My yard is a fruit paradise. I am very happy that my children can eat fresh and healthy organic fruit, which is not treated with any chemicals. Since we have plenty of fruits I often make compotes, jams and juices and I keep them for the winter days. Namely, this is a tradition in the Balkans. Our grandmothers and mothers mostly make larger amounts of jam at once, put it in jars and wait for the winter to open them. I don't do that because I don't have time. I pick fruit for about two to three jars of jam. May cherry is the first fruit that matures in my yard. Probably this is the reason that this cherry is the favorite tree in our family, and the jam of these cherries is the most delicious of all that I cook.

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The first step in making my jam was cherry picking. For a kilo of jam you will need about 2-3 kilos of cherries, it depends how juicy they are.

What do you need for cherry jam?

1 kg cherries
150 g granulated sugar
1 Vanilla Sugar (7g)
Juice of one lemon

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Method:

Wash and pit all the cherries. Combine the cherries and sugar and leave for about 2 hours. The amount of sugar depends on how sweet your cherries are. My cherries were very sweet so I put less sugar.

Then put cherries in the saucepan, add vanilla sugar and bring to a boil over high heat. Stirring constantly until the sugar is dissolved. Then reduce the heat to medium-high and continue to cook, but stir occasionally. When you notice that the mixture is thickened, mix it with a stick mixer. Take care not to make a mushy mixture, leave some cherries whole. Then add the lemon juice and stir. Spread the jam with a mixing spoon and if a trace stays at the bottom of the saucepan (as shown in the picture) jam is over. I cooked jam for about 40 minutes.

Wash the jars well. Then place them in the oven at 50 degrees C for about half an hour. Fill the such hot jars with hot jam. Then put the jars back in the oven at 100 degrees C for about 15 minutes. Leave until the jam cools down, then close the jars well with the lid.

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Happiness is in small things, big things don't happen often. This jar of jams made my family day better, especially when I made pancakes. I hope I sweetened your day too. :) Thank you for reading!

With love,
Snežana

Here are some more interesting recipes from the Balkans:

Roast Pork Ribs under the bell (SAČ) in the oven

Homemade Pie Crust Recipe - Fantastic homemade pie
Homemade Poppy Seed Strudel
Kiflice with cheese
Three ways to prepare Celery Root
Wheat Pudding - easy, healthy, tasty
Schneenockerl - Dessert with many names!
Vanilice - The traditional Serbian Little Vanilla Cookies