Blisters, Family and Chokecherries

So I've decided with all my schooling that I seriously needed to get up off my tushy and get some exercise in, so I joined a group of girls and we walk every morning around a track. I'm about 3 weeks behind, so little did I know they were already walking 4 miles a day. Now I'm not a wimp by any means but, my feet were not prepared to walk 4 miles on a hot track in what were supposed to be walking shoes. My first day I earned myself 2 nasty blisters on the soles of my feet getting in the 4 miles, not bad but ouch! I just finished my second week with 3 days in last week and 3 days in my first week, not bad but I think my feet decided to do an extreme protest on Friday's walk. We ended up walking 5 miles, that day and I earned not a big blister but a layered one on my left foot. So needless to say, my stupidity of "Oh yea, I can keep going" wasn't a bright idea. I should have stopped at the 4 mile mark when I came across it!

Anyway, I soaked my feet in some epsom salt that night, because Saturday morning my oldest daughter and I were off to meet my Grandparents for an hour of chokecherry pickin. Now, for those of you who don't know what a chokecherry is, well it's a large blueberry sized berry that is dark red in color and is very bitter and tend to make your mouth go dry after you eat one. They grow on a tree type bush, so it can get huge and is often found on farms around water. I've included a picture below of what the berries look like.

This particular tree was located near a creek on a very nice gentleman's farm that we got permission to go on. Now the tree was also located on the side of the road so we had to watch out for oncoming cars as well. Now while these particular berries taste terrible eatin raw, they make some of the best jelly around. Course the process of boiling the berries down, mashing, and straining until you get the juice pulp free is a giant pain, the end result is delicious. I have coveted my Grandmother's chokecherry jelly for years, but alas she is getting old enough that us younger folk need to take on the making of the chokecherry jelly.

It took us a little less than an hour to pick a 5 gallon bucket of berries, but it took me 4 hours of cooking, mashing and straining just to get 4 quarts of juice for making jelly. Now about 3 cups of that 4 quarts is un-sweetened apple juice, which we add in to chokecherry juice to help make make enough juice as the apple actually enhances the berry juice and makes a nice mellow blend. Plus it helps you get an even amount for canning. I don't plan on canning right away but probably in the next week or two, so I'll keep you posted on how it turns out. ;)

It was a great weekend spent with family and I look forward to next year.