copper, Le Creuset, Staub or Emile Henry pan.)

Heat the berries and preserves for a few minutes, just until it begins to boil and all the sugar is melted. Return the berries to the bowl, cover, and refrigerate overnight.

The next day, strain the liquid from the berries and heat in the large pot, again. Bring this syrup to a boil - a hard, rolling boil. In order to achieve a good set, bring the temperature to 10° over the boiling point - or 222°. This takes a good long time and gets pretty scary looking.

Once it's at 222°, remove from the heat and cool for 5 minutes to allow the foam to gather on the top of the syrup. Skim the foam with a large meticulously clean stainless steel spoon. Get all the foam, slowly, carefully, so your jam will be county-fair worthy.

Add in the strawberries, pepper and mint leaves. Bring the jam back up to a hard, rolling boil, stirring gently all the while so the fruit doesn't stick, trying not to break the berries.

Allow it to boil for five minutes.

Funnel into your sterilized jars, cover with lids and rings, and process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes.

Strawberry Preserves with Lemon Verbena
Inspired by Mes Confitures

3.5 lbs. first crop strawberries, cleaned and hulled (this is also wonderful 1/2 and 1/2 strawberry/rhubarb)
3 c sugar
Juice and zest from one lemon
10 sprigs lemon verbena, reserve 10 leaves

In a large glass or ceramic bowl, gently toss the berries with the sugar, lemon juice and zest and lemon verbena sprigs. Cover with parchment and refrigerate overnight.

The next day, put the contents of the bowl, including any sugar that has accumulated at the bottom, in a heavy bottomed preserving pot (I like a 5 qt or larger heavy copper, Le Creuset, Staub or Emile Henry pan.)

Heat the berries and preserves for a few minutes, just until it begins to boil and stir to make sure the sugar is melted. Return the berries to the bowl, cover, and refrigerate overnight.

The next day, strain the liquid from the berries, remove the lemon verbena, and heat in the large pot, again. Bring this syrup to a boil - a hard, rolling boil. In order to achieve a good set, bring the temperature to 10° over the boiling point - or 222°.

Remove from the heat and cool for 5 minutes to allow the foam to gather on the top of the syrup. Skim the foam with a large stainless steel spoon. Get all the foam, slowly, carefully, getting it out so your jam will be county-fair worthy.

Add in the strawberries. Bring this back up to a hard, rolling boil, stirring all the while so the fruit doesn't stick. Allow it to boil for five minutes.

Funnel into your sterilized jars, add two verbena leaves to each jar, cover with lids and rings, and process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes.

A Little Late To The Party - Mint Jelly Done Right

Last weekend I made mint jelly. Not that bright green overly sweet kind you find in the grocery store, but the kind that's meltingly sweet and acidic at the same time, and an honest golden glow-y color that comes from combining only mint, vinegar, apples and sugar.

I made four jars and I'm already worried that's not enough.

I found the brilliant recipe on Simply Recipes, with great instructions and photos, and what drew me to it was the opportunity to create Apple Pectin, something I had been considering for all my jams this year.

the mush that becomes pectin

wow a lot of pectin!

luxurious texture

If you're a lamb lover, and if you grew up with mint jelly on the table, give this recipe a try. It's dead easy and a great introduction to jelly making and working with all-natural pectin.

this is a great boil - what you want for jelly.

cool 2-3 min. then skim & boil again

sparkly!

Yes, late to the party again, I just discovered the Tigress Can Jam and this is my contribution to the April Can Jam - canning with herbs. And can't wait to play with all the other canners via the Tigress' fun Can Jam this season.

And while I'm joining things, I'm also signing up for the Canvolution - a rockin' great group that collects great information about canning and last year posted stories from all across the country of CANNING PARTIES! I am so into this. Anyone else? I'm thinking August 15th? Are you in?

If you're not able to be in DC, you could host your own party. We could even Skype it.

Summer's coming. Let's Can.