Chokeberry enjoys controversial popularity - some people categorically dislike it because of its bitter taste, while others widely use it, including for making homemade alcoholic drinks. Although no one argues that it has great benefits for the body and is a valuable medicine. But there are recipes for making delicious jam from chokeberries with fresh cherry leaves that everyone will love.
Features of making chokeberry jam with cherry leaves
You need to strictly follow the recipe, otherwise the jam may become bitter, since fresh chokeberry has a specific, tart, astringent taste.
Specifics of product selection
The berries for making jam are harvested in the middle or end of October; they should be slightly frozen after the first frost. But it is necessary to harvest while there are no severe frosts. Whole, undamaged, unspoiled and, of course, fully ripe fruits are selected.
How to prepare the container?
Before sealing the jam, you need to thoroughly wash and sterilize the jars. To do this, use hot steam treatment, placing them over a boiling pan, frying them in the oven or heating them in the microwave.
How to make black rowan jam with cherry leaves
To make chokeberry (chokeberry) jam, you need desire, the right recipe and basic ingredients. And, of course, time. Most of it is spent sorting the fruits and infusing the jam.
There are various recipes with the addition of many ingredients - cinnamon, apples, lemon, but the base is always the same - rowan fruits.
Ideal jam has a consistency close to jam, but with fruits clearly visible in it.
Classic recipe
To prepare chokeberry jam, first of all, you need to be patient - the cooking time is 4.5 hours. There is absolutely no particular difficulty in cooking it; the main thing is to follow the instructions of a proven, classic recipe. Vanillin is not a mandatory ingredient; it is added as desired.
- Chokeberry fruits – 1 kilogram.
- Sugar – 1.2 kilograms.
- Water – 500 milliliters (2 cups).
- Vanillin – 1/3 teaspoon.
- Cherry leaves – 100 grams.
At the initial stage, the rowan fruits are sorted out - they are cleared of leaves and twigs and dried, spoiled berries are discarded. Cherry leaves are also sorted and washed well. Afterwards, they are placed in a saucepan and water is poured so that it completely covers them (you can add more, if necessary, up to 1 liter), put on the stove and boil for 15-20 minutes.
The prepared broth is filtered and the leaves are discarded. Then bring it to a boil again. Then remove the pan from the heat and add rowan fruits to the boiling water.
Then thoroughly mix the berries in the water so that they are all immersed in it. The procedure is aimed at making the fruits soften and better absorb the syrup. Stir for 7-10 minutes. Ideally, a wooden spatula is used for this, but this is not essential.
Now put the pan back on the stove and turn on the heat, a little hotter than average. Then add sugar and stir steadily until it is completely dissolved. Let the syrup boil again and turn on low heat and cook for 15 minutes. Then the jam is removed from the stove and allowed to cool to room temperature.
This usually takes about 3 hours. And then the jam is placed on the fire again, allowed to boil and simmered over low heat for 15 minutes.
At the end of cooking, add vanillin - it enhances the cherry flavor and gives a rich, interesting aroma. The finished jam is poured hot into sterilized jars.
Option with apples
Delicious, really healthy, original jam. Its one disadvantage is that it is eaten very quickly, so it is advisable to prepare more of it.
Ingredients:
- rowan fruits – 1 kilogram;
- sugar – 1.2 kilograms;
- water – 500 milliliters;
- lemon juice – 1 tablespoon;
- cinnamon – 1 stick;
- apples – 700-800 grams.
With citric acid
Citric acid enhances the taste of chokeberry jam and also acts as a preservative. There are two cooking options.
At first they take:
- rowan fruits – 2 kilograms;
- water – 2 liters;
- a dozen chokeberry leaves;
- sugar – 1.5 kilograms;
- citric acid – 5 grams.
Moreover, according to this recipe, you can make both healthy jam and tasty syrup: it is filtered before adding sugar, removing all the leaves and berries. In the second option, add the zest and juice of one lemon 10 minutes before the end of cooking. Lemon gives the jam a special aroma.
Rules for storing treats
Rolled chokeberry jam is stored both at cool temperatures (in cellars and basements) and in home pantries, at room temperature. In sterilized jars, at room temperature, it is stored without loss of quality for a year, in a cool place or in the refrigerator - up to 2 years.
