When I got a new ad for Rancho Market this week, I started giggling with excitement because they had cherries on sale for $1.29/lb!!! This is an amazing price for cherries! As I mentioned before the produce quality at Rancho Market is not that great, so I usually just price-match. So I asked Hubby to stop by and get me
Yep, that's whole 16 lbs here! The reason why we bought so many is our love for some canned cherries. I try to can them every year but it's getting harder and harder to find a good price. That's why I was so excited.
We've been using this recipe for years in my family. So you will need:
12 lbs cherries
21 1/2 cup water
5-6 cups sugar
2 tsp. lemon juice
Quart size cans
Canning lids and rings
Water bath canner
A small pot for preparing lids
Jar lifter
Prepare your cans and lids (if you are new to canning, check out this article ). Remove all the stems and leaves from your berries, wash and rinse them well. Be sure to use strong cherries with no blemishes.
I usually can them with their pits inside but you can definitely pit them all. Make a basic syrup by combining water, sugar and lemon juice in a bog pot and bringing it to boil. Let it boil for a minute then turn heat down to low. Place cherries in a jar. Tap the bottom or shake the jar a little to settle the berries better. Cover cherries in jar with syrup leaving 1/2 inch head space. Remove air bubbles and clean rim of jar with a clean washcloth. Using a lid lifter or tongs, place warm lid on top of jar and use ring to hold in place, tightening just until tight. Process your cans in a water bath canner for 25 minutes. Increase the time 5-10 minutes for higher altitude.
Awesome find! I would love to try some of those cherries. I made strawberry jam three weeks ago. I am going to can peaches and blueberries (jam?) next.
ReplyDeleteI made strawberry jam this morning :) And I can't wait to can some peaches too!
DeleteThey look so beautiful - tried to get some from WalMart today, but they were out. I'll have to keep trying, though I won't be canning near as much as you did.
ReplyDeleteAww, I'm sorry. Hubby got them somewhere downtown.
DeleteWhat an awesome find! Wish I could find cherries that cheap! Your canned cherries look perfect! I'm envious that you'll be eating these for months!
ReplyDeleteThank you! I was pretty ecstatic when I saw this price. My family really likes cherries :)
DeleteThey look SO delicious. Thanks for showing your canning process, I actually never knew it was that simple! I always thought it was a complicated process for some reason. I will definitely be looking into some cherries this week.
ReplyDeleteIt's actually not that hard! My Mom used to can every summer and I always helped her. I can't necessarily say I enjoy the process but I sure do enjoy the results :)
DeleteMy fabulous mother-in-law went to Rancho today and got me 6 bags of cherries to can. Zach and I canned 9 1/2 quarts tonight.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, I don't know how you can and preserve so much food with little ones around. I didn't start canning very much until my oldest was at least 7!
That's awesome! I do it when the Baby is taking a nap :) When I'm lucky he sometimes sleeps for 2.5-3 hours. Or I do it in the evenings when kids are already in bed. And I only have 2, so it's easier for me, I guess :)
DeleteI love cherries and they are usually so expensive in my neck of the woods....
ReplyDeleteMaureen, they are usually around $3-4 here too! But about once a year I find an awesome price like this, so I don't think twice.
DeleteYummmmm, Wish I could find a deal like that on cherries, we are almost out from last years
ReplyDeleteHey Debby, maybe you will still get a nice deal. The cherry season is only at the beginning.
DeleteI grew up canning everything (in fact that is how I spent my entire summers), and we never turned the jars upside down. Isn't there more of a chance that the syrup could get under the rim and prevent sealing in that position?
ReplyDeleteI don't know, I've never had this problem before :) My Mom does it for lots of the things she cans and everything always seals.
DeleteI agree with Amy - you're brave to can with such young ones! I've found Rancho Market produce is hit and miss. The first time I went, they had a power outage. I came back the next day and the entire store smelled like rotten food. I didn't go back for months until my friend talked me into it. Now I find that most of the time I am very pleased with their produce, at least at the location closest to us. I don't like the other two locations I've visited.
ReplyDeleteIf you decide you want to pit cherries, you can borrow my pitter.
Last time I went to Rancho was a couple of weeks ago when they had watermelons on sale. And their watermelons were absolutely terrible, they were soft. And cukes were bad too. That's why Is tick to Walmart. I can't believe you have a pitter, it's so cool!!!
DeleteWe went to Rancho this week. It was great. I have a cherry tree, but we haven't figured out how to keep the bugs out of the cherries. One year we sprayed several times, and they still had bugs.
ReplyDeleteHi Lena! Dropping by for a visit and I am so glad to find this recipe!! We also love cherries. I can't wait to try your recipe!! For $1.29 lb, I would have bought that many cherries too! Enjoy your day! Thanks for stopping by my blog~ Lynn H @ Turnips 2 Tangerines
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