Amarena Cherries

frankieolives added almost 2 years ago

i would:
1) happily pour it over vanilla or coconut gelato or ice cream
2)use it as the grenadine in a shirley temple or in a manhattan, depending on your age ; )
3) toss your stone fruit in it before you use it in a galette/tart for a je ne sais quoi?
4) pour a little in a glass, top with ice and fizzy water and call it an amarena soda
5) use it in your go-to balsamic vinaigrette, just a dash, for depth
6) glaze a squab during the final few minutes of roasting

the possibilities are endless!

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frankieolives added almost 2 years ago

ooohhh, here're more:

brush it in between the layers of your yellowcake, before you spread on your butter cream, or if you're doing a chocolate cake, brush it between layers and call it black forest.

whip into whipped cream for desserts, or tint your creme anglaise

brush it onto the steak that you are about to submit to this weeks contest during grilling...

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beyondcelery added almost 2 years ago

Thanks, frankieolives! I actually meant to MAKE the syrup myself. I have some Rainier cherries I want to try preserving in the syrup used for Amarenas. But I can't find a recipe for what's in the syrup.

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frankieolives added almost 2 years ago

lol. ohhhh! well, now we know what to do with our leftover amarena syrup ;)

i think the recipe is a secret, from what i understand anyway. hmmm, maybe try making a syrup with sugar, amaretto and lemon juice.....

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beyondcelery added almost 2 years ago

Indeed we do! Yes; I was beginning to get the sense this is a very well-kept secret recipe. I was hoping someone had managed to make up something similar. But apparently I'm going to have to do that myself. Yum. I like the amaretto suggestion.

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pierino is a trusted source on General Cooking and Tough Love.

added almost 2 years ago

Can't say for sure but I'm guessing it's just simple syrup, sugar and water, in which the cherries have macerated for a long time, releasing their flavor into the syrup. But amarena are a variety of bitter cherries, kind of unique to Italy.

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beyondcelery added almost 2 years ago

Thanks, pierino. I think you're probably right.

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I preserved the cherries in a bottle of vodka with caster sugar. By Christmas you have a magic liqueur. Also put cherries in a white wine vinegar for a great flavourd vinegar.

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beyondcelery added almost 2 years ago

Thanks for the idea, Paula G.! I ended up making a light syrup with vanilla sugar, water, and campari. When I get more cherries, I'll probably try a few variations on this. (I love to can.)

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Fresh red, sour cherries, lots of sugar, vinegar, lemon juice or balsamic, vanilla. Be sure to leave in some pits for the special flavor. Marinate for at least a month.

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