Dark cherry dulceață with less sugar

Name: Dark cherry dulceață with less sugar
Ingredients: 6700 g pitted dark cherries; 3000 g sugar; 2 limes; 1 lemon (juice only)

Jam - Dark cherry dulceață with less sugar by Petruta N. - Recipia

Dark cherry dulceață, a Romanian whole-fruit preserve, is made from pitted cherries, sugar and the juice of one lemon, cooked over low heat until it sets. It comes out less sweet than most recipes call for, with a slightly bitter taste, and that is how we like it. I make sure the cherries are well ripe but not soft, otherwise they fall apart too fast in the pot. Prep: 120 minutes. Cooking: 255 minutes. Resting: 240 minutes. Total time: 615 minutes. Servings: 19. About 820 kcal and 4 g protein per serving.

Ingredients

6700 g pitted dark cherries
3000 g sugar
2 limes
1 lemon (juice only)

Preparation

1. Wash the cherries, drain them well and remove the pits with a special pitter. 2. Weigh the pitted cherries and add the sugar over them. 3. Leave the cherries to rest in the cold for a few hours, or overnight. 4. Put them on to cook over low heat, in a wide pot, for about 4 hours. 5. When it starts to simmer, skim off the foam that forms, as many times as needed. 6. Put a spoonful of dulceață on a plate and leave it to cool. When the mixture starts to set, add the lemon juice and the diced lime. 7. Let the dulceață simmer for another 10 to 20 minutes, over low heat. 8. Pour the dulceață into the sterilized jars, screw on the lids and turn the jars upside down for 15 minutes. 9. Turn the jars back upright, cover them with a thick blanket and let them cool slowly.

Notes

Store the dulceață in tightly closed jars. I still have one I made in 2015, and it looks perfect, with no air or mold. From 10 kg of cherries with pits you get about 6.7 kg pitted, so you lose almost a third when removing the pits. If you make a smaller batch, keep the ratio: about half the weight of the pitted cherries goes in as sugar. If the plate shows it has not set, cook it a little longer over low heat. Serve it on fresh bread or next to fresh cottage cheese, and in the morning it is good with yogurt too.