why can life be a bowl of cherries?
Some very odd things are done with cherries. In Alsace, a warm cherry soup, served slightly sweet, is a traditional starter at Christmas Eve dinner. Not to my taste, though I’m sure they know what they’re doing. On the other hand, offer me a sweet, cold cherry soup for dessert – well, now you’re talking, especially if it’s served with an iced parfait. Maybe even a clove parfait. Does that sound odd to you? Maybe, but cherries and cloves are a classic combination and a must if you’re planning to make pickled cherries, which is one way of extending the season of this wonderfully fleshy, juicy fruit. Another, better way is to freeze them, a trick I learnt from my mum. You just take the pips out, lay the cherries flat on a tray and freeze ’em, simple as that. It’s not only the most effective way of retaining their flavour, it provides the most compelling reason I know to make black forest cake in winter. And there’s nothing odd about that. TIPS Cold weather last year has delayed the cherry
