My Cherry Amour

Did you ever get a really bad cherry in a bowl of really amazing, god-like cherries? I am sitting here eating an entire bowl of cherries by myself and each was tasting better and better to me until I hit the bad one. I felt like a baby encountering a lima bean or something very adult tasting for the first time. I let it sit in my mouth for a moment with its mushy texture and not so sweet taste, realized what was happening and then swallowed. I was glad to get it out of the way and get on to the next sweet, yummy one. No damage done and my faith was restored! It is cherry season here or should I say cheery season as I believe that cherries are about as good as it gets (only topped if you mix dark chocolate with your cherry). I love how a nice plump, firm cherry tastes when I pop it into my mouth. Because I love to eat them constantly during their brief season, I decided to explore and learn about these amazing fruits.

Cherries are drupes, or stone fruits, and are related to plums, peaches and nectarines. These tasty gems have been around since 70 BC and originated in the area between the Black and the Caspian Sea. The Romans introduced them to the British and the English colonists brought cherries to North America in the 1600's (that was a genius move on their part). The word "cherry" comes from the French word, cerise. There are about 1,ooo types of cherry trees, but we only harvest about 10 varieties commercially. I think we may get more varieties in our neck of the woods, because we have a lot of organic farmers who specialize in rare, heirloom fruits and vegetables.

You might guess that most of our cherries come from the Northwest part of the country. There are two main species of cherries from which we get our commercial varities. The first is Prunus avium or sweet cherry (also called wild cherry) and the second is Prunus cerasus or sour cherry. The sweet cherry stock is largely cultivated in Washington, Oregon and California and we get our Bing, Rainer and other varieties that we love so much from it. The sour cherry is used more in baking and we might recognize these jewels as Morello and Montgomery as they better known. Cherries are very good for you and the darker the fruit the more antioxidants they contain. Some people eat tart cherries or drink their juice for arthritic joints and many find that it helps!

Cherry varieties can be complex like wine. They can have sweet or intensely sweet flavor with a firm or softer texture. I looked up cherry varieties on the internet and of course found a bunch of sites dedicated to this luscious fruit. Cherry America, an interesting site talks cherry varieties very well. For instance, I found out that the Brooks variety was developed at UCD and is unique because it's pit is free from the flesh. It is the first variety to ripen in California and is sweet, rich and well balanced. It does sound like a fine wine...doesn't it? Rainer cherries were developed in 1952 at Washington State University and is a cross between a Bing and a Van. It is yellow with a bright red blush and yellow flesh and the flavor is sweet and delicate. You can travel to Washington if you so desire and celebrate National Rainer Cherry Day on July 11th of each year and gorge on these to your heart's content. There is the Sweetheart cherry, which is a cross between Van and Newstar varieties and is a dark, sweet cherry with lots of sugary taste and a firm texture. To me, that is the perfect cherry. I feel very lucky that our local area has such a large variety of cherries each year. It marks the beginning of summer. We even have U pick farms where we can go and pick and eat until our hands are stained and our bellies feel sick. It is a great feeling!

It is hard to find just one recipe to share with you because this time of year, cherries can be added to just about anything. I put them in salads, in guacamole, breads, ice cream and they are fabulous just as they are on your plate. I think that I will include the recipe for a cherry cobbler as it is a warm, sweet comfort and is delicious served by itself or a la mode. The recipe can be made gluten free using rice, buckwheat, almond or chestnut flour. This recipe is from www.101cookbooks.com

Cherry Cobbler Recipe
This cobbler is juicy, so you need to bake it in a proper baking dish or pan. I like the looks of my tart pans, but many have removable bottoms - to keep them from leaking I line them with foil or parchment paper. Also, as we all know fruit can be all over the board when it comes to sweetness - you may not need as much sugar, you may need more. Sweeten the cherries (or other fruit) to your tastes.

Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups sweet cherries, pitted
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/4 cup fine-grain natural cane sugar

Directions:
1 1/4 whole wheat pastry flour or gluten free baking mix
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/3 cup fine-grain natural cane sugar (or brown sugar)
1/4+ teaspoon salt
1/4-1/2 cup toasted nuts (optional)
1 egg
1/2 cup buttermilk
3 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled a bit

Preheat oven to 425F degrees, racks in the top third. Butter a 9 - 10-inch round tart pan (or equivalent).

In a small bowl gently toss the cherries with the cornstarch and sugar. Set aside.

To make the cobbler topping, combine the flour, baking powder, and sugar, salt, and nuts in a large bowl. In another separate, smaller bowl whisk together the egg and the buttermilk, whisk in the butter. Fold the buttermilk mixture into the flour mixture until it's barely combined.

Pour the fruit into the prepared pan. Now top the cherries with the buttermilk dough by dropping dollops into the pan a scant tablespoon each - not too big of they won't cook throughout. I thwap the tart pan against the counter a couple times to flatten out the dumplings a bit. Push the batter around and out to the edges with your fingers if you need to - I like a lot of coverage with a few windows and cracks for the cherries to peep through and the juices to bubble up.

