But, Connie doesn’t keep secrets; she loves to share her culinary knowledge!
Vanja and I finally made it to CharCut the night before New Year’s Eve. What an unforgettable meal. I followed Chef and owner Connie DeSousa throughout Top Chef Canada where she was a finalist. I knew she was good… but had no frame of reference for how good. Connie is a Local Food Hero. She is a Canadian Food Hero. Her food is basic and brilliant. She walks her talk in the most humble shoes. We sat at the bar watching her pirouette through her kitchen and her evening performance was seamless and unmistakably delicious.
One of the many tasty morsels we were served that evening was her preserved sour cherries. There were a few on the Chef’s Charcuterie Platter and again in the luscious cheesecake dessert. Dense, tart, delectable with an inexplicable je ne sais quoi. I asked Connie what kind of cherry this was having no idea about the process it had gone through. Whenever you ask her a question, she has a story to tell. i love that.
Her cherries came from he neighbour’s yard. She had preserved them by covering them with vinegar for one week, straining them; covering them with sugar for the next week which becomes wet and liquidy. That mixture is heated until the sugar dissolves and then brought to a low boil for a bit until the syrup has cooked down to a nice consistency.
Then, they are strained. The syrup is used in their bar and the cherries paired with the charcuterie or in desserts. I was mesmerized. I had a deep freeze full of pitted Evan’s Cherries from the summer waiting for a little magic. Immediately upon arriving home on New Year’s Sunday, out of the freezer came two bags of pitted and frozen cherries. I covered them with vinegar and let them sit in the cold for a week.
I lost a little faith in my memory of Connie’s “recipe” when I saw how they looked after a week: orange-brown and when strained, limp and withered and lifeless. Oh, yes. I did taste one. No words. However, I had faith in Connie, and decided to stick with the plan. I could succeed, or I could fail. Either way, I would learn something.
So, I covered the bottom of the dish with white sugar, added the first layer of cherries and covered it completely with white sugar, added the remaining layer and covered it completely with white sugar. I left it in a cold place for another week. Meanwhile, I had a lot of cherry vinegar. I hadn’t asked her what she had done with this. I tasted it. Oooooh, baby! No! There was a lot of cherry flavour and colour, but I had to add sugar so decided to make a sweet and sour type of sauce and see what happened.
I added less sugar than the amount of cherry vinegar, and kept it at a steady low boil for quite some time until I liked the flavour and the colour and the consistency. I have to tell you, it is delicious. I will use it with meats and many things. It would also be delectable with Ming’s Deep Fried Wontons!
After three or four days, the sugar was turning pink, and I helped it along every day after that by stirring it once or twice a day.
This is the mixture after 7 days in the sugar. I decided to heat it slowly, melt the sugar, and then simmer for a bit before bringing it to a boil as I was so concerned about the cherry colour recalling how much red had leached into the vinegar and now into the sugar, I was wondering if my cherries would have the gorgeous red colour Connie’s had. And the answer to that question? Yes! Yes! Yes, they did! Oh, how exciting. I love new discoveries in the kitchen and taking risks that seem sensible when combined with what you already know. Oh, how delighted I was.
This syrup was also very flavourful. How much flavour are in these little sour jewels? It was sweeter and lighter and without the tangy acid that the sweet and sour cherry sauce had that I made with the vinegar, but there was still a lively little tang here.
And the cherries?
I dried them for a couple of days on parchment paper. They are still sticky, but not wet sticky. And powerful.
Each little morsel is dense and tart and chewy and sticky singing an operetta and hitting a multitude of high cherry notes throughout. You taste one and salivate immediately. They are addictive.
But, too labour intensive to be eaten recklessly one after the other.
That is my challenge because these are the best things I have ever eaten all year! I have put them in a jar to crown a special little something now and then.
I cannot wait!
Tags: Evan's Cherries, Preserves
Oh Valerie, how interesting! I wonder if these are available in Australia.
Lizzy (Good Things) recently posted..Grilled Chicken with Basil Butter
Oh my, those look delectable! I going to try to remember to try this recipe when our Wisconsin cherries are in season again!
