Anyone ever use black cherries for anything good?

[freemotion]

Black cherries grow like weeds here, and this year, there are some low hanging branches with reachable berries on them. They are quite bitter, and I couldn't get a lot of them.....but....I'd like to try SOMETHING with a few, just for fun.

I usually am cursing them, as we have a huge tree hanging over our wood stacking area and I am usually stacking wood during the time when the cherries are dropping....all over the wood...and attracting yellowjackets. This year we got all our wood bought and stacked while it was still quite cold out. So I have a different attitude towards those little black orbs.

I was thinking a small batch of liqueur, but I don't want to waste good vodka on something that will be undrinkably bitter.

Anyone have experience with these?

 

[SKR8PN]

I can't help you with the berries, but I can tell you that the wood works great in my smoker!

 

[fisherman]

I have a huge black cherry tree in my yard.This year it was loaded with cherries,we canned cherries,froze cherries,made cherry jelly,I even made cherry syrup,,delicious on pancakes,,and my cherries were very sweet,not bitter,,I have the black heart variety,,was curious as to why yours would be so bitter?

 

[chicken stalker]

We have an over abundance of pin/black cherries that grow wild on the property. Some of the trees are 100+ years old. I haven't made anything out of them yet (I plan to this year) but I found (online) recipes to make all the usual...jams, jellies, syrup, wine, etc....they are very closely related to chock cherries and I think you can us those recipes.

 

[freemotion]

I think I will try a liqueur, since it doesn't require too many berries and is easy. They are quite bitter, but yes, so are chokecherries which do make excellent jelly. With the sugar in the liqueur, they just might be perfect.

 

[woodwzrd]

I found an abundance of choke cherries (one in the same as black cherriesaround here)a few years ago and made jelly. I tried to make it with no sugar added pectin and sweeten it with honey and stevia but had mixed results with it jelling. Non the less it made excellant jelly. If I were to do it again I think I would just use the sugar and regular pectin.

 

[Farmfresh]

We had some kind of black bush cherry for years. They looked great and so our friends would rush over to try them and they would be puckered up for a hour!

They were totally inedible they were so sour and bitter, but MAN they made great cherry jelly!

 

[Homemaker]

OoOo, I love sour cherries. I have a good recipe that I got from this book:
http://www.amazon.com/Preserving-Od...=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1280806970&sr=8-1
Black Cherry Confiture
Makes 3 pints
2 1/2 lb sour black cherries, pitted
3 cups granulated sugar
1 cup black current or red current juice*
4 Tbsp Kirsch or cherry brandy
Layer the cherries and the sugar in a noncorrosive saucepan. Add the currant juice, cover, and leave for a few hours.
Bring the mixture slowly to a boil, occasionally shaking the pan gently. Skim well, then boil for 20-25 min., or until jelling point.
Remove the pan from the heat and let the fruit settle for a few minutes. Stir in the kirsch or brandy. Ladle into the hot, sterilized jars, then seal.
*You can also use the juice of 3 lemons instead of the current juice. If your like me and currant juice sounds too fancy
Brandy makes everything tasty!

 

[freemotion]

I can't imagine pitting these cherries...they are about the size of a pencil eraser...a slightly used pencil eraser! I'm wondering if I can use them whole to make liqueur, or if the pits will be a problem and if I will be making cyanide liqueur! <<< me after drinking the poisonous liqueur!

 

[freemotion]

Found this recipe for black cherry wine...three recipes actually...from a link posted by Sew'n'sew: http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/blackche.asp

And these simple instructions pm'd to me by citylife:

I would go out and buy 3) 1 gal. glass jugs, 3) 1/2 gal's cheap vodka, sugar Lots of washed cherries stem removed.
I would take a gal jug and put 2 cups sugar and a 1/2 gal of vodka and shake until the sugar has disolved. Once disolved, fill the rest of the 1 gal jug with cherrys, pits and all. Once a week shake the jar. Taste it in about 6 months.
now........... what about the left overs................... 2 more jugs and what not. Well now. i would play around with the sugar. So............ would still use the 1/2 gal vodka but would do one with 2 1/2 c. sugar and the last one with 3 cups sugar. This way you can find out in 3 batches how much sugar is best for this drink or if you need even more. Shake all bottles once a week. mark them so you know how they are made. I call this "cherry bounce" its like a cherry pie that will make you fall down while your ice fishing. Lolololol The pits are actually important in this drink. So, fill the jug with the vodka/sugar mixture full of cherries and enjoy drinks in 6 mo. or so.
With tart pie cherries i make it with the 2 cups. sugar, so i am not sure how you will need to adjust.

Thanks, ladies! I wanted to put these ideas here so I can find them again next year!