Bake for 15 -20 minutes or until the top is golden and cooked through.

Serves about 8.

Chick Peas, Fava Beans, Lentils Oh My!

       I love beans and have never had a problem eating them.  Some eaters find that they disagree with them in the digestive department and avoid them completely.  I used to buy canned  beans to make soup with and to make bean dishes with, because it takes preparation to soak and cook dried beans and I am not prepared usually.  Actually, organized is more like it.  I would have to think in advance about the menu and then take the time to prepare the beans.  Life and cooking has relied on the canned bean until fairly recently.

In the past year, I have been converted like a religious zealot to the followers and gastronomes of the dried bean sect.  What spurred my interest in this change was going to a local farm, Pacific Star, and noticing the variety of dried beans they grow there.  There were little red ones, tan ones, mottled ones, black ones, green ones and purple darlings.  I am  in the eat local, organic camp, so I bought a little bag of several varieties.  Let me tell you that after soaking, cooking and seasoning these dried gems I was a changed women.  No canned bean can compare with its limp and often over salted form.  The dried beans can stand up on their own and they explode with  flavor.  It is like a symphony for the taste buds.   It so impressed me that I decided that unless I was camping, frantic about a last minute meal or held in a bomb shelter for an indefinite amount of time, I would choose to prepare dried beans of many varieties.  Also, we felt better about eating these mostly local beans because we were supporting our local economy and didn't have to think about the cans and their  toxic coatings.  If the dried beans weren't great enough by themselves, they also have amazing names.  They sound like states, countries, cities,  birds, prom queens for heaven sakes.  They go by the names, flageolet, lentil, jacobs cattle, great northern, soldier bean, hutterite soup bean, canary beans, pinquito beans, anasazi beans, cranberry and barlotti beans, chick pea,  just to name a few.  Don't get me started with the different classes of beans...the shelling bean, dry bean, pulse (sounds exciting...I can feel my heart pulsing as I write this).

       I am going to tell you a little about the bean since they are so nutritionally wonderful and tasty. According to the Wikipedia, the common bean, Phaseolus vulgaris, is an herbaceous plant domesticated in ancient Mesoamerica and the Andes independently.  They are now grown worldwide.  Most cultures have their own kinds of beans and bean dish specialities.  Beans are so action packed and good for humans that beans, squash and corn are known as the "Three Sisters" and were the mainstay of  Native American agriculture.  They are an excellent source of protein, fiber, starch and have many vitamins and minerals.  Dried Beans can be kept for a long time without issue.  They make a great food for the pantry as they don't spoil and they look cheery in glass jars.   Dried beans need to be soaked for several hours with the exception of lentils, before being cooked and eaten. Soaking helps to shorten the cooking time and if soaked and rinsed several times will also make the beans more digestible, because the rinsing leeches out complex sugars that can result in flatulence for some people.

       Are you sold now on trying to soak and cook your very own dried beans?  Give it a try.  I promise you will not be disappointed. One thing you should know is that tomatoes and other acidic foods inhibit the tenderizing process and shouldn't be added until the beans are done.  My favorite way to prepare them is to first clean them to remove any rogue pebbles, mud pieces and other foreign entities and then to soak for 4-6 hours or overnight. I  rinse them a few times and add cumin,  and chipotle pepper and cook on low heat until they are soft, but not mushy.  The timing is different depending on the amount of beans cooked.  I then take the cooked beans, and add them to a pan that has a  sauteed onions, lots of fresh cilantro and spices (more cumin, chipotle, maybe turmeric, salt) and saute for a few minutes until incorporated and hot.  I serve this with quinoa or brown rice, slices of fresh avocado, salsa fresca, and a nice green salad.  I also love to cook the little red bean, called pinquito and add sliced green olives to the mix.  Of course, there are dozens of ways to prepare beans for use in soups, stews, and  other bean dishes and I encourage you to experiment and have a "beananza."

Here is another recipe for the beloved bean. I hope you enjoy it in good health!!  This recipe is from Deborah Madison's, Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone and I picked it because it is a nice summer dish and I love to say "flageolet."

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups flageolet beans soaked

aromatics (bouquet garni) plus 1/2 onion

salt and fresh pepper

8 ounces slender green beans

2 tablespoons butter or olive oil

4 shallots

1/2 cup dry wine

2 ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded and neatly diced

2 tablespoons chopped parsley

1 tablespoon chopped marjoram, tarragon or summer savory (fresh)

Directions:

Parboil the drained beans 10 minutes in 6 cups water.  Add the aromatics, lower the heat and simmer until partially tender, about an hour more.  Add 1 teaspoon salt and continue cooking until they're done 15-30 minutes.  Drain, reserving the broth.  Blanch the green beans in plenty of boiling salted water until barely tender-firm, then drain and rinse with cold water.

Warm the butter in a small skillet over medium heat.  Add shallots and cook until soft, about 8 minutes.  Add the wine and tomatoes, bring to a boil, and simmer until the wine is mostly cooked away.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Lightly butter a gratin dish.  Combine the