Chokecherry Syrup

To extract the juice, place the cleaned chokecherries in a large pot and add enough water to just barely cover them. Put them on the stove and allow to come to a boil, then reduce to simmer.  After about 30 minutes, the berries will have released their juice. The liquid in the pot will be opaque and a dark mauve color.

After the chokecherries are finished cooking, strain them and the juice through a fine mesh sieve over a large bowl. Gently press on the chokecherries in the sieve to get out any of the liquid, but be careful not to mash it too much. Give your pot a rinse and a quick scrub to remove any bits left. Measure the juice after it has been strained; you should have about eight cups. If you have less, you can half this recipe or you can cook more chokecherries to get the right amount of juice.

Wash and dry seven pint jars and place in a warm oven set at 180 F. Gather rings and place the lids in a small pot with water. Allow this to come to a gentle simmer while you work on the juice.

Place the juice back into the clean stockpot. It should still be a little warm. If, for some reason it’s not, warm it up, but don’t let it boil. Gently sprinkle the pectin into the juice while stirring, then allow to boil. Now it’s time to add the sugar. Slowly (but not too slowly) add the sugar while you stir to help it dissolve. Keep stirring and allow the mixture to come to a boil again. Stir constantly and let it boil for one minute, then remove from heat and let it settle a bit. Skim off any foam and discard.

Pour the syrup into the pint jars, giving about an inch of headspace. Wipe the lip of the jars with a clean, damp towel (this removes any syrup that was spilled in the process) and place a lid on top. Seal it with the ring, and set aside until you have completed all of the jars.

Grab your canner and partially fill with warm water. Gently place the jars inside the rack, and lower it into the water. Make sure there is about 1" of water covering the top of the jars (you may need to add more water or take some out). Crank up your stove and let it come to a boil, then reduce to let it gently boil for 10 minutes. You don’t want it to be a rolling boil. Once the 10 minutes is up, carefully remove the jars from the canner with a jar lifter. Set aside and allow to cool. You should hear gentle pops as the jars pressurize and seal.

After the jars have completely cooled, you can check for sealed jars by gently tapping in the middle of the lid. If the center pops down, then it has not sealed. This isn’t a big deal, just put it in the fridge and gobble it up. Enjoy!