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Cherry Time!

In Kansas, cherries are in season during June and July.

Whether you like them sweet, sour, golden or red, cherries are in season! Their short season means you must enjoy them as much as you can now. But wait! They can also be preserved to save them for a later date.

Cherries can be preserved by canning, freezing, dehydrating, or made into canned pie filling, jam, jelly. The uses of fresh cherries are endless in many meals or just a simple snack.

Freezing is easy. Simply wash, remove stems and pits. Dry and spread on a tray in a single layer to freeze. Then place them in freezer containers. Cherries can also be frozen in a syrup or sugar pack.

If making canned pie filling, use sour cherries for that classic pie flavor. Use Clear JelĀ® starch (cook type) for best results.

Learn more about preserving cherries at https://bookstore.ksre.ksu.edu/pubs/MF1180.pdf. To dehydrate cherries, see https://nchfp.uga.edu/how/dry/csu_dry_fruits.pdf.

About Karen Blakeslee

The Rapid Response Center was formed in 1995 as a resource for Kansas State University Research & Extension Agents. Resource topics included Food Science, Human Nutrition, Food Service, Textiles, Home Care and other consumer topics. Since that time, the Center has grown to be of valuable assistance to Kansas State University Extension Specialists in those areas.

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