Pickled cherries are an unexpected idea for this juicy fruit. Traditionally you might think of pickles as being briny and flavored with dill, but pickled fruit uses sugar and aromatic sweet and savory spices to create a sweet and zesty dessert-like topping for ice cream or yogurts or a sweet and tangy complementary topping to soft baked cheeses.
Pickled cherries are a wonderfully tasty way to preserve summer for year round enjoyment. This recipe allows cherries to be canned and preserved for colder weather months and the winter holidays. This recipe may be prepared using sweet or tart cherries or a combination of the two.
Montmorency tart cherries have been grown and harvested in Michigan for over a hundred years, with the first trees reportedly having been planted in northern Michigan in 1852. Northern Michigan, which has a climate well suited for cherry growing, produces roughly 70 percent of tart cherries in the United States. Tart cherries are well suited for making pies, preserves and for pickling in this recipe.
Equipment:
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Pickled Cherries
Pickling cherries in an unexpected option for a cherry harvest. It substitutes sugar for salt and cinnamon stick, cloves and black peppercorns for dill.
Ingredients
Instructions
- Clean and sanitize a 2-cup mason jar.
- Pour cherries and lemon rind into jar.
- Heat vinegar, sugar, peppercorns, cinnamon stick and cloves in a small pot just until it boils, stirring to dissolve sugar.
- Pour vinegar over cherries, ensuring all the spices are poured into the jar. Seal jar and store in a cool, dark location for two weeks or more.