Seasonal Spotlight: Cherries

I always know summer's around the corner when cherries start showing up. I love these little globes of juicy red fruit. I usually consume them all before I can actually use them in other recipes, but last year, I invested in a cherry pitter and made a batch of cherry jam, which was lovely to have in the winter.

I've never made a cherry pie before, so I'm going to try that this week. Good thing I own a cherry pitter!

Cherries originated in the area around Anatolia (Turkey) and were brought to Europe by the Romans. They brought them from an area in northern Turkey that they called Cerasus (present-day Giresun.) The English, French, and Spanish words for "cherry" are derivatives from "Cerasus." Today, Giresun has a cherry in its coat of arms. Turkey remains the top-producing cherry nation these days. Henry VIII brought cherries to England after tasting them for the first time in Flanders.

Cherries are good for you - they contain antioxidants and vitamins.

Some Wonderful Cherry Recipes To Try:
Recipe: Roasted Cherries
Small-Batch Canning: Making Cherry Preserves
Ten Cherry Recipes For June
Ice Cream Alternative: Tart Red Cherry Granita from Saveur
Award-Winning Pie! Tom's Cheery Cherry Cherry Berry Pie

(Image: Kathryn Hill)

Comments (9)

I used to use a hand-held cherry pitter, but when you are processing a lot of cherries -- say, enough for a clafouti or a pie -- it still takes forever, and your hands are stained purple/black long after your oeuvre has been consumed.

THIS is the cherry pitter to get -- it's also a Leifheit. Pits a pie-worth of cherries in just a few minutes, no fuss and no muss.

Hey, we have a very productive cherry tree, and I've finally found a way to manage all those cherries!

http://www.pastrychef.com/CHERRY-PITTER-PRO_p_1119.html

Make sure and purchase ORGANIC cherries. They are pretty high on the "Dirty Dozen" list so they are loaded with pesticide residue (due to their soft, absorbing skin)

I might finally break down and get a cherry pitter. Slicing them all in half and popping the pits out with my thumb is growing tiresome.

Though, an extremely wise woman told me a few nights ago, when talking about plum jam, "just count all the plums first, so you know how many pits to pick out after." Blew my mind. Would work for cherry jam as well.

I have heard you can use a paper clip if you don't want to spring for a pitter.

If you don't want to bother pitting at all, some old pie recipes I have leave the pits in, because they supposedly add a nice almondy flavor. Of course, then your pie eating will be punctuated by "ptooeys."

How I wish I had a cherry tree!!

I like to make cherry compote with unpitted cherries and freeze it for winter, and it does indeed give a vaguely almondy spicy flavor.

Last summer, I got a bit carried away at the U-pick and ended up with some 20 pounds of tart cherries. After pitting about half of them, laboriously, with a knife, I sleuthed around the kitchen until I found what proved to be a total finger-saver...a pastry tip. (I used an Ateco 804, but I'm guessing that any one with an end about the diameter of a cherry pit would work.) I just pressed the tip up through the bottom of each cherry; the pit popped out the top, leaving just a clean channel through the center. I'm still a little amazed at how beautifully it worked.

Oh, and the Joy of Cooking recipe for cherry pie was a real favorite in my house.

I just picked up a quart each of sweet cherries and sour cherries, and then realized I didn't have a cherry pitter! Oh well... knife and fingers may have to do. Or perhaps I'll just eat them out of hand. :)

I just pitted 4 lbs of cherries with a paperclip and it was very easy. Not messy, does not mangle the fruit. I made cherry jam with the cherries and I am sure that it won't last until winter, so delish.

paperclip directions:
http://auntbeesgarden.blogspot.com/2010/06/pitting-cherries-with-paper-clip.html