We just took delivery of 15 pounds of Rainier cherries and are they ever delicious! For those of you who may not be familiar with Rainiers, they are the yellow and red cherries that cost a mint. Although they are very, very good, so are Bings and I have never understood why the Rainier cherries were so much more costly. Then I came across this information on the internet:
“In the past decade, the Rainier has grown from niche fruit in the Pacific Northwest to one of the most popular and priciest cherries in the world. Since Washington State University scientist Harold Fogle first crossed two sweet, red varieties, the Bing and the Van, in 1952, the resulting soft, sweet blush of the Rainier—which gets its name from the monarch mountain of the Cascade Range—has become popular as far afield as Britain, Europe, Australia and Japan.”
When reading about the Rainier cherries growing habits and their need for a great deal of TLC, one begins to understand the high price they command—and then when eating them, one truly appreciates this outstanding fruit. Rainiers are very susceptible to temperature, rain, wind and, in particular, birds. “The odds change daily, even hourly, with every shift in temperature, gust of wind or downpour of rain. If the temperature reaches 90, the cherry loses a day of life. If the wind blows too hard, the cherry bruises from rubbing against another cherry. If it rains more than a day, the cherry bursts its skin. This is not to mention the quarter to a third of a crop that goes to the birds, which leave clusters of pits hanging on stems.”
Cherries of all kinds are very high in vitamins A and C and antioxidants. They contain the same amount of antioxidants as blueberries and another powerful antioxidant not found in blueberries called anthocyanins that are thought to possess anti-inflammatory and anti-aging properties.
So back to my 15 pounds of Rainiers—knowing now that I have a small gold mine I was worried about how to preserve them. Of course, we ate a lot of them in the first couple of days, just as they are, fresh and sweet. But I am very pleased that they are imminently freezable and don’t take too much work to prep for freezing. Pitting is about all you need to do and then pack them in freezer bags. You certainly can prepare a simple syrup to put them in, but it isn’t necessary. One caveat: be sure the pitted cherries are completely dry before packing them in bags. Once frozen, they are extremely useful in a great many recipes and also delicious as a snack—just slightly thawed. Here are a few ways to try them. (Bing cherries will work just fine in any of these recipes).
Fresh Cherry Lemonade (makes 2 quarts)
1 cup sugar
1 cup water
1 pound fresh or frozen and thawed sweet cherries, washed and pitted (about 2 cups)
1 cup fresh lemon juice
6 cups cold water
Heat sugar and 1 cup water in a small pot until sugar dissolves. Add 1 cup cherries, bring to a boil and boil until the cherries begin to soften, about two to three minutes. Set aside to cool. Strain cooled cherry syrup into a large pitcher, pressing on the cherries to release their juices. Add lemon juice and cold water. Stir in all remaining cherries. Pour over ice and garnish with fresh mint.
Rainier Cherry Thumbprint Cookies
Cherry Jam
1 pound fresh Rainier (or Bing can be substituted) cherries, washed and pitted (about 2 cups)
1/8 cup water
1 tsp. lemon juice
1 tsp. grated lemon zest
1 cup sugar
Cookie Dough
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
¾ cup sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla or almond extract
2 cups flour
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Make Jam: Combine cherries and water in a small pot and simmer over low heat until fruit is tender, about 10 minutes. Add lemon juice, zest and sugar and stir gently until sugar dissolves. Bring to a boil and boil rapidly for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until thick and syrupy. Pour into a shallow bowl and cool (or, alternately, refrigerate) until jam is set. This can be made a day ahead.
For cookies: Beat butter and sugar with an electric mixer until creamy. Beat in egg and vanilla or almond extract. Add flour and mix until just combined. Form dough into 1-inch balls and arrange on an ungreased cookie sheet. Using your thumb, make an impression in the center of each ball. Fill each cookie with cherry jam making sure each has a cherry in the center. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, until the dough is set and lightly browned on bottom. Remove from pan and cool on a wire rack. Makes two to three dozen cookies.
