A Very Cherry Discovery

Yesterday I gave my friend a tour of Wegman’s Market from a gluten free point of view. She recently realized she was having issues with gluten and is in that difficult time of figuring out what is safe to eat… and what is NOT safe to eat! It was wonderful to walk along with her, chatting, and sharing my information. She’s a comfortable friend… the sort of person with whom grocery shopping together feels perfectly natural.

As we walked into the produce section, I glanced at the lovely cherries once again (see my post entitled “Cherries, Cherries Everywhere…” for more info), but sighed to myself. My last endeavor was, to say the least, slightly aggravating. The recipe itself was simple. It was the process of removing each and every pit from those juicy cherries that drove me batty. I ended up with a beautiful cherry crisp… and grossly stained fingers and fingernails.

So as I glanced at the cherries with my friend, I quickly dismissed the idea of attempting another cherry dessert. Sure, my husband loves them… and I love to make things he loves. But the labor and staining from the last dessert still lingered in my mind. Slowly, my eyes wandered over to the barrel next to the cherries. There, tucked in the back of the barrel was a sign that read: “Cherry Pitter, $12.99.”

Life is not the same, folks.

I’m not huge on kitchen gadgets. I like a good, sharp knife. Measuring cups and spoons. Once in a while I’ll get out the old garlic press instead of mincing my garlic by hand. But I can honestly say that if you are a cherry lover… you must go right now (wait – finish reading first) and get yourself a cherry pitter.

My handy dandy new little friend pops that pit out like it’s nobody’s business. It literally took a sliver of the amount of time it took me last time to pit and cut up four cups of cherries. In fact, this time my 7-year-old daughter did it for me… and it STILL took only a sliver of the amount as last time.

Run. Now. Buy yourself a cherry pitter… and some cherries, while you're at it. And since you'll need a reason to use your brand new cherry pitter... how about a Cherry Cobbler?

Cherry Cobbler

1 ½ cups plus 1 ½ Tbsp gluten free all-purpose flour (I used King Arthur brand)

¾ tsp xanthan gum

1 ½ cups sugar, divided

¼ tsp salt

1 ½ tsp baking powder

¾ tsp cinnamon

1 egg, beaten

1 ½ sticks butter, melted

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 ½ cups milk

4 cups of pitted cherries, cut in half

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x13 baking pan with non-stick cooking spray.

In a large bowl, whisk together the 1 ½ cups of flour, xanthan gum, ¾ cup of sugar, salt, baking powder and cinnamon. Whisk in the egg, melted butter, vanilla and milk until smooth.

In a medium bowl, stir together the cherries, remaining ¾ cup of sugar and 1 ½ Tbsp of flour. Dump the cherries into the baking pan and spread evenly.

Pour the batter evenly over the cherries.

Bake until slightly browned on top, about 45-50 minutes. Cool 10-15 minutes, then dust with powdered sugar. Serve warm with whipped cream or ice cream… or plain!

Cherries, Cherries Everywhere, But Nary-A-One to Spare

I went grocery shopping yesterday and came across some lovely cherries. I hastily grabbed them and added the bag to my cart, not thinking twice about what I would do with them. (Yes, I am an impulse shopper. It’s a dangerous habit and hard to break. Heaven forbid my mom and I go shopping together when we are in one of our impulse shopping moments. It’s not pretty. Not pretty at all.) When I got home, I decided I would try my hand at a cherry crisp recipe. I tucked that idea in the back of my mind and went on with whatever it was I was doing at the time.

Jump ahead to today. Late this morning, my mom and I were doing the oh-so-very thrilling task of washing the mini-blinds in my living room. Tim walked past with something in his hands, looking rather pleased. Upon further inspection, I spotted a handful of freshly washed cherries – my cherries! – in a paper towel. His pleased look was obviously because he loves cherries and had just scored a mighty fine snack. I stopped in my tracks and, with a frantic look in my eyes, said, “WHAT are you doing with those cherries?!?” Poor Tim. Picture a deer in headlights. He hadn’t done anything except get himself a healthy snack and here was his lunatic wife, flipping out about it. Looking confused (as he very well should have) he said, “I… I can’t have them?” Me: “NO! I need exactly 4 CUPS of pitted cherries to make my cherry crisp! What if I don’t have enough?” Again, deer in headlights. “Cherry crisp? What cherry crisp?” So, I calmed down and told him my plan… and he graciously returned the cherries to the bag and sought out another snack.

The kicker is that when all was said and done and I had pitted the cherries needed for the crisp, there was almost the exact amount of cherries left in the bag as Tim had in his hand hours before.

He’s long suffering, it’s true. But – at least he got first dibs on a rockin’ good cherry crisp.

Fresh Cherry Crisp

4 cups pitted, fresh cherries

1 cup white sugar

4 tablespoons gluten free all-purpose flour (I used King Arthur brand

1 cup oats

1 cup Pamela’s baking mix

1 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 cup butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray 9x13 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.

In a medium bowl, mix the cherries, 4 TBS flour and white sugar. Evenly spread the cherry mixture into baking dish.

Combine the oats, Pamela’s baking mix, brown sugar and melted butter together. Crumble evenly over the cherry mixture. Bake for 35 minutes.