Cherry Business

Through the course of all this cherry business, my cute husband passed through the kitchen and asked me, "Is it worth it?". With my hands hurting from the cherry pitting business, my feet and back aching from all the standing, I almost wanted to say no.

But really, it hasn't been so bad. I've developed a strategy. Not sure if it is a good one, but it has helped me make it through the mountains of cherries. First I dumped all the cherries to soak in the sink and get rinsed off. From there I just have to take out handfuls at a time to work with.

Then comes the pitting work. I tell you, a cherry pitter makes the job sooo much easier!

Then the cherries get divided into the blender in the correct portions for jam and fruit leathers and put in ziplock baggies for the freezer with notes on how much sugar, pectin and whatever I need to know as far as the recipe goes to finish them off later.

Some go whole {but pitless of course} into ziplock baggies for the freezer for either smoothies later on, or to pull out and dehydrate at a later time.

So pretty much, I haven't canned any of them yet. I've just been preparing them. But freezing them this way has put a lot less stress on me to try and make it through them before they go bad.

And now that they're all prepped and waiting for me whenever I'm ready, I feel like baking some bread. Go figure!