I never really liked cherries as a kid. But then again, I never had a fresh cherry as a kid.
Those jarred things are SO not the same as a fresh cherry! Fresh cherries are juicy, flavorful, and so delicious! The cherries you find in a jar have had all sorts of sugar added to them and it’s such a shame because fresh cherries have a natural sweetness all their own – without any additional sweeteners added.
In addition to just grabbing cherries by the handful and eating them, I love cooking with fresh cherries as well. They’re perfect roasted, in baked goods, and even in a sorbet – like today’s recipe!
When are Cherries in Season?
Northwest cherries are in season from June to the end of August. These cherries are generally picked, packed, and on the retailers’ shelves within two days of harvest. You can’t get much more fresh than that!
What Type of Cherries are the Sweetest?
Since a cherry gets sweeter the longer it’s on the tree, the red, Northwest Cherries are known for their naturally high sugar content that results from extended hang time on the tree. With the exception of Rainier cherries, the darker the exterior usually means a sweeter flavor.
How do you Take the Seeds out of Cherries Quickly and Easily?
When I first started wanted to de-pit cherries, I watched a video on Youtube showing a cherry put on the mouth of a bottle and using a skewer, the person pushed the cherry pit out of the cherry into the bottle. I tried it. It worked. But in order to make a cherry pie or something that requires a lot of cherries, I was not about to use that process that many times.
I began a search online for a cherry pitter, but even that was just one cherry at a time (although still WAY easier than the bottle trick). So I de-pitted my cherries one at a time until I found this gem. This cherry pitter removes the pit out of 6 cherries at a time – and is so easy to use that I put my kids in charge of using it. I love it!
How do you Roast Cherries?
Roasting cherries is super simple! All you need is 3 ingredients: cherries, sugar, and salt. Use the recipe below to make yours! They can be put on top of ice cream, mixed into a salad, or just eaten right off the hot pan…I wouldn’t know about that or anything *wink wink*.
How to Roast Cherries
Ingredients
- 1 lb cherries pitted
- 2 tablespoons raw sugar
- pinch of salt
Instructions
- Put cherries in a baking dish and sprinkle with sugar and a pinch of salt.
- Bake in a 400 degree F preheated oven for about 10-15 minutes until juices have released and start to become. Watch carefully that the juices don't burn.
- The cherries will be done when they're releasing juices and starting to burst.
If you’d like to use those roasted cherries for a sweet summertime treat, try this recipe for basil and cherry sorbet! It’s so delicious with the sweet cherries and a light hint of basil. It’s a great way to cool off this Summer!
Basil & Cherry Sorbet
Ingredients
- 1 lb Roasted Cherries (see above for instructions)
- ¾ cup sugar
- ¾ cup water
- 4 leaves fresh basil
- 4 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
- few pinches salt
Instructions
- Combine sugar and water in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Turn off heat. Put in basil leaves and let cool. Remove basil leaves.
- Puree Roasted Cherries, sugar syrup, lemon juice, and few pinches salt in a food processor until smooth.
- Taste and add more lemon if necessary. Strain through a fine mesh strainer.
- Chill in refrigerator several hours until very cold or overnight.
- Churn in ice cream maker until thick, about 20 minutes.
- Transfer to a freezable container and freeze for 4 hours until firm.
- Enjoy!
Products Used
Check out these other cherry recipes!
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