The All New Ball Book of Canning and Preserving (2016) has two interesting recipes for pie filling. One is a pear and sour cherry pie filling and the other (which I attempted last year with delicious but otherwise disastrous results discussed elsewhere) is the apple-pear-cranberry pie filling. Was recently gifted with two LARGE bags of dried cherries.

Can I substitute the dried cherries for the fresh tart red cherries in the first recipe? Can I substitute the dried cherries for the fresh or frozen cranberries in the second? If so, rehydrate the dried cherries first?

These are the ingredient lists:

Pear and Sour Cherry Pie Filling

• 3 c. sugar
• 2 t. cinnamon
• 3 3/4 pounds pears
• 2 1/2 pounds fresh tart red cherries
• 3 T. lemon juice

Apple Pear Cranberry Pie Filling

• 4 c. water
• 3/4 c. lemon juice
• 5 c. apples
• 5 c. pears
• 2 c. cranberries, fresh or frozen
• 2 1/2 c. sugar
• 1 t. cinnamon
• 1 t. nutmeg

Thanks for your help. sam