I never feel I’ve made the best use of summer fruits. No matter how many stone fruit or berries I eat, cook with or freeze, I feel that I could have done more. This year’s been no exception, especially since I was a little out of commission during the best weeks for berries. I did manage to roast cherries though. I’m going to be doing it again before they disappear for another year.
Roasting fruit brings out the sugars and deepens the flavour, without turning it into mush. It’s also a good way to use fruit that’s just past its peak. Mostly, though, it’s just good. I’ve used it in yogurt, over ice cream, and just right out of the jar. My next plan is to use it as a tart filling, perhaps with custard. If I were the sort of person to make cocktails, the syrup would make a great addition. I suppose you could also stir it into soda water. Something like this salad would be really lovely, too.
I sort of improvised these, based on two sources: the kitchn‘s roasted cherry recipe and 101 Cookbooks‘s roasted strawberry recipe.
I whisked together equal parts of maple syrup and olive oil, with a little bit of sea salt. I then added about a 1/8 tsp. nutmeg and four shredded basil leaves. I tossed the cherries in this and then roasted them at 450° for ten minutes, then added a couple of tablespoons of cognac and put them back in for another five minutes. After they’d cooled, I removed the pits. The cherries keep for a few days in the fridge and freeze well. Slow-roasting is another great method for these, too.
I’m sort of curious to see what would happen if instead of basil and nutmeg, I used a little bit of cocoa powder. Maybe I’d leave the nutmeg in. I’d love to hear your ideas for other flavours that would work well with these, or your experiments with roasting other kinds of fruit.
One Wet Foot 
I’ve never heard of roasted cherries, but they look lovely. I don’t think I’ve ever made the most of summer fruits either… but that is changing for me this year also.
Thanks for stopping by. I look forward to checking out what you’re doing with summer fruits.
Teresa, I’ve never heard of roasted cherries but they look so wonderful! I could use some over my vanilla ice cream. Yum! I have a bag of cherries in my fridge right now…I was thinking of a clafoutis but maybe I’ll have to give these a try!
Do try these – they’re really good! Though clafoutis is really good, too. Let me know how it goes.
I’ve never roasted fruits before but your description and photos of the cherries are lovely.
Thanks, Ker-Yng. It’s worth trying and I bet your kids would like it – sans the cognac, of course!
I saw Heidi’s Roasted Strawberries in her new cookbook and I have been wanting to try it because I have never roasted fruit before. After roasting tomatoes, I can imagine how wonderful roasted fruit would taste. Cherries are one of the fruits we can’t get here all year, so I would like to try this. Yours look and sound wonderful!
I have her first cookbook and love it – her new one is on my To Buy list (along with Ottolenghi).
Hi Teresa, I’ve roasted strawberries and served them with a rose flavored sorbet. I’m thinking your roasted cherries would be lovely with a sorbet for a light dessert! They sound wonderful all by themselves;-)
I like the idea of roasted strawberries with rose sorbet – sounds heavenly! I think the cherries would be great with a sorbet, too. They are wonderful by themselves, too – not that I’ve tested them all that much. 😉