A Productive Summer

It's been a busy summer. I didn't do a lot of canning last year, and this year I suspect I've made up for that, even though I'm not finished yet.

So far this year: sweet pickled cherries, sour pickled cauliflower, sour cherry-peach marmalade, black cherry-whiskey jam, sweet cherry-jalapeno chutney, peach salsa, pumpkin pickles, plum jam, white currant jam, dilly wax beans, crabapple jelly.

On the way: beach plum gin, cherry bounce, juniper berry sauerkraut.

Lots of knitting, too. I've made simple shawls for DH's aunts, am finished a February Lady Sweater for my MiL, a cotton scarf for my sister, hats for one of my MI nephews and for a local friend. Still need to make a hat for a new BiL, and maybe a couple of small things for other people.

Here's some good news: if your batch of jam or jelly doesn't set, don't re-make it with commercial pectin (that involves quite a lot of extra sugar). I made my sour cherry-peach jam into marmalade with the addition of lots of lemons, and my black cherry-whiskey jam set beautifully when I added the pulp left over from making crabapple jelly. No extra sugar or off texture.

We haven't gone apple picking yet, though I found some lovely Macoun and RI Greening apples at the farmers market today, as well as some zucchini, so that I can make spicy zucchini pickles.

When we do go apple picking I'll make applesauce and apple marmalade. I also want to make cranberry catsup again--we went through that fast last year.

Cherry Bounce, Part II



From Mrs. F. A. Hagen, Atlantic St., Plymouth, Mass.



The finished product! It's now resting quietly in the cellar, ready in a few months to come out for a gala occasion.


Here is the recipe I used. There are several "out there", but this is the one that inspired me. It's in the Yankee Cookbook, 1937/1963.

Cherry Bounce

6 pounds cherries (as I couldn't get either wild or sour cherries, I used black cherries)
2 fifths whiskey (Berkshire Mountain Distillery NE Corn Whiskey)
3/4 lb. white sugar (down from one pound, as the cherries were sweet)
1/2 c. water (a gill)

Cherry Bounce, Part I



After four weeks...



Clear liquor poured off to set aside.



Pitted the cherries and cracked them.



Putting the cherries through the food mill.

The cherries. I did try mashing them by hand, but not enough juice was extracted. This was laborious, but it worked well. I also added a tablespoon of the sugar in order to get more juice from the cherries.

Allowing the cherries and pits (in separate jelly bags) to drain. An hour or so.

I went to the trouble of pitting the cherries because I wasn't about to throw out 6 pounds of cherries once the cordial was made! The cherries made a gorgeous black cherry-whiskey jam. I'll likely post the recipe some time soon.

Part II:

1. Pour off the clear liquor; set aside.

2. Pit cherries; add 1 tbl. sugar. Put through food mill. Scoop into jelly bag.

3. Crack pits in mortar and pestal. Place in a different jelly bag.

4. Pits at the bottom of strainer, cherries on top. Allow to drain until most of the liquid seems to be out. Save cherries for jam or other use.

Dissolve the remaining 3/4 pound of sugar in the half cup of water and bring to a boil. Stir in the drained juices and the reserved clear liquor. Bottle and let stand at least several weeks.

Just a little too much to fit into the bottles...no problem!

Enjoy!