Preserved Cherries
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Stone the cherries by loosening them around the stalk with a knife and pulling out the stone.
Make the syrup and soak
Boil the sugar and water together, then add the cherries.
Boil gently for about 10 minutes.
Pour the mixture into a basin and let it sit for 24 hours.
Drain off the syrup, boil it again, and pour it over the cherries.
Let sit for 4 more days.
Boil and dry
Boil the syrup with an additional ½ lb. of sugar, then add the cherries.
Boil for 10 minutes.
Place the cherries on a sieve to dry in the sun or a warm place.
Dust with fine sugar.
Wash, dry and glaze
Wash the cherries in warm water.
Dry them on a sieve in the stove.
Brush with a little syrup to glaze.
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
What each ingredient does
- Cherries
- The fruit itself; it softens in the syrup and becomes the preserved main element.
- Sugar
- Draws water out of the fruit and sweetens it, helping preserve it as the syrup penetrates.
The step that matters
Boil gently for about 10 minutes. Vigorous boiling can split the cherry skins and toughen the flesh, while a gentle simmer lets the sugar syrup penetrate evenly and keeps the fruit whole.
“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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