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Cherries in Brandy

A syrup of cherries steeped in brandy, sweetened and strained for later use.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 5 ingredients
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Why it works: Cinnamon and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 10% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 30,779 recipes. Both carry guaiacol, which smells smoky, sweet. The science ↓

Cherries in Brandy

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare

  1. Cut off half the stems from the cherries and wash them in cold water.

  2. Drain the cherries on a sieve and place them in glasses.

Steep

  1. Fill the glasses with brandy and add a little broken cinnamon to each bottle.

  2. Seal the bottles tightly and let them sit for one to two months.

Strain and sweeten

  1. Afterward, separate the cherries from the brandy and measure the brandy.

  2. For every pint of brandy, add four ounces of pounded sugar, stir until dissolved, and strain through a flannel bag until clear.

  3. Pour the clear syrup over the cherries for later use.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Cinnamon + sugartop 10% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together30,779 recipes

    Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).

  2. Brandy + cinnamontop 14% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together3,199 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethyl cinnamate (sweet, balsamic).

  3. Brandy + sugartop 19% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together11,939 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).

Cinnamon and sugar barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 30,779 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Fine morello cherries
Supply the main fruit flavour and colour to the brandy as they steep.
Brandy
Acts as the solvent that extracts flavour from the cherries and preserves the fruit.
Cinnamon
Adds warm, aromatic spice notes to the steeped liquor.
Pounded sugar
Sweetens the liquor and softens the sharp edge of the strong spirit.

The step that matters

Dissolve the sugar fully before straining. Sugar must dissolve completely in the brandy so it does not crystallise or cloud the liquor. Stirring thoroughly and then straining through a flannel bag gives a clear, evenly sweetened result.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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