📋Table of Contents
- 🎈 Introduction
- 🍽️ Overview of the Dish
- 📋 Ingredient List
- 👩🍳 Cooking Instructions
- 🍷 Pairing Ideas
- 🔄 Ingredient Substitutions
- 📜 Detailed Recipe Card
- 🎉 Conclusion
🎈 Introduction
Begin your month with this rich and luxurious canning recipe. Dark cherries and real vanilla bean combine for a decadent spread that's great on toast or stirred into yogurt. This ain't your average canned goods chat. Today we're diving headfirst into a jar of something special. Introducing our Cherry-Vanilla Preserves, the stuff of dreams for your morning toast, a star creation made in our Denali canning Pressure Canner,'The Tanker'.
🍽️ Overview of the Dish
Bursting with Cherry-Vanilla Goodness: A Preserve Worth Celebrating! This preserve is like a summer party in a jar. It's got the sweetness of ripe cherries and the warm, comforting notes of vanilla. Together they create a melody that your taste buds won't soon forget. And what's more, it's got a color so vibrant, it'd give a firetruck a run for its money!
📋 Ingredient List
Before we jump into the magical process of preserving, let's line up our team of taste champions:
- 5 cups ripe cherries, pitted and halved
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 vanilla bean, split and scraped (or 1 tsp pure vanilla extract if you're in a pinch)
- 1 lemon's worth of zest and juice
👩🍳 Cooking Instructions
Now for the part we've all been waiting for. Dust off your apron, roll up your sleeves, and let's get canning!
- Mix cherries, sugar, vanilla bean (seeds and pod), and lemon zest and juice in a large pot. Let sit for about 2 hours. This is where the cherries release their delicious juices - it's like they're getting ready for a spa day!
- Cook the mixture over medium heat in 'The Tanker', stirring until sugar dissolves. Now crank it up to high and bring it to a boil. Stir occasionally, as we wouldn't want our hard-working cherries to get a sunburn.
- Lower the heat to medium and continue to cook until the mixture thickens - about 20 to 25 minutes. Then, the moment of truth - the spoon test! If the preserve clings to the spoon instead of dripping off, you've got a winner.
- Remove the vanilla pod, pour the hot preserve into sterilized jars, and seal them with Denali Canning Lids and Rings.
- Process the jars in a water bath using your Denali 'Tanker' Canner.
💡 Canning 101: Water Bath vs. Pressure Canning
You might be wondering why we're water bath canning for this recipe instead of pressure canning. The key lies in the acidity of the food you're canning.
High-acid foods like fruits and pickles can be safely canned using a water bath canner. This method is enough to kill the bacteria, yeasts, and molds that could cause food to spoil.
On the other hand, low-acid foods like most vegetables and meats require pressure canning. This method reaches higher temperatures, killing off potentially dangerous bacteria that can survive the temperatures of a water bath.
So why a water bath canning for our Cherry-Vanilla Preserves? Because cherries are high-acid, and our recipe includes lemon juice and sugar which aid in preserving the fruit and increasing the acidity.
However, if you ever decide to can low-acid foods, Denali also offers pressure canners that'll do the job right.
🍷 Pairing Ideas
Pair this cherry-vanilla gem with a warm scone, slather it on your Sunday pancakes, or spoon it over your favorite vanilla ice cream (trust us on this one). Heck, it's even been known to disappear straight from the jar in some households!
🔄 Ingredient Substitutions
If cherries aren't in season, don't you worry your little canning heart. You can use the same amount of your favorite berry instead. Raspberry-Vanilla, anyone?
📜 Detailed Recipe Card
Recipe: Cherry-Vanilla Preserves Prep Time: 10 min (plus 2 hours of letting the cherries release their juice) Cook Time: 30 min Yield: 4-5 half-pint jars
Ingredients:
- 5 cups ripe cherries, pitted and halved
- 1 1/2cups granulated sugar
- 1 vanilla bean, split and scraped
- 1 lemon's worth of zest and juice
Instructions:
- Combine cherries, sugar, vanilla bean, and lemon zest and juice.
- Let sit for 2 hours.
- Cook on medium until sugar dissolves, then bring to a boil.
- Lower heat and continue to cook until thick.
- Pour into sterilized jars and process in 'The Tanker'.
🎉 Conclusion
So, there you have it, folks! Your very own jar of cherry-vanilla sunshine. Here's to a summer full of delightful flavors, canning victories, and the sweetest of memories!
Hashtags: #DenaliCanning, #CanningLids, #CherryVanillaPreserves, #Homesteading, #DIYPreserves
