During the last couple of weeks we have had fun picking chokecherries a couple of different times. This is a berry that you don't eat while your picking as it leaves this really dry/bitter taste in your mouth but after you cook them, juice them and add some sugar it becomes one of my favorite syrups. It is very yummy! First we went out to my Mom and Dad's to pick them. The trees they were on were rather high so we balanced precariously on the step ladder some of the time and them to pick some of them we climbed on a nearby shed.
The kids thought it was fun to be up on the shed picking.
Then you wash them off, add a little water and cook them. You don't have to stem them or anything so it is quite easy! The aroma of them cooking is quite wonderful.
Then you need to get the juice separated from the skin, seeds and stems. I don't have a juicer or even a cone shaped strainer things (I don't know what it is called but I would like to get one someday) but I improvised by using my colander and a glass too press on the cherries. It worked! :-)
Have you ever used choke cherries? What did you do with them?
3 comments:
I've always called that cone-shaped thingy a colander but a lot of older ladies call it a "ricer". I've never made anything with chokecherries but now that I've seen your pictures I think we might have seen some last week on a family hike. I might have to go out and try to collect some.
That's so neat, we've never know what they were either, but last week on a family hike as well, we saw them too! Now I know what they are. Thanks, Abbi!
I hope you both enjoy using them!
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