Pickled Cherries & Burrata...Oh my!
I made pickled cherries years back on this blog, but never knew what to do with them......well, here is the solution, and a good one at that.
And once again, if you will allow me to swoon over Washington State cherries.
Thank you.
I always go on about NJ produce, since we are the "Garden State"....known for our delicious tomatoes, corn and peaches, but there is something about Washington cherries.
They are in season now, and taste like what cherries are supposed to taste like. CHERRIES.
Sorry New Jersey.
They were on sale at Whole Foods for 3.99 a lb, so I bought 6 lbs, pitted them....baked a cherry ricotta cake; ate some out of the bag; pickled 2 batches and froze the rest.
I found this recipe in Susan Spungen's new cookbook, Open Kitchen, and I knew I would be using my stash to make this.
I didn't have sumac, as the original recipe calls for, so did my own pickling mixture and was quite pleased with how it turned out.
I know it sounds weird to pickle cherries, but trust me, these are SO GOOD! You can put them over ice cream, or just eat them out of the jar.
I even made a cherry cocktail with vodka with the leftover pickled cherry juice! It was delicious!
Pickled Cherries with Burrata (loosely adapted from Susan Spungen's book OPEN KITCHEN:
1 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
6 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1/4 cup water
3 tablespoons sugar (original recipe calls for only 2)
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 sprigs fresh thyme
1 cinnamon stick
2 whole cloves (NOT garlic cloves!)
8 ounces (about 20) sweet cherries, pitted and cut in half
ball of burrata or fresh mozzarella
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves, preferably opal
Combine the first 8 ingredients in a small saucepan and boil until the sugar dissolves.
Add in the cherries to the pan and boil for 2 minutes only. Immediately transfer the cherries and pickling juices into a glass jar with tight fitting lid.
Let everything cool before putting the lid on and refrigerating.
Plate a ball of fresh mozzarella or burrata in the center and drizzle some of the pickled cherries around the cheese.
Sprinkle with sea salt and garnish with fresh basil leaves. This is quite a treat.
The jar of pickled cherries will last about a week in the fridge, if they last that long!
Comments
I love the frozen cherries in the winter to bake cakes......I have a freezer full......I love them!
Your posts are so enjoyable to read. Even if I am not going to make a particular recipe right now, I know it will be delicious when that day comes. Your recipes are always reliable and tasty. And your charming personality shines in your posts.
Today, I am so happy to live in Washington State, so I can buy cherries and try this recipe.
When the cherries are ripe but unpicked on the trees, farmers protect them from splitting if it rains, by hiring helicopters to blow the water off them with the rotor wash. That is how precious they are. Wouldn't those farmers love to know how much you appreciate their efforts?
Thank you for that nice comment. It makes it worthwhile when people appreciate what you do.
I truly love Washington cherries! I hesitate to tell my fellow New Jerseyans, because they will rush out and buy them all up!
I am snacking on them right now! So special.
xo Stacey
I did not answer your question...I use a steel pitter from Italy, it has a locking mechanism (like a Felco pruner).
It's good, not great, but it gets the job done!
Here is the pitter I use.....https://vermontkitchensupply.com/cherry-pitter/
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