Beautiful. Gorgeous. Luscious.
These boozy cherries are all of the above.
I’ve been dreaming of making these boozy cherries for some time now. The very concept of them coming from a good friend, who makes them every year. She soaks cherries in brandy for about 6 months, so that they will be ready for the holiday season. Thank you so much Mrs. W., for introducing me to these glorious gems.
Now that I’ve made them, I don’t know why I waited so long.
They aren’t soaked in brandy, and there’s no way I’m going to be able to wait 6 months to eat them, but these cherries shouldn’t have had to wait for me. In fact, I’m almost ashamed to say that they were simple to make to boot.
Simply genius.
I have big plans for these cherries, and I’ll be making many more. I won’t be letting that delicious bourbon syrup go to waste either. Be sure to check back when I show you what I’m going to do with it.
As they are, these bourbon soaked cherries can be spooned over ice cream or warm cake for an adult treat.
Try to get fresh, local cherries when you can for the best results.
[Recipe] Boozy Bourbon Soaked Cherries
24 ounces cherries
24 ounces bourbon
6 Tbsp sugar
3 x 16 ounce jars with lids, sterilized
Rinse the cherries well. I chose cherries with stems intact, since I love the way they look, and I may just use those stems to dip the cherries later.
Pit the cherries. You can do this part by hand if you’d like. I chose to buy myself a cherry (and olive) pitter, by OXO. And what a great purchase that was. This cherry pitter made quick work of these pits, and didn’t miss a single one. That, my friends, is a great $12 purchase.
Set yourself up a little pitting station. Keep in mind that cherry juice will stain and it will be everywhere by the time you’re finished pitting.
To use the pitter, simply place the cherry in the concave cherry holder part (that’s the technical term). Press down. The pit comes right out the back side of the cherry.
Place the pitted cherries in sterilized jars.
On to the bourbon. I chose to use Jim Beam’s Red Stag Black Cherry Bourbon for these cherries. I like it because it’s really smooth tasting. I also liked that it already has a hint of cherry flavour right out of the bottle. Use whatever bourbon (or any other alcohol) you’d like.
Add the bourbon to a medium saucepan. Bring the bourbon and sugar to a boil over medium-high heat. You don’t want to bring it to a full heat, because you want to be careful not to let it ignite. Once boiling, reduce heat and simmer for about a minute, until the sugar is dissolved.
Ladle the hot bourbon sugar mixture into the jars, filling nearly to the top.
Cover the jars. Sterilize if desired, to help them last longer.
If unsterilized and you’d like to enjoy them immediately, these cherries will keep in the refrigerator for about 2 weeks.
If you can stay out of them that long.
Boozy Bourbon Soaked Cherries @TheFrillyApron
Ingredients
- 24 ounces cherries
- 24 ounces bourbon
- 6 Tbsp sugar
Instructions
- Rinse and pit the cherries.
- Place the pitted cherries in sterilized jars.
- Bring the bourbon and sugar to a low boil. Once boiling, reduce heat and simmer for about a minute, until the sugar is dissolved.
- Ladle the hot bourbon sugar mixture into the jars, filling nearly to the top.
- Cover the jars. Sterilize if desired, to help them last longer.
- If unsterilized, these cherries will keep in the refrigerator for about 2 weeks.
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