Step 1

Before You Begin, prepare calcium water. To do this, combine ½ teaspoon calcium powder (in the small packet in your box of Pomona’s pectin) with ½ cup water in a small, clear jar with a lid. Shake well. Extra calcium water should be stored in the refrigerator for future use.

Step 2

Wash jars, lids, and bands. Place jars in canner, fill canner 2/3 full with water, bring to a boil. Turn off heat, cover, and keep jars in hot canner water until ready to use. Place lids in water in a small saucepan; cover and heat to a low boil. Turn off heat and keep lids in hot water until ready to use.

Step 3

Rinse the cherries, remove and discard stems and pits, then chop the cherries.

Step 4

Combine chopped cherries, calcium water, diced habanero pepper, lime zest, and lime juice in a saucepan. Cover, bring to a boil, and then reduce heat and simmer, still covered, for 5 minutes.

Step 5

In a separate bowl, combine the sweetener and Pomona's Pectin. Mix well and set aside.

Step 6

Bring the cherry-habanero mixture to a rolling boil over high heat. Gradually add pectin-sweetener mixture, stirring vigorously between each addition, for 1 to 2 minutes to dissolve the pectin while the jam comes back up to a boil. Once the jam returns to a full boil, remove it from the heat.

Step 7

Remove hot jars from canner and fill jars with jam, leaving ¼ inch of headspace. Remove trapped air bubbles, wipe rims with a damp cloth, and put on lids and screw bands, tightening bands only to “fingertip tight” (until resistance is met, and then just the tiniest bit more).

Step 8

Place jars in the hot water, on the rack inside the canner. (Make sure jars are upright, not touching each other or the sides of the canner, and are covered with at least 1-2 inches of water). Place the lid on the canner, return the canner to a rolling boil, and boil for 10 minutes. (Add 1 minute additional processing time for every 1000 feet above sea level.)

Step 9

Allow jars to cool undisturbed for 12-24 hours. Confirm that jars have sealed. Remove screw bands from sealed jars, rinse off outside of jars if necessary, label jars, and store for later use.