marilynpeight
This small batch homemade cherry pie filling is a recipe that my Mother-in-law passed on to me and it makes the best tasting cherry pies and cherry desserts! This recipe uses cherry Jello and sour cherries, but also includes our favorite way of making it with a hybrid cherry that is dark in color and half sweet/half sour. This cherry pie filling is excellent in Amish oatmeal cherry bars and in cherry pie, using our favorite flaky pie crust. This cherry pie filling recipe makes enough for 4 quarts of cherry pie filling, which can refrigerated for up to a week or keep scrolling below the recipe card for notes on canning this cherry pie filling.
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The Best Homemade Cherry Pie Filling
Equipment
- Large Pot (linked below)
- Canning Funnel (linked below)
- Quart Jars with Sealable Lids (linked below)
Ingredients
- 8 cups water
- 3 cups granulated sugar *see note
- 1/2 cup cherry Jello 3 oz. package
- 1 cup quick cook Clear Jel *see note
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 10 cups sour cherries, washed and pitted *see note if using half sweet cherries
Instructions
- Combine the water, sugar, cherry jello and clear jel in a large 6-8 quart pot. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat while stirring constantly to reduce clumping. Cook until thickened and clear, then remove from heat.
- Stir in the salt and almond extract, then gently fold in cherries, adding until the filling/cherry ratio is to your preference.
- Ladle the pie filling into jars, and use immediately, keep refrigerated or see below for hot water bath canning method.
Notes
Equipment needed for this Homemade Cherry Pie Filling:
- Large Pot I like to use a large 6-8 quart pot for making this filling. Because of the bubbling and splattering of the filling that can occur while cooking, it is best to use a large pot to contain it.
- Canning Funnel A large canning funnel is useful for transferring the filling from the pot into glass jars.
- Quart Jars with Sealable Lids Quart jars are optional if you plan on using the filling right away or within a few days, but they are definitely a must if you plan on canning the pie filling.
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Ingredients needed for this homemade cherry pie filling: Sugar, cherry Jello, almond extract, salt, cherries and clear jel.
Substitutions:
If you do not have almond extract on hand, you can also use vanilla extract or cherry extract (add to taste). You can use sweet cherries for this pie filling or a sweet/sour hybrid as mentioned above. Be sure to adjust the sugar to taste if using a sweeter cherry variety.
Canning this cherry pie filling:
Disclaimer: Since hot water bath canning is not as common as it once was, I highly suggest asking for expert advice before using this method, or finding a pressure cooker recipe for canning the pie filling if you are not acquainted/comfortable with hot water bath canning.
Note* This recipe can be doubled, tripled quadrupled etc. for canning.
If you wish to use the hot water bath method, be sure to clean the rims of the jars well before sealing, and also use new or untainted lids. Fill the canner with enough water to leave just an inch of headspace on the jars (or up to the neck of the jars). Bring the canner to a full rolling boil, then process the jars for 15-20 minutes. Remove the jars using a jar lifter and allow to set on a tea towel without moving for 18-24 hours. If a jar does not seal within the first several hours it must be refrigerated and used within a week.
Ideas for using this cherry pie filling:
These are just a few of my favorite ways of using cherry pie filling, but you can certainly use the filling in more ways than listed. We enjoy this cherry pie filling in oatmeal cherry bars, cherry pie, using our favorite flaky pie crust recipe and baking it at 350 for around an hour, cherry cobbler, cherry crisp, or as a topping for ice cream. You can also use it on pancakes, waffles or oatmeal!
Feel free to pin this recipe for later and tag me on Instagram to show off your own creation using this homemade cherry pie filling. Thank you for your support!
