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Maraschino Cherries

Many drinks and baking recipes call for maraschino cherries.  Problem is what you can buy in the store is a very sad state of affairs and not at all like a maraschino cherry ought to taste or feel.  Effectively, there are two commercial manufacturers so maraschino cherries - one owns the commercial market, the other owns the consumer market.  Both use lye and other even less pleasant chemicals and artificial chemicals and sugar to produce the neon cherries you get in the store. 

Want to learn to make them yourself and impress your friends and dramatically improve your drinking experience? The key is maraschino liqueur - which is made from the pits of marasca cherries (which develops the almond flavor) and the juice of the cherries themselves.  All that results in maraschino liqueur.  You want to go out and find yourself a bottle of Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur.  Then we can begin.

Buy about a pound of fresh cherries, stems attached and pit them using a tool you can get off Amazon. 

Fill one or more standard canning jars with the cherries.  Then fill the voids by pouring the maraschino liqueur into the jars until they are completely full.  Pour the cherries and liqueur out of the jars and into a saucepan.  Bring the mixture to a boil and then reduce the heat to a low simmer.  Remove the saucepan from the stove and allow it all to cool to room temperature.

Evenly divide the cherries and the remaining liqueur between the original jars. Add one Tablespoon of vanilla to each jar for each pint of volume.  Top off with additional liqueur until completely full.  Lid the jars and set aside for at least two weeks.

Most people have a really hard time holding off tasting but you won’t, because I said so. After at least two weeks, test a few cherries.  Tell me what you find.

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May 13th, 2009 | Tags: , , | Category: Drinks, Ingredients |

16 comments to Maraschino Cherries

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