Tasty Tuesday~ Homemade Sour Cherry Pie Filling

Homemade Sour Cherry Pie Filling

Welcome to Tasty Tuesday at Dandelion House! Your go- to spot for trying something new, healthy, and frugal ( with a pinch of pretty) each week in your homestead kitchen. 

Today's the day I get to go rummaging through your Farmgirl Friday entries to find something delicious to share and I must say, I am never disappointed. To the contrary, you make it hard! I always have a tough time deciding so I just let my taste buds do the choosing for me! 

This week's featured recipe comes from The Chick n' Coop  Homestead Kitchen.

Farmlife Chick shared her Homemade Sour Cherry Pie Filling with a secret ingredient for adding color. 

Take it away Farmlife Chick!

Canning season has begun around here! We canned our strawberry jam last week. This week sour cherries were ready! They were delicious!! I have never canned cherries before, but I was very excited.It was so easy. I couldn't believe it. Why have I never done this before?

 You will notice that the coloring is not that dark, deep red that you typically will see in canned filling. That's because I did not add cherry kool-aid or red food coloring to it. I added strawberry puree! About 5 tablespoons to be exact. There is no strawberry flavor what so ever. It just gave it a nice pinky look to it instead of it being in a whitish clear gel.

I made enough for 6 and 3/4 quarts. Almost 7, but not quite. I'm sure if you add another cup of cherries to the pot you could top off the 7th quart.

Sour Cherry Pie Filling

5-6 quarts of fresh sour cherries
7 cups of sugar
1 3/4 cups of cornstarch
1/4-1/2 cup of lemon juice
2 tsp. of almond extract
5 Tbs. of strawberry puree for coloring
6-7 sterilized quart canning jars with lids

Rinse and pit cherries. Combine sugar and cornstarch in a large sauce pan. Then, add your water and almond extract. Stir and cook over medium high heat till it thickens and bubbles. Then, add lemon juice and stir continuously for 1 minute while it boils. Remove from heat, fold in cherries and strawberry puree. Fill quart jars. Hot water bath for 30 minutes.

  This was so delicious. My neighbor gave me this recipe with out the puree added. She leaves hers clear. I had to have some color in there and I had puree on hand, so we experimented and it worked!

I was a little reluctant to use the almond flavoring, but what a difference. I can't imagine it without it!

I believe this recipe would work with sweet cherries as well. It may not have the tartness to it, but I think it would be delicious. I am so thankful for my neighbor as it was her cherries and recipe!

Thank you all for the wonderful bounty you share each week on the Farmgirl Friday Blog Hop! 

Dip into The Farmgirl Friday Recipe Box when you're looking for an old fashioned favorite or a home- cooked meal made from scratch with love. You'll find recipes from the best homestead kitchens, inspiration for setting a beautiful table with all the charm of a farmhouse kitchen PLUS tips for stocking and organizing your pantry. 677 now following! 

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