Jam of Kentish or Flemish Cherries
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the fruit
Stone the cherries and weigh the fruit.
Heat the cherries slowly to draw out the juice before boiling.
Cook the jam
Stew the cherries until tender, then boil quickly for 45 minutes to 1 hour, stirring constantly.
Gradually stir in 1½ lbs of sugar for every 2 lbs of cherries.
If the cherries are very acidic, add more sugar to taste.
Continue boiling rapidly for 20 minutes, skimming off any scum that forms.
Stir the jam constantly to prevent it from sticking to the pan.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Cherries
- Provide the fruit, pectin and acidity that form the jam's body and flavour.
- Powdered sugar
- Sweetens the jam and helps it set by binding water and thickening as it boils.
The step that matters
Stirring while the jam boils. Sugar-rich fruit sits near the bottom of the pan and scorches easily at a rolling boil. Constant stirring spreads the heat evenly and prevents sticking and burnt flavour.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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