Note: For more uniform cookies, refrigerate the dough for 30 minutes before forming into balls.
“In the past decade, the Rainier has grown from niche fruit in the Pacific Northwest to one of the most popular and priciest cherries in the world. Since Washington State University scientist Harold Fogle first crossed two sweet, red varieties, the Bing and the Van, in 1952, the resulting soft, sweet blush of the Rainier—which gets its name from the monarch mountain of the Cascade Range—has become popular as far afield as Britain, Europe, Australia and Japan.”
When reading about the Rainier cherries growing habits and their need for a great deal of TLC, one begins to understand the high price they command—and then when eating them, one truly appreciates this outstanding fruit. Rainiers are very susceptible to temperature, rain, wind and, in particular, birds. “The odds change daily, even hourly, with every shift in temperature, gust of wind or downpour of rain. If the temperature reaches 90, the cherry loses a day of life. If the wind blows too hard, the cherry bruises from rubbing against another cherry. If it rains more than a day, the cherry bursts its skin. This is not to mention the quarter to a third of a crop that goes to the birds, which leave clusters of pits hanging on stems.”
Cherries of all kinds are very high in vitamins A and C and antioxidants. They contain the same amount of antioxidants as blueberries and another powerful antioxidant not found in blueberries called anthocyanins that are thought to possess anti-inflammatory and anti-aging properties.
So back to my 15 pounds of Rainiers—knowing now that I have a small gold mine I was worried about how to preserve them. Of course, we ate a lot of them in the first couple of days, just as they are, fresh and sweet. But I am very pleased that they are imminently freezable and don’t take too much work to prep for freezing. Pitting is about all you need to do and then pack them in freezer bags. You certainly can prepare a simple syrup to put them in, but it isn’t necessary. One caveat: be sure the pitted cherries are completely dry before packing them in bags. Once frozen, they are extremely useful in a great many recipes and also delicious as a snack—just slightly thawed. Here are a few ways to try them. (Bing cherries will work just fine in any of these recipes).
Fresh Cherry Lemonade (makes 2 quarts)
1 cup sugar
1 cup water
1 pound fresh or frozen and thawed sweet cherries, washed and pitted (about 2 cups)
1 cup fresh lemon juice
6 cups cold water
Heat sugar and 1 cup water in a small pot until sugar dissolves. Add 1 cup cherries, bring to a boil and boil until the cherries begin to soften, about two to three minutes. Set aside to cool. Strain cooled cherry syrup into a large pitcher, pressing on the cherries to release their juices. Add lemon juice and cold water. Stir in all remaining cherries. Pour over ice and garnish with fresh mint.
Rainier Cherry Thumbprint Cookies
Cherry Jam
1 pound fresh Rainier (or Bing can be substituted) cherries, washed and pitted (about 2 cups)
1/8 cup water
1 tsp. lemon juice
1 tsp. grated lemon zest
1 cup sugar
Cookie Dough
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
¾ cup sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla or almond extract
2 cups flour
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Make Jam: Combine cherries and water in a small pot and simmer over low heat until fruit is tender, about 10 minutes. Add lemon juice, zest and sugar and stir gently until sugar dissolves. Bring to a boil and boil rapidly for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until thick and syrupy. Pour into a shallow bowl and cool (or, alternately, refrigerate) until jam is set. This can be made a day ahead.
For cookies: Beat butter and sugar with an electric mixer until creamy. Beat in egg and vanilla or almond extract. Add flour and mix until just combined. Form dough into 1-inch balls and arrange on an ungreased cookie sheet. Using your thumb, make an impression in the center of each ball. Fill each cookie with cherry jam making sure each has a cherry in the center. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, until the dough is set and lightly browned on bottom. Remove from pan and cool on a wire rack. Makes two to three dozen cookies.
Note: For more uniform cookies, refrigerate the dough for 30 minutes before forming into balls.
No comments:
Post a Comment