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Cherries, cherries, and more cherries

Posted at 2:22 PM on July 7, 2008 by Paulette Thompson (9 Comments)

"Just so you know," the clerk at my co-op remarked as he rang up my produce, "the bagged cherries in your basket are $13.00. Do you still want them? A lot of people balk at the price."

Did I still want them? Did I still want them? Readers, I bought them.
"You won't be sorry," the clerk said.
I wasn't. Those cherries were wonderful.

We keep talking about strawberries. Now it is time to talk about cherries. Washington State cherries IN SEASON are incredible. I keep buying these organic local treats. I love raw cherries. I have been eating them almost every day. They are worth the price.

When I try to control myself in the morning, I eat them for breakfast, stirred into yoghurt. A nice salad for dinner with cherries, fresh greens, a fresh cheese, hazelnuts, and a drizzle of a dressing works for me. When I put the washer back on the blender so that I can use it again, I can imagine blending the cherries with some ice cream.

I have eaten two bags of Rainier cherries without sharing with family or friends. These cherries have an even shorter season than bing and other varieties. For those of you who have never seen or eaten one, they are red and golden on the outside, Their flesh is a gorgeous yellow. http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0706/p12s01-lifo.html In fact, I will alternate munching one variety of cherry with a couple of Rainier cherries.

Although I prefer my cherries raw, I will eat them in a cooked or dried format--in pies, jams, applesauce, granola, and savory creations prepared by other people. I don't always have an appreciation for most of these delights. Whenever I eat a superlative cherry pie, I am amazed. Perhaps it is a choice of variety. Maybe some work better than others in certain recipes.

What is the best way to freeze cherries? Can you make cherry freezer jam? What are those piemakers doing to the fruit they are using? Do any of you have any recipes to share?

Comments (9)

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Paulette,

I'm so jealous! We have cherries in the stores here, but nothing local. I'm still waiting. Your love of cherries reminds me of all the ways to eat strawberries. Enjoy!!

April

Posted by April | July 8, 2008 10:40 AM

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Here in Portland, OR my husband and I are eagerly anticipating the advent of PIE cherries. I love sweet cherries to eat out of hand, but the small soft tart pie cherries, with their intense flavor are what we are waiting for. I'll make some tangy cold cherry soup--so refreshing on a hot summer evening. My husband will brew a batch of pie cherry porter--mmmmmm! We'll pit a few pounds (my favorite way is with a small paper clip) to freeze for use in pies and sauces. To freeze the cherries, rinse them well, then pit and stem them, and place on waxed lined cookie sheet in a single layer. Freeze solid, then transfer to a sealable plastic bag or container.

Posted by Bobbie | July 9, 2008 10:57 AM

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Bobbie, thanks for the advice on freezing cherries. I'll be doing that soon. I'd like to try that cherry soup you mentioned. Which cherry makes the best pie?
April, when do the local cherries appear in your neck of the woods? Let us know when they arrive!
Paulette

Posted by P. Thompson | July 9, 2008 2:11 PM

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Cherry season just hit here about a two weeks ago - while I am not a big cherry fan, since becoming a locavore, it has become one of the summer's highlights! I am like you Paulette - eating them raw every day. Someone at work baked a couple of cherry pies but by the time I got to work, they were all gone so may have to figure out how to bake them myself.

I like the idea of freezing them - has anyone every dried them?

Posted by Scott | July 11, 2008 4:05 PM

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I am still eating those raw cherries. The last two bags did not get frozen because I ate them. All of them.
I had planned on hitting the farmers' market today, but I am just getting out of my class now.

Scott, I hope we get good info on how to dry them. I wonder which varieties work best. I have eaten some very tasty dried cherries and I have also had some that needed to be mixed with another fruit!

Paulette

Posted by P. Thompson | July 12, 2008 1:39 PM

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Dear Paulette,

Hello, my name is Cindi, and I live in Utah, I've been eating local for about 5 years now. I mostly steam or eat my food raw. I also believe that the only way to be connected to the land, (since we are all live versions of it anyway) is to grow something, anything. There is an old Indian legend that states: " to know the people of any land, you must first eat their food". I'm not talking the high processed food found in our local grocery stores either. Our Country's addition to sugar is HUGE! I'ts good to hear that people are getting in touch with this issue. I should also note that I did my first half marathon last year in Moab, Uthat and I'm 49 yeares old. Eat Well,
Cindi

Posted by Cindi | July 13, 2008 7:58 PM

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We go to the orchard and u-pick our cherries... and usually buy about 20 lbs. Then I come home and have a cherry massacre in my livingroom with the cherry pitter, a plastic-bag-lined box and a good amount of "drop cloth" material (usually newspapers). Then I freeze them in zip-loc freezer bags (sucking the air out) and they stay good for over a year in my freezer. They are especially good in smoothies with Nancy's Yogurt, but I also use them on vanilla ice cream (topped with Cocoa nibs... divine!), and then in pies and treats.

Pitting them makes all of their uses post-freeze really easy. ;) But it makes a BIG mess as the juicy ripe cherries "splatter" a bit, and the Royal Anne's are so dark that they stain pretty bad.

Posted by Leah | July 14, 2008 8:53 AM

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Leah, thanks for the advice. Having friends and family involved in the processing will make it more fun.

Scott, I saw in a magazine that there is such a thing as dried cherry butter in Michigan. I did see a recipe for dried strawberry jam in Ivy Manning's book, The Farm to Table Cookbook : The Art of Eating Locally.

Cindy, it is so great to know that local eating is revitalizing. The older generation knew what they were talking about: "You are what you eat."
As my stepfather put it when I grew up, "Your friends who eat at Jack in the Box all of the time will end up with a jack in the box brain."

Posted by P. Thompson | July 16, 2008 3:32 PM

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I've been what is now popularly called a localvore (though not exclusively)for decades; growing a lot of food, fishing and clamming, rasiing poultry, keeping bees, foraging wild food and preserving.

Bings are very nice dried, made into a spicy chutney, or butter or jam, brandy and vinegar.

They are not so good for pies. What you want for pies are pie cherries, which are a bright scarlet color and fairly tart. You can sometimes buy pie cherries, grow them, or use wild cherries (I often do this).

Note: if you are planning on putting by a lot of food a vacuum sealer is a good investment. It will keep the food from freezer burn and your provisions will keep longer and in better quality.

If you have a separate freezer with a lock, lock it. If something shifts and you've left the door ajar, you've lost your winter food.

Also, you may want to consider (perhaps with friends) the purchase of a generator. In our area the power goes out frequently enought that it's a threat. We can get along fine with a well, wood back up heat and propane stove, but even a full freezer will need to be recharged within two to three days.

Posted by SE White | July 20, 2008 10:29 AM