Wash the jar and lid in hot soapy water. The jar may also be sterilized in the dishwasher. I use the oven to dry the jar, but we’re about to fill it with alcohol, so it’s more important that the jar be immaculate than it be perfectly dry.

Fill jar with the vodka and set it beside your work station.

Pit the cherries. See notes, below, for ways to use the cherries.

As noted in the post, crushing cherry pits can involve a few escaped bits. You might want to give the surronding floor a quick wipe.

Crush the pits. I use the flat side of a meat mallet for this task. Crushing one pit at a time on an folded dishtowel helps rein in scattering pieces.

Drop the crushed pits–and the resulting bits–into the vodka. Once you’re finished, cap the jar and allow it to infuse for two days.

Once the two days are up, strain the vodka through a fine strainer. If you don’t have a fine strainer, use kitchen muslin over a larger colander to ensure the smaller pieces of cherry pit are removed.

Either return the cherry vodka to the same jar, or pour it into an immaculately clean liquor bottle. Cap, freeze, and either use immediately or save to enjoy during the winter months.

Notes:

To freeze fresh cherries, cover a baking sheet with wax or parchment paper. Spread the cherries on the baking sheet so none are touching. Place the baking sheet in the freezer 2-12 hours. Remove cherries from the freezer. Pour fruit into a ziploc-style freezer bag, squeezing as much air out as possible. Use cherries in tarts, muffins, cakes, ice creams, and so on. Best if used within three months.

To use up fresh cherries, eat them raw, fold them into baking as noted above, slice and fold into yogurt or ice cream. Fresh cherries may be scattered over waffles, pancakes, or pound cake.