Homemade Brandied Cherries are far easier to make than one would think and requires only two ingredients in the making.
At the very start of cherry season and after first gorging on these sweet crunchy cherries till our tummies protest, we love preserving this wonderful fruit for the upcoming months.
Aside from canning, freezing or even dehydrating fruits, did you know that you can also preserve them in pure alcohol?
It’s a brilliant way of capturing the essence and flavour of this sweet fruit. One that stretches way beyond the summer season while rewarding us with its blissful tastes.
What I know about homemade brandied cherries I owe to my father-in-law who would happily gift us jars of preserved cherries for the holidays!
We would often serve and savour them after an elaborate, Italian style dinner surrounded by family or good friends.
They’re surprisingly crunchy to the bite with a drunken boozy taste and a pure delight!
My father-in-law had a golden rule to crunchy boozy cherries: Choose firm dark sweet cherries with no visible cracks in them and clip the stem while leaving a quarter of it intact.
By doing so the cherries retain their firmness while soaking up the delicate brandy!
What you’ll need for preserving cherries
Much as the title implies, all you’ll need are some sweet cherries and a good Brandy.
But it doesn’t have to be the most expensive Brandy here! As long as it has a lovely delicate flavour then it will do just perfectly.
You’ll want to keep this in mind because we definitely get what we pay for. And besides, you’ll most certainly be drinking the cherry brandy once it’s infused with the dark crimson hue of the cherries of course.
How to make Brandied Cherries Recipe
- Choose firm dark red sweet cherries with no visible cracks or blemishes (cracked and bruised cherries will spoil the batch)
- Rinse the cherries and lay them out on a clean dishcloth
- Pat them down to dry with a dishcloth
- Clip the cherry stems while leaving a quarter of the stem intact
- Fill jars with cherries
- Pour the brandy over the cherries, taking care to fully submerge the cherries in the alcohol
- Place the lids on the jars and refrigerate for at least 4 weeks before consuming
What to do with Brandied Cherries
- Use the brandied cherries to garnish cocktails
- Top over your favourite desserts such as ice cream, puddings or serve alongside a pound cake
- Or simply serve as an after dinner drink in a liquor glass with a couple of the boozy cherries
Cheers!
Another preserving recipe you might enjoy throughout the winter season:
Homemade Brandied Cherries
Equipment
- 4, 500ml Canning Jars or any size jars of your choice.
Ingredients
- 1 750ml bottle of Brandy
- 1 1/2 - 2 pounds Bing Cherries approximately
Instructions
- Rinse cherries under cold running water and lay out in a single layer on a clean dish cloth.
- Pat the cherries dry.
- Using a scissor, clip the stem of the cherry while leaving approximately a quarter of the stem intact. (leaving the stem intact ensures a firm and crunchy cherry)
- Fill the jars with the cherries while leaving some head space in the jars.
- Pour the brandy over the cherries, making sure the cherries are completely submerged.
- Put the lids on the jars and refrigerate for 4 weeks before consuming. (If you can resist that long)
- This allows for the cherries to be infused with brandy flavour while the brandy intensifies with the crimson red hue of the cherries.
- Serve as an after dinner digestif
Notes