Spiced Cherries Two Ways

Jam-making, for me, is an unalloyed pleasure. Start with fruit, add sugar, ginger (often in many forms), the occasional chili and lemon or lime juice, boil a few jars, stir for a while, and then -- it's JAM.

I owe this gentle obsession to two friends: Eileen O'Toole, who has been my friend since we worked on The Diamondback (the U of Maryland's newspaper) in college; and Laurie Colwin, who I never "knew," but whose cooking essays have made her feel like a friend. In Eileen's kitchen, I watched cherries from her tree become jam, and I was trusted with wiping the jars; in More Home Cooking, I learned about the quiet pleasure of making plum jam, the magic of corn relish, and the delight that comes from winning a prize at the fair (county fair in her case; Minnesota State Fair for me).

I got serious about making jam, relish and barbecue sauce just after 9/11. When the going got tough, I started to make jam in earnest. Case after case of jam. There have been years since 9/11 when I had two or three cases of empty jars in my car at all times -- just in case. Before jam season in 2007, I counted 36 cases of jars in my house. Just in case. My friends will not be surprised to know that the jam obsession has been partnered with a Jam-and-Preserving-Book Acquisition Project, and that they number 20, including a history of marmalade.

One treasure is Jeanne Lesem's The Pleasures of Preserving and Pickling (Knopf 1975). My copy is an official Chia Pet Book, because of its forest of sticky notes. Lesem guided me to perfecting Carrot Marmalade. For the past two years mine has looked beautiful, turned to stone when opened, which I now believe represented a serious misunderstanding of the physics of boiled sugar. Her recipe for Jamaican Banana Jam (p. 56) has simple but inspired ingredients (lime juice, bananas, sugar and water), and it makes a swell Peanut Butter and Banana Jam sandwich. Elvis might have liked it.

But her treatment of cherries is sublime: SPICED CHERRIES are whole cherries in a sweet and savory syrup. When I tasted leftover syrup after packing the first batch, I said "This is the best food I have ever made." There are two ways to approach making Spiced Cherries: with fresh or frozen cherries. Fresh cherries keep their shape better than frozen, but you can make this every day of the year with frozen cherries or strawberries and your dinner guests will love you, and the pancake-and-waffle crowd will be panting for more.

SPICED CHERRIES for the pantry (adapted from Pleasures of Preserving and Pickling)

2 pounds fresh, ripe cherries, pitted
3 c sugar
3/4 c red wine vinegar (the good stuff, please)
1/2 tsp ground mace
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1 "coin" of fresh ginger (1/4 to 1/2 inch round)

1. Combine all of the ingredients except the cherries. Bring to a rapid boil. Boil for two minutes; add the cherries all at once. Continue at a low boil for about 40 minutes, or until the liquid has boiled down by half and the syrup is thick. Stir occasionally and keep watch: this is boiling sugar.
2. Pour into sterilized jars, process for 10 minutes.

SPICED CHERRIES for the refrigerator (will keep about a week, airtight and refrigerated) (adapted from Pleasures of Preserving and Pickling)

1 pound frozen dark cherries or 1 pound frozen strawberries (or a combination)
1/1-2 c sugar
3/8 c red wine vinegar
1/4 tsp ground mace
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon big pinch ground cloves
1 "coin" of fresh ginger (1/4 to 1/2 inch round)

1. Combine all of the ingredients except the cherries. Bring to a rapid boil. Add the cherries all at once. Continue at a low boil for about 40 minutes, or until the liquid has boiled down by half and the syrup is thick. If you are impatient, after about 15 minutes, remove 1 to 2 cups of the syrup and boil it separately. Return it to the pan and continue boiling and occasionally stirring.
2. Cool in a bowl and refrigerate, airtight, for about a week.