Cherries in Spiced Port Wine Recipe
Fire up the canner and put away several jars of these delightful Cherries in Spiced Port Wine. Without a doubt, these cherries are a perfect topping for a summer-time bowl of Vanilla Ice Cream, but I’ve already started dreaming about opening a jar during the cooler month of November and letting the warming spices elevate a humble Charcuterie board, a lovely Manhattan or a pork roast.
Have you been taking advantage of all of summer’s fresh bounty? About this time of the year, I start to get panicky that summer is waning and I haven’t eaten enough peaches, blueberries, cherries, fill in the blank.
That panic inevitably takes me to the farmer’s market to pick up some pounds of fresh fruit; which is then consumed rather quickly by the fruit-eating hordes that populate my home. I always manage to tuck away a portion of the fresh bounty so that I can preserve it for future use…and also because I do love to can and experiment with flavors.
It was recently cherry’s turn to be transformed into some magical treat through the alchemy of spices and heat…the result is a decadent Cherries in Spiced Port Wine. The initial thought for this treat was the result of some spiced cherries that were served alongside a charcuterie plate that Terry and I enjoyed at a local restaurant.
Table of Contents
Of course, as I am wont to do, I went home thinking…’Hey, I bet I could make that’ and began noodling the spices and flavors that I thought might get me close to what I wanted.
Port Wine is the vehicle for carrying the warm spices of cardamom, cinnamon, and cloves, but also adds some depth to the canned cherries without battling the fruit.
Some of these links may be affiliate links and I may earn a small commission off of the sale of these products, but the price you are charged is not affected. You can see my full disclosure policy here.
The most time-consuming task in making Cherries in Spiced Port Wine will be pitting the cherries, a job that I found that my son used to really enjoy. But I will caution, cherry juice tends to fly really well and land in spots you would never have thought it would. So…wear an apron and do it in a space that has easily wiped down surfaces.
I have been using this OXO Cherry Pitter for years and am very happy with it.
Before we dive into the Cherries in Spiced Port Wine recipe, let me give a little disclaimer here. I will experiment with just about ANYTHING, except when I am canning. There is a part of me that thinks that the USDA might be a tad overboard on putting the fear of God into everyone when it comes to canning, but botulism is a real thing and I’m not one to tempt it.
So, when I ‘invent’ a canning recipe, I usually rely pretty heavily on tried and true sources, only altering those things that don’t affect pH which is especially important when water bath canning.
Supplies I Use for Canning Cherries in Spiced Port Wine:
- Kilner Jam Pan
- Wide Mouth Funnel
- Weck Can Lifter or Ball Can Lifter
- Magnetic Lid Lifter
- Headspace Gauge
- Jars: Lately I’m loving Weck Jars, but I also like to use Ball Jars.
- Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving
The Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving is my bible. Even if I think I could make the recipe in my sleep, I double-check myself against the Ball Book…that whole botulism thing. If you are new to canning, it should be your very first purchase. My cookbook library inventory recently expanded with the addition of The All New Ball Book Of Canning And Preserving: Over 350 of the Best Canned, Jammed, Pickled, and Preserved Recipes!
Cherries in Spiced Port Wine
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 pounds pitted cherries
- 6 cups port wine
- 3 cups sugar
- 6 cinnamon sticks
- 2 TBSP cardamom pods
- 4 whole cloves
- 4 TBSP balsamic vinegar
Instructions
- Combine port wine, cinnamon, cardamom pods and whole cloves in saucepan and simmer until reduced by half.
- While port wine is reducing, wash the cherries in vinegar water and pit.
- Add sugar and stir to combine
- Prepare canner, jars and lids. See The Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving for guidance. Lay out a clean towel, along with a small bowl of white vinegar (to wipe off rims) and your canning supplies on a clean counter.
- Strain spices from port wine
- Ladle 1/2 cup of hot port wine syrup into each hot jar.
- Fill jar with cherries to within 1/2 inch of top of jar.
- Gently shake jar to pack cherries closely, without crushing them.
- Add hot syrup to cover cherries, leaving 1/2 inch headspace.
- Add 1 TBSP balsamic vinegar to each jar
- Wipe rim with white vinegar
- Remove any air bubbles and adjust headspace.
- Center lid on jar and screw band down until resistance is met, then increase to fingertip tight. Or, if using Weck Jar, place rubber gasket, glass lid and metal clips on the jar.
- Place jars in canner, making sure they are completely covered with water by at least one inch.
- Cover pot and bring to a boil
- Boil for pints and quarts for full 25 minutes, or adjust for altitude via Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving. The time to bring your pot to a boil should not be counted in the minute boil time.
- Remove lid, wait 5 minutes and remove from canner
Video
Nutrition
So, once again, let’s revisit how you could use your delightful Cherries in Spice Port Wine. You could:
- Eat them right out of the jar (I won’t tell anyone)
- Spoon Cherries in Spiced Port Wine over ice cream
- Thicken the syrup a little with some cornstarch and serve over cheesecake or pound cake
- Use as is or pit sideways, which would leave the stem on, and use in your favorite Manhattan or Old Fashioned, or any other cherry-adorned beverage.
- Pull some out of their liquid and serve alongside your favorite tangy cheese and meats on a charcuterie board.
- Use them in your next Cherry Clafoutis.
If you like this post, I bet your cherry-loving self would love my recipe for a Cherry and Almond Cream Crostata.
If you’d like to add this Cherries in Spiced Port Wine recipe to your cooking repertoire, pin the following image or bookmark this page.
Thanks again for spending a few minutes of your busy day with me today.
Please know that I welcome each and every comment that comes my way. If you want to make sure you don’t miss future content, pop your email in the beige box up on the right or click here. I usually send out 2-3 emails a week, so I won’t inundate your inbox…believe me, I’m sensitive to an overflowing email inbox!
By subscribing to Nourish and Nestle, we will only use your email address to send you emails (no more than 2-3 per week) that will keep you up to date with the latest news and content on the site. And please know that you can unsubscribe at any time by emailing me or clicking on the “unsubscribe” link at the bottom of all of our emails. In addition, you will have access to my growing library of knit & crochet patterns, as well as other printables. This library will continue to grow, so check back often.
Printables and knit patterns are available to all of my subscribers in the Subscriber Benefits Library. I will continue to add patterns and printables to this page as we go along.
You can also access all the products I referred to in all of my posts on my brand new Nourish and Nestle page on Amazon. You can access it here.
So, if you’d like to get in on the ‘subscriber benefit’ action, simply subscribe to Nourish and Nestle here or using the form on the right sidebar. It’s towards the top a bit. I have sent all my subscribers the link to the Subscriber Benefits Library, but if you missed it or misplaced it, drop me a line.
Until next time…
Hugs,
