Sweet Cherry Jam--Makes six-8ounce jars

find someone to pit your cherries

find somneone to chop your cherries

Ingredients:

4 cups chopped pitted sweet cherries

4 tablespoons lemon juice

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)

½ teaspoon ground cloves (optional

¼ cup amaretto liqueur (optional)

1 package regular powdered fruit pectin

5 cups granulated sugar

1. Prepare canner, jars, and lids.

2. In a large, deep stainless steel saucepan, combine cherries, lemon juice, cinnamon, cloves, and amaretto liqueur, if using. Whisk in pectin until dissolved. Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring frequently. Add sugar all at once and return to a full rolling boil, stirring constantly. Boil hard, stirring constantly, for 1 minute. Remove from heat and skim off foam.

3. Ladle hot jam into hot jars, leaving ¼ inch headspace. Remove air bubbles and adjust headspace, if necessary, by adding hot jam. Wipe rim. Center lid on jar. Screw band down until resistance is met, then increase to fingertip-tight.

4. Place jars in canner, ensuring they are completely covered with water. Bring to a boil and process for 10 minutes. Remove canner lid. Wait 5 minutes, then remove jars, cool and store.