tk

7 September 2018

Welcome friends. It has been a while since I shared a recipe. I've been working on recipes but it has been a combination of things that have stopped me from sharing. Part of it was file management, part of it was not being able to focus on the writing, and part of it was creating images that did not make me happy.

Today, I want to share my recipe for cherries in bourbon. This recipe is a convergence of a few ideas. I have been making liqueurs for many years. I have tried to make one using cherries, but I have never been happy with the result.

I love fresh cherries in the summer time. I discovered a recipe for pickled cherries in The Gramercy Tavern Cookbook and it seemed like a great way to extend my cherry season. I made this a few times, but there were a couple of things that I wanted to change. I did not love the combination of vinegar and cherry juice, and I did not like leaving the cherries whole with the pits in them.

It took me a while to come up with a substitute for vinegar. There is still a little in this recipe, but at some point I had an ah-ha moment and thought that the flavors in bourbon would be great with dark cherries. I also thought that the bourbon might preserve the cherries similar to the vinegar.

The key to making these is low heat for a short period of time. You don't want the alcohol to burn off and the cherries need a little exposure to heat to release their juice.

There are a couple of ways that I use this. It is fantastic to drizzle a little over a slice of cheesecake. I also like to combine ¼ cup of this with a 12 oz bottle of Allagash White beer. These will last for several months stored in your refrigerator. Still, I am always sad when they are gone.

Show More

Cherries in Bourbon

30 min. prep time | 13 min. cooking time | 2 hrs cool time

cherries in boubon

Ingredients

makes about 1 quart

  • 1 1/2 pounds dark cherries, about 4 cups, halved and pitted
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1 clove
  • 1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
  • 1 cup bourbon (I use Wild Turkey 81 proof)
  • 1/4 cup red wine vinegar

Directions

prep the cherries. Stem the cherries. Use a paring knife to cut the cherries in half. Remove the pits with your thumb or the knife. Set the cherries aside.

combine the sugar, clove, bourbon, and vinegar in a medium, non-reactive, sauce pan. Cut the vanilla bean in half, lengthwise, and scrape the seeds into the mixture. Add the vanilla bean. Stir the mixture a few times with a wooden spoon to loosen the sugar from the bottom of the pan.

heat the liquid over medium-low heat to disolve the sugar, stirring the mixture frequently. This should take about 5 minutes.

add the cherries and set a timer for 8 minutes. Continue to stir the mixture once or twice every minute. Remove the pan from heat when the timer goes off.

pour the mixture into a large heat-proof bowl and cover with a plate. Let this cool for 2 hours or overnight. Once the mixture has cooled, discard the vanilla bean. Place the cherries and juice in a quart jar. I use wide-mouth canning jars. Cover the jar and store in the refrigerator.