How to Make Cherry Jelly

Marie Overton
Sep 9, 2021
2 min read

Updated: Jul 9

Living in Washington State I have access to an abundance of cherries. One of the lovely items I like to make from this fabulous fruit is cherry jelly. I really like to make cherry jelly in the winter because all it takes is cherry juice. So I juice the cherries in the summer and make cherry butter out of the pulp and save the juice to make cherry jelly during the winter months when my time is not quite so busy. It has a beautiful jewel-type quality to it that makes it a wonderful gift to give with a loaf of bread or a fabulous treat to add to your toast in the morning.

Preparation

Start by preparing your boiling water bath canner with enough water to cover 8 half-pint jars with 1-2 inches of water. Place the water bath canner on the stove on medium heat. Next, preheat your jars.

How to Make Cherry Jelly:

Pouring dark liquid from a jug into a metal pot on a speckled countertop, with a wooden spoon inside. Background items include butter and dishes.

Mix 5 1/2 cups of cherry juice with 6 tablespoons of pectin in a large pot.

If you want to reduce foaming add 1/2 teaspoon of butter.

Bring the mixture to a full rolling boil on medium-high heat. Stir constantly.

Sugar being stirred into a purple liquid in a pot with a wooden spoon. Text: "7 cups Sugar." Gray countertop background.

Add 7 cups of sugar and bring back to a full boil for 1 minute.

A large pot of dark liquid, possibly jam, is being ladled into jars on a speckled countertop. Empty glass jars are arranged nearby.

Using a jar funnel, pour or ladle the jelly into clean, hot, half-pint-sized jars leaving ¼ inch headspace.

Hands sealing jars filled with dark purple jam on a speckled countertop. Three lids in view; two say “Oregon.” Jam splatters visible.

After filling your jars, wipe the rims with a clean cloth and secure the lids until finger tip tight. (For quality, American made Superb canning lids and jars follow this link and use the coupon code WP20 to get 20% off your purchase.)

Process in the boiling water bath canner. Process for 10 minutes if at sea level. (Adjust the processing time if you are above 1000 feet.)

After processing, allow to cool in the water bath with the heat off and the lid removed for 5 minutes.

Person in apron uses canning tongs to handle jars of preserves on a kitchen counter. Notable text: "Marie". Rustic and cozy setting.

Place the jars on a heat-resistant surface about 1-2 inches apart so they can cool a little faster. Allow them to sit undisturbed for 24 hours so that they can get a nice seal. you know they are sealed if the little "button" in the center of the lid is depressed down. If not, place any unsealed jars in the refrigerator and use them right away.