Description

Cherry Jelly is one of the ingredients used in garnishing or topping either a desert or a sandwich or it can be relished as it is. It is made commercially or also can be made at home level. It is made from cherry juice obtained from red, fully ripened juicy cherries. For making cherry jelly;

· Wash round soft red ripened cherry. Deseed and crush into juice.
· Add water and heat to a boil, then simmer on low heat.
· Remove from heat and strain the cherry juice into a pot.
· Add pectin, stir and again heat to a boil.
· Now add equal quantity of sugar, stirring continuously and boil for a minute.
· Now remove from fire, removing the foam and pour into jelly bags laving a little head space. Let it set in a cool dry place undisturbed.

How to Select

Cherry Jelly is available in tinned containers in selected food stores. You can also buy it online. When preparing at home, select those cherries which are red juicy ones, sweet in taste.around 1 kg of cherries will give only 1 cup of jelly.

Culinary Uses

· Cherry Jelly is a confectionary food item used for either decoration or garnishing a desert.
· It can be eaten as it is with a spoon or topped on bread slice.
· It can be diluted over cold water and served in sherbets or faloodas.
· It can be simply topped over cookies or spread within sandwiches.
· Any fruit salad or a fruit mock tail can be garnished with this jelly.
· Sweets such as cherry jelly cookies can be made placing a layer of jelly beneath the cookies and sugar coating them.
· Combining and heating sweet and sour cherry juice with orange juice and then pouring into jelly moulds can make cherry Citrus jelly.
· Cherry Jelly roll can also had as a snack or a desert in itself.
· Cherry Jelly is also used in pastry filling of preferably the fruit cakes.

How to Store

Cherry jelly has a long shelf life, provided you store it under refrigeration. Place the jellies in a glass container and lid tightly once used to avoid hydration. For long-term storage, pour the jellies into sterilized half-pint canning jars, cover with lids , and put in boiling water higher than the tops of the jars by at least an inch. Process the jars for 10 minutes, then remove them from the water. The lids will snap down as they cool; the jelly can then be stored for a year in a cool, dark place.

Health Benefits

· Cherries are a nutritious and tasty fruit, very easily available when in season.
· The presence of antioxidants, major anthocyanins and bioflavanoids help saturate the free radicals, and thus fight cancer.
· Cherry jelly is also rich in vitamins A and C, which help boost immunity.
· Cheery jelly prepared from cherry juice has anti inflammatory properties and is said to cure many illnesses.
· The flavones, plant hormones, terpenes and phenol compounds present in cherry juice help in lowering blood pressure, improve brain and heart functioning and boost up immunity.
Cherry juice is said to help in losing weight in combination with apple juice.