Cherry Baby - I'm gonna make you mine

Good old Frankie Valli huh? Okay, I know it's Sherry Baby, but never mind huh?

Anyway, in the continuing thread of cherry related posts, I submit, for your consumption, Cherry Schapps/Vodka

Take some cherries, and half fill sterile bottle with them. If the bottle already contained vodka, it'll be sterile anyway, or you can use any of the methods such as boiling, that are already on the interwebs.
Add 1 tbs of sugar. This step is optional, but really helps to draw out the juice from the cherries
Shake daily.
It is ready after 1 month, but gets better with time.
You can, if you so wish, remove the cherries and top up with a little more vodka after about 2 weeks, but personally, I'm going to leave them in, so I can have a nice taste of summer when I finally cave and drink the vodka... in about August ;)

If you are feeling really frugal, when you remove the cherries, you have repeat the steps above with sherry to make sherry cherry. Don't add the sugar, I'm told it's nasty.

Cherry Bakewell Pancakes

Ever since I noticed a few weeks back that the wild cherries at the edge of my estate were, indeed, edible, I've been looking for a way of eating them up. At the same time, ever since becomeing a vegan, I've been Jonesing for Bakewell Tarts. Well, can you see a thought forming?

Along came Chocolate Covered Katie with her Pancake-Making Bonanza and all my problems are solved. Okay, not all of them, but the cherry related ones are :)

Behold, if you will, the Bakewell Pancake.




Recipe - Makes two big portions, about 6 -7 smallish pancakes

1 Cup White Flour
1 tsp Baking Powder
1 tbs sugar

1 1/4 cup non dairy milk (I used unsweetened soya)
1 tbs sunflower oil
1/2 tsp almond extract
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 cup cherries - quartered
1/4 cup almond flakes

In a large bowl mix together the first set of dry ingredients, then add the wet and briefly mix, before finally adding in the chopped fruit and almond flakes and stirring until combined. As always with vegan baking, don't over mix.

I cooked this over a medium high heat, portioning out in 1/4 cup measures, which were a bit too small if truth be told. The pancakes need flipping once they are fairly solid in the middle, which was about after two minutes.

This was perfect served with my adapted Cherry Compot, topped with toasted flaked almonds. My husband pronounced them 'Very Bakewelly' He was quite happy to go cherry picking the next day, which I think is an indication of the success here ;)

Simple Cherry Compot

I made this partly to preserve my epic haul of wild picked cherries, and partly as a pancake sauce to go on my Bakewell Pancakes, inspired by Chocolate Covered Katie's Pancake-Making Bonanza.

This was adapted from Sweet and Sassy Cherry Sauce over on dlife, a diabetes support website, who in turn took it from The Cherry Marketing Institute . Like cherries need marketing?!?

Adapted Cherry Compot - Makes two cups

2 cup Cherries
2 tbs sugar
6 tbs water (Divided)
2 tbs cornflour
1/8 tsp salt
2 tbsp vodka
Juice and rind of 1/2 a small unwaxed lemon

• Place cherries sugar and 4tbs of the water into a small pan and bring to a slow boil, simmer covered for 6 minutes, stirring occasionally
• Once the cherries have released a lot of the juice, scoop them out with a slotted spoon and put to one side
• Mix the salt and cornflower together. Add this to your 2tbs of water, and mix into the pan
• Add the vodka along with the lemon juice and zest.
• Continue to simmer over a low heat for 7-8 mins
• Put the cherries back in, and cook for another 3-5 mins, until cherries are softened and the compot is of the desired thickness.

Kept in a sterilised jar in the fridge, this will last for up two two weeks.

To make into a pancake syrup, take 2 parts compot to one part maple syrup and warm.