Cherry Almond Preserves

Montana cold. Negative ten overnight. The pipes held. Three days of farrier work. Two ranches in the county. Eleven horses. The body is tired in the right way.

Patrick on the porch in the afternoon. Coffee in the good cup. The cottonwoods.

Biscuits and gravy for breakfast. Sausage from a neighbor's hog. Same biscuit recipe.

Cattle were good. Horses were good. The week was the week.

Drove to Billings for parts Friday. Stopped at the cemetery on the way home. Stood for ten minutes. Came home.

The Tuesday Roundup AA meeting was eleven this week — three new guys from a referral. The room was full. The coffee was strong.

Hank, the dog, herded the chickens by accident. He apologized in the way dogs apologize — eyes down, tail low. The chickens were unimpressed.

Worked on the truck Saturday afternoon. Plugs and wires. Two hours. Hands black with grease. Came in. Showered. Ate.

Truck started cold Tuesday. Twelve below. Battery is the original. I will replace it before next winter. I always say I will replace it before next winter. I never have.

A neighbor's heifer was choking on a corn cob. I drove over with my emergency kit. Cleared the cob with a length of garden hose. The heifer recovered. The neighbor brought a pie the next day.

A reader emailed about the elk chili recipe. Asked what beer to use if non-alcoholic was not available. I wrote back: any beer is wrong if you don't drink. Use stock.

Took a walk to the river before supper Tuesday. The cottonwoods were silver. The water was running. I did not think much. I just walked.

Hauled three bull calves to the auction yard Wednesday. Got a fair price. Came home. Counted the cash. Put it in the ranch account.

The wood pile is half what it was at Thanksgiving. I will split another cord on Saturday. The cord will be ready by next winter. The wood always is.

Three days of horses this week. The work is meditative. The horses know. The owners pay. The cycle holds.

Storm came through Friday night. Thunder. The dog hid under the bed. The kids slept through it. The cattle bunched up by the windbreak. Standard.

Mr. Whelan from down the road came over Saturday with a story about a horse he sold in 1979. The story took an hour. I listened. He needed someone to tell it to.

Listened to the cattle market report on AM radio while I worked the shop. Beef is up. Feed is up. The math is the math.

Drove the back fence line Saturday. Two posts down from elk. Replaced them in the morning. The fence held the rest of the week.

The Musselshell was clear Sunday. Could see trout in the deeper pools. Did not fish. Just watched.

The barn cats are doing their job. Down to one mouse this week, in the feed shed. The cats brought it to the porch as proof. They are professionals.

Mended the chute hinge Wednesday. Welder was finicky. Got it on the third try. Patrick used to do this. I do it now.

Wrote a blog post Friday night. The first one in two months. About making chili in a snowstorm. Short. Practical. Posted it. Forgot about it.

The neighbor brought a pie after I pulled that cob out of his heifer — didn’t ask for it, didn’t expect it, but that’s how it works out here. That pie sat on the counter and reminded me I hadn’t put anything up in a while. So Saturday, between splitting wood and watching the storm roll in, I made a batch of cherry almond preserves — same recipe I’ve used for years, same jars on the same shelf. Something about a week this full makes you want to seal something good into a jar and know it’ll be there come morning.

Prep Time: 20 min | Cook Time: 35 min | Total Time: 55 min | Servings: 48 (makes about 6 half-pint jars)

Ingredients

4 cups pitted sour cherries (fresh or thawed frozen), roughly chopped
3 cups granulated sugar
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1 package (1.75 oz) powdered fruit pectin
1/4 teaspoon butter (to reduce foam)

Instructions

Prepare jars. Sterilize 6 half-pint canning jars, lids, and bands in boiling water. Keep jars hot until ready to fill.
Cook the fruit. Combine chopped cherries and lemon juice in a large heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat. Stir in pectin and butter. Bring to a full rolling boil, stirring constantly.
Add sugar. Add all the sugar at once. Return to a full rolling boil and boil hard for exactly 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat.
Skim and flavor. Skim off any foam. Stir in almond extract. Let the preserves rest for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally to distribute the fruit evenly.
Fill jars. Ladle hot preserves into hot sterilized jars, leaving 1/4-inch headspace. Wipe rims clean with a damp cloth. Apply lids and bands fingertip-tight.
Process. Process jars in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes. Remove and let cool undisturbed on a towel for 12–24 hours. Check seals before storing — lids should not flex. Refrigerate any unsealed jars and use within 3 weeks.

Nutrition (per serving, approximately 1 tablespoon)

Cherry Almond Preserves — Something Homemade for the Week That Held