Beautiful Red Cherries

 

Our garden has been pathetic this summer, both flowers and vegetables.

 

 

 

 

 

The one thing we have had a bumper crop from is our Nanking Bush Cherries

 

 

 

 

Aren’t they pretty as a picture?

 

 

 

 

Nature is nothing less than amazing…Beauty in so many forms.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now Mr. Brown Socks is not one to cook or be caught in the kitchen unless he is making a plate of nauchos or possibly stirring up some hot salsa with his garden peppers….

 

BUT one thing he does like to do is can with me!

Isn’t that surprising?  I think it must remind him of his Mama or Grandmother.

 

He couldn’t wait to get into the kitchen and start preparing juice for our Cherry Jelly.

 

This is an old press from my Mother’s basement he used to extract the juice to prepare the jelly.

We always have a system where he prepares the fruit juice

 

 

 

 

 

And I mix up the juices with the sugar.

He always wants me to use less sugar but anyone who makes jelly knows you can’t mess with the sugar and juice amounts too much or your jelly won’t set up.

Recently I discovered the Sure jell in the pink box which calls for quite a bit less sugar.

The jelly was thinner than the traditional method but not too runny.

 

 

 

 

 

There isn’t anything more old fashioned than canning jelly, do you think?

 

 

 

I’ll let you in on our secret ingredient which makes a huge difference.

 

ALMOND EXTRACT!

 

It totally enhances the cherry flavor and makes it spoon lickin’ good!!

 

 

 

 

Now some people go on long, romantic vacations with their husbands

or dance on a moon lit beach….

 

I make jelly with my husband!

 

 

Thanks for stopping by today!

 

Donna