Susan recently posted..Lemon Angel Wings
i love it when a cook shares their recipe’s. i have never understood those who wont?
these look absolutely gorgeous. and of course my first thought is to mix with vodka…..
cheers
su
They look gorgeous! I’m so glad they worked out. I’m definitely going to try it…. I found a bag of sour cherries in my freezer from a food swap this fall
Debra Krause recently posted..What’s New for 2012?
Every year I forget how gorgeous your cherries are.
Kate recently posted..The Mexican Test
Sour cherry season can’t come soon enough! I love the sound of these. I’d be munching on them nonstop.
Great work, Valerie! I wish that I had a bag full of cherries frozen in my house now… alas, I’ll just have to live vicariously and remember this next summer.
christine @ wannafoodie recently posted..BA Cleanse: The Progression
What an awesome experience! I’m glad it was so worth the time and effort!
Valerie recently posted..The Honeymoon, pt.2 – Prune
Although time consuming, those look incredibly tasty! I wouldn’t expect anything less from Connie. She is truly an amazing chef (and role model to all aspiring female chefs out there) and Charcut is a great restaurant.
Connie, I just stumbled on your blog and was i ever rewarded! This sounds fabulous and I simply cannot wait for sour cherry season in NE Ohio.
Thank you.
Sami!
These are more delicious than I can describe. Each little preserved berry packs a powerful flavour punch! So glad you are enjoying my work!
Valerie
Okay this is by far one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen. I am a cherry fanatic so I am biased. I am also a Connie fan. Although I’ve not met or had her cooking. I bookmarked this one to try out myself. I adore experiments. This is a must try.
Wow – those look and sound incredible, Valerie!! They do sound very labour-intensive though, definitely something to treasure and savor.
Krista recently posted..In Search of Waterfalls in Queensland, Australia
These look amazing! We have lots of evans cherries here so I will be making lots of this in the summer.
Sarah Galvin (All Our Fingers in the Pie) recently posted..20 Mile Dinner
I love-love-love it! I’ve done a lot of preserving, but never heard of this one before. Thank you, I added it to my recipe book. Great blog, it’s in my favorites!
Woah, thanks for sharing this little secret with us Valerie. I have it bookmarked since I am not lucky enough to have cherrie in the freezer.
I stumbled on to this blog. Great information. I also have an Evans cherry tree. I sit for hours pitting the cherries for cherry pie and I also use some to make Cherry Liqueur for Christmas presents. In the past I have always discarded the cherries after the liqueur was done. This year I froze the discarded cherries (pitted some)with hopes of making my own chocolate liqueur cherries. I did not get to it but I will. Great Article!
Janet,
I do the same think and thought that piling the sugar over them for a week might be a good try. I will do that with mine this year! I would love to have your sour cherry pie recipe. Mine is good. I am looking for a great one!
Valerie
What a wonderful little secret from Connie! Thank you for sharing with me…and thank you for leaving sweet comments on my blog. They mean so much. I hope you are having a great weekend!
Monet recently posted..Easy Tiger
what a gorgeous gorgeous recipe! the cherries have shrunk so much, almost like raisins… that must have been so delish
Deeps,
They are so powerful in their flavour – tangy, sweet, singing cheery in a high clear sweet tart soprano pitch. Addictive. This preservation technique for me is really an incredible discovery.
Valerie
These were sooo delicious!! As were both of the sauces!! Thanks for eveerything today, Valerie!
Thanks, Chandra!
Lovely to meet you at the Macaron Making Class today!
Valerie
These cherries were unreal, as was the sweet and sour sauce. The fact that you shared a taste with your macaron making class (a bunch of strangers!) says so much about your generosity, Valerie. I’m sure I will want to keep the cherries all to myself when I make them with my tree’s bounty this year! Thank you, and I will be coming back to this post in August.
Agreed. These cherries were absolutley delicious, probably the best preserved cherries I’ve ever tasted. Very generous of you sharing them at the macaron class. Now, if I can get my hands on some Evans cherries in the summer…
Mona recently posted..Recipes to Riches..SeasonTwo!