Here are some recipes that celebrate the simplicity and tart flavor of cherries in their red glory. If you don’t have cherry stocked up, grab a bunch and consider making cherry fillings, compotes, jams and two of the simplest desserts ever made with cherry, not as a garnish. Crumbles and muffins don’t get easier than this and both are super comforting desserts with a bit of crunch, savory element and tartness thrown in.
Which cherries to use for baking?
Cherries do come in different sizes and flavors based on their location, when they are picked and to some extent their color. But we're not getting into that, depending on the kind of recipe, cherries are used in different ways. The most popular perhaps are the glace cherries which are used as garnish and are the candied form of the cherries. A similar looking one, liqueur cherries, that are great to add in cakes like black forest cake, or sweets. These two are the most common preserved cherries besides which they are also used in their fresh form. When picking fresh cherries, go for the darker-colored ones and again, know which area they come from so you don't get a rude shock later. For example, the dark, plum-like, bigger cherries are super sweet as compared to the smaller red ones that will be more on the tart side. The latter are great additions to pies whereas the former is good for custard, puddings and sauces.
1. Cherry Crumble
Servings: 4
Ingredients
For the Filling:
- 30 gm all-purpose flour
- 30 gm granulated sugar
- 565 gm fresh or frozen sweet cherries, pitted
- 15 ml fresh lemon juice
- ¼ tsp vanilla extract
For the Topping:
- 120 gm all-purpose flour
- 30 gm granulated sugar
- 40 gm light brown sugar, packed
- Tiny pinch of salt
- 115 gm unsalted butter (cold and diced)
- 60 gm instant oats
- 120 gm sliced almonds, divided
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180°C, then work on the cherries, to remove their pits.
- To prepare the cherry filling, take a small bowl, in which mix flour, and white sugar. Set aside, for now. Take another bowl and toss cherries with lemon juice, and vanilla extract. Sprinkle flour-sugar mix over cherries, and coat them evenly. Then transfer the cherry mixture to the baking dish.
- Topping: Take a large bowl, and mix the flour, white sugar, brown sugar, and salt. Add diced cold butter, and use your fingers to form tiny nodule-like crumbly pieces. Transfer to a bowl, and mix in oats with your fingers, to form crumbs. Add half of the sliced almonds.
- Spread crumb topping over cherries in an oven-proof dish, then sprinkle the remaining sliced almonds on top.
- Bake uncovered for 45 minutes. Check once in a while to see if the almonds are golden and the crisp is bubbling cherry juices.
- Cool for 15-20 minutes before serving, the juices will thicken to make a thick crisp.
2. Cherry Muffins
Servings: 6
Ingredients
- 60 gm unsalted butter, melted
- 150 gm all-purpose flour, divided (15g for tossing with cherries)
- 100 gm sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 120 ml milk
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- Zest of 1 orange, finely grated
- 75 gm dried cherries
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200°C, then grease a 6-cup muffin tin with butter. Set aside and take a small bowl, in which toss dried cherries with 1 tbsp flour.
- Let’s get to the batter assembly now – mix flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Set aside and take another bowl, add the milk and egg and whisk. Put the liquid batter and orange zest, and mix again. Create a well at the center of the dry ingredients, and pour in wet ingredients in it. Using a spatula, fold quickly to make batter, don't overmix. Remember the floured dried cherries? Fold those in and mix once.
- Spoon batter into greased muffin cups, each cup should be no more than 3/4 full. This is optional, but you can sprinkle coarse sugar on top.
- Bake at 200°C for 20-25 minutes until golden. Check with a toothpick inserted in the centers - it should come out clean.
- Cool in the pan for 5-10 minutes, then remove to cool completely. Enjoy warm muffins right away or once cooled.