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Rainier Cherry Jam – if you are fan of Rainier cherries and would like to enjoy them all year round, you can preserve some in season Rainier cherries by making homemade jam, that will last for up to 1 year.

Quick and easy Rainier cherry jam that could be enjoyed on its own, on cheesecakes, pancakes, waffles or crepes. Rainier cherries are my favorite type of cherry and I prefer them fresh. But when I happen to get 8 pounds of them as a gift, I must make some homemade cherry jam.

National Rainier Cherry Day – July 11

Happy National Rainier Cherry Day!

Funny enough, I made this jam 2 weeks ago, but didn’t get to post the recipe until today and I found out that Rainier cherries had a holiday of their own. The only cherry variety with their own holiday.

Rainier Cherries

Rainiers are a cross between Van and Bing cherries.

They have a delicate skin and soft yellow flesh, also considered a premium cherry. A lot less common than red cherries and at a higher price point. Very sensitive to temperature and rain. About 1/3 of their crop is considered to be eaten by birds, which makes them harder to get at larger quantities.

Rainier cherries have a lower acidity level, which results in them having higher brix (sugar content). Rainier cherries are actually sweeter than Dark Sweet cherries.

Rainier cherry tree – since these cherries taste so good, are the trees hard to grow and do they need extra care? the short answer it – no.

The trees have gorgeous blooms and bear fruit easily.

Season – these cherries are in season from May to June in California and from June to August in Washington.

Calories – 1 cup (about 20 large Rainier cherries) contains around 100 calories and 13 grams of sugar.

Preserving Rainier cherries (and what to do with them)

What to do with Rainier cherries?

Eat as much as you can while they are in season.
Make a homemade jam.
Use in baking – crumbles, pies and cakes.
Make a cocktail with them
Add to salads
Freeze for later to make smoothies or just use in baking

How to make Rainier Cherry Jam?

Removing the pits

Always remove the pits when making jam with cherries. I have an old OXO cherry pitter, but you can also use a knife to cut the cherries in half and remove the pits.

Fruit to sugar ratio

The most important question – how much sugar should you add to your Rainier (white) cherry jam?

Since these cherries are sweeter than Sweet Black Cherries, I used 500 grams of sugar per 1 kilo of pitted cherries. Which means around 1 pound of sugar per 2 pounds of cherries (pitted). This results in a perfectly sweet jam with whole cherries.

Adding pectin to Rainier cherry jam

I do like that pectin shortens the cooking time and makes the fruit in the jam stay ad taste fresh. I did add pectin to this Rainier cherry jam.

Sterilizing the jars filled with hot jam (Canning)

Process clean hot jars filled with hot jam in a canning pot with a rack for 15 minutes.

What to serve this Rainier cherry jam with

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