It’s not quite cherry picking time, but we’re getting there!

Meanwhile, I’ve been using the cherries we put in the freezer the last two summers. I made tart cherry juice out of some with my steamer canner, and we’re storing it frozen in clean peanut butter jars. (I like those Adam’s peanut butter jars for a lot of things because they have a wide mouth and they’re thick and sturdy.)

If you’ve ever purchased tart cherry juice, you know it’s a specialty item that can be used for treating inflammation. But of it can be nice to add to a cold drink in the summertime. Usually, I just dilute mine with cold water and drink it tart, but it’s nice in homemade lemonade too!

The conundrum with cherries for me is that if you want to use beautiful pie cherries for desserts, you’ve got to sweeten them a lot! So, I’m always on the lookout for ways to accomplish that without using a lot of refined sugar.

This week I used a cranberry blend juice concentrate for the main sweetener and it worked quite well!

I mixed 2 tablespoons cornstarch into 2 cups of frozen, pitted cherries and a generous cup of the juice concentrate in a small sauce pan. (You always want to add cornstarch to liquid when it’s cold. And I noticed that it stirs into the frosty cold juice quite quickly.)

Once the starch dissolved, I put the pan on medium heat, added a few tablespoons of honey, stirring while the cherry sauce cooked, then thickened.

This makes a good pie filling, cheese cake topping, filling for a crisp or cobbler, pancake, waffle, ice cream or yogurt topping. This morning, I used a few spoonsful on my oatmeal and that was good too!

Cherry Dessert Filling or Topping
2 cups tart pie cherries, pitted
1 cup cranberry juice blend concentrate
2 Tablespoons corn starch
2 Tablespoons raw honey
dash of salt

In a small sauce pan, dissolve starch in cherries and juice. Add honey as you cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until mixture is thick. If you want to use this for a full 9″ pie, you’d probably want to double it.

Next time, I may try adding a teaspoon orange zest and or lemon juice, or a dash of almond flavoring.

I hope you have many things to be grateful for and happy about today. God bless you in all the efforts you’re making to feel loved and to be loving.

Especially at home, where we all desperately need to feel a sense of acceptance and belonging!

Love,

The mission of Lioness at the Door is to uplift, strengthen and encourage women of all ages to magnify health, hope and happiness at home. We do so boldly, with humility and gratitude for the opportunity.