For weeks I have been anxiously anticipating the arrival of summer bing cherries. The season is so short and so glorious! You don’t need to add a thing to fresh cherries. But you wont likely regret adding brandy and chocolate.
These make me think of Mom. A box of chocolate covered cherries would always put a smile on her face. And for years she kept a continuous jar of brandied fruit. This little treat combines both of these favorites, and is so easy to make!
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So Easy!!! Let’s do this thing!
Prep cherries: Leaving stem in tact, remove pit from each cherry (from the bottom of the cherry). You can do this with a clean, new paperclip, unfolded, using the hook end. Alternatively, you can use something like a pointed vegetable peeler. If you are leaving the pits in, cut tiny slits in each cherry with a pairing knife to allow brandy to penetrate.
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Soak cherries: Put cherries into an appropriate sized bowl and cover with brandy. Allow cherries to soak in brandy in the fridge overnight, or for at least about four hours.
Dry cherries: Drain brandy from cherries. Keep the cherry-flavored brandy if you like! It is delicious. Place cherries on paper towels and allow them to dry, at least 15 minutes. If cherries are not dry, dipping chocolate can seize up. At this point you can chill the cherries for a few more minutes before dipping them in chocolate.
Melt chocolate: either in a double boiler, carefully, or in the microwave. If using the microwave, melt chocolate pieces in 30 second intervals on medium power. Be careful to not heat chocolate too much. After 2 or 3 times, reduce time to about 15 seconds. When chocolate is almost all melted, stir to remove any lumps. If your chocolate is too thick, you can melt in a bit of fat (butter, shortening).
Your chocolate dipped anything is only as vegan – gluten free – dairy free as your chips. These are like gold in my house. They are organic and vegan and so delicious! I buy them in bulk.
Dip cherries: Holding the stem, carefully dip cherries into chocolate. Place each cherry onto a sheet of parchment. You can chill them in the fridge to help them set up. Too much time in the fridge may produce a white film.
To get a better, thinning consistency, I added just a touch of coconut oil to my chocolate.
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Look at how the brandy has been absorbed by the cherry, with virtually no effort on your part. And no pit to get in the way of all the goodness. This is good stuff!
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Chocolate Dipped Brandy Soaked Cherries
Use any liqueur you like! Or none at all.
Ingredients
- about 12 stemmed fresh cherries, pitted or unpitted
- brandy, enough to cover cherries
- ½ cup dark or milk chocolate chips or pieces
- optional: a bit of fat (butter, shortening, coconut oil) – I like coconut oil
Method
Prep cherries: Leaving stem in tact, remove pit from each cherry (from the bottom of the cherry). You can do this with a clean, new paperclip, unfolded, using the hook end. Alternatively, you can use something like a pointed vegetable peeler. If you are leaving the pits in, cut tiny slits in each cherry with a pairing knife to allow brandy to penetrate.
Soak cherries: Put cherries into an appropriate sized bowl and cover with brandy. Allow cherries to soak in brandy in the fridge overnight, or for at least about four hours.
Dry cherries: Drain brandy from cherries. Keep the cherry-flavored brandy if you like! It is delicious. Place cherries on paper towels and allow them to dry, at least 15 minutes. If cherries are not dry, dipping chocolate can seize up. At this point you can chill the cherries for a few more minutes before dipping them in chocolate.
Melt chocolate: either in a double boiler, carefully, or in the microwave. If using the microwave, melt chocolate pieces in 30 second intervals on medium power. Be careful to not heat chocolate too much. After 2 or 3 times, reduce time to about 15 seconds. When chocolate is almost all melted, stir to remove any lumps. If your chocolate is too thick, you can melt in a bit of fat (butter, coconut oil). The extra fat will make dipping easier and cherries prettier.
Dip cherries: Holding the stem, carefully dip cherries into chocolate. Place each cherry onto a sheet of parchment. You can chill them in the fridge to help them set up. Too much time in the fridge may produce a white film.
Enjoy!
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theres fruit involved so it’s healthy right? haha this sounds amazing!
Yes! 🙂
These look delicious. How long would they last in an airtight container ?
Good question! I honestly do not know, as they get devoured too quickly to go bad around here. 🙂 Brandy-soaked cherries will last in the fridge for weeks. Chocolate also has a long shelf-life. It seemed that, kept cool, these will last at least a week or two. Sounds like a great kitchen lab test. 😀