A cheery on the top is what this recipe is as it takes the beautiful fruit and preserves it in a healthy manner, which then you can eat whenever you want!

This jam is made using jaggery which is a healthier option than refined sugar. It also adds a nice dark colour to the jam. Spread it on toast or make thumbprint cookies. Serve it with pancakes or waffle and enjoy!

In this recipe I have used about 1.2 kgs of fresh cherries. I have pitted each one first. Now if you have a cherry pitter then the instrument does a perfect job of pitting the cherries. But if you do not have a pitter, no worries as I have a good hack! Take a sturdy straw,   I have used the one that comes with a mason jar. Now pluck the stick and place the straw around the head of the cherry. Now push hard inside to pierce through the middle of the cheery. Once you pierce through, the seed will be out in a pop! Try it… it is fun to do! Pit all the cherries this way.

Ingredients

1. Cherries – 1 kg, Pitted

2. Jaggery – 250 grms, adjust as per the sweetness of the cherries

3. Lemon juice – 1 tsp

Method

1.

Finely chop the pitted cherries.

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2.

Heat a pan and place the cherries in the pan. On low heat, let the cherries come to a boil. As it cooks, it will leave its juices. Continue to cook until the juices start to thicken. It will take about  10-15 minutes. Stir often in between. The cherries will become soft and the juices will start to form a thick coating.

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3.

Now mix in the jaggery and cook for another 5 minutes. Make sure the heat is low all the time. You do not want a burnt taste in the jam.

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4.

Finally add the lemon juice and mix well.

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5.

Let the jam cool and them store the jam in a glass container.