Walking by our house, you would never know that tucked away in our (small) backyard is a backyard orchard. We grow cherries, peaches, apricots, and figs! Given where we live, our harvests are fickle, but some years, we experience a bumper crop. This year, our bumper crop is cherries.
Over the course of about three weeks, we filled our kitchen table, twice, with the bounty from our two cherry trees. Here’s a peek at just part of the crop from one tree!
When our trees bless us with an abundant crop of cherries, I do my best to preserve as much of the fruit as possible. The challenge with cherries is that, while delicious, you must pit every single one of them before you use them. It’s super tedious, even with a multi-cherry pitter, but the end result is well worth it. Over the years, I’ve tried a number of ways to save – and savor – our cherry crop. Here are my four favorite.
Make a Cherry Cocktail
The very first thing we do when we pick cherries is make cherry cocktails. Because the cocktails only require a handful of cherries, we can make them most years, even if the crop is small. My favorite cherry cocktail is this cherry vanilla bourbon smash. It’s #cocktailswithTimmy approved, too!
Make a Cherry Pie and Cherry Pie Filling
Next up, I make cherry pie filling and at least one pie. Years ago, I found this simple recipe for cherry pie filling. I make a huge batch and freeze it in mason jars in the freezer so we can enjoy cherry pie all year round. I also save some to make a fresh pie as well as just to enjoy with a spoon! Worth noting, I do not add the optional cinnamon, but I have, in the past, added a splash of vanilla.
Make Cherry Jam
Growing up, my grandma and grandpa had a sour cherry tree in their backyard and every year, my grandma made sour cherry jam. I loved it! This year, I decided to attempt to make my own cherry jam. Our cherries are sweet so it’s not quite the same, but it still has the rich cherry taste that I remember. I used this recipe, and let me tell you, this one takes patience, friends. I made a test batch which turned out perfectly. Boosted my success with the test batch, I proceeded to make a HUGE batch which turned out runny. Thankfully, you can reboil jam, even after you’ve canned it, so I was able to salvage most of it.
Enjoy the Cherries Fresh!
Finally, make sure to enjoy many of them fresh. Of course, you can simply snack away. But I also like adding cherries to savory dishes like the salad below. It makes the perfect quick and easy lunch.
Cherry Balsamic Kale Salad
2 cups shredded kale (I prefer Tuscan kale)
1 small cucumber, diced
1 stalk of celery, diced
2 tbsp slivered almonds
1/2-1 cup cherries, pitted and sliced
goat cheese crumbles
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
3 tbsp balsamic vinegar (I had a cherry balsamic but plain works perfectly fine!)
- Combine the veggies, almonds, and cherries in a bowl
- Whisk together the extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar until thick
- Toss the dressing with the salad. Add crumbled goat cheese if using
Of course, you can also enjoy fresh cherries in my Watermelon Cherry Berry and my Cherry Berry Beet smoothie – just add a cup of ice to keep the smoothie nice and frosty!
While it’s a lot of work, I’m so glad we’ll have cherry pie and cherry jam to enjoy through the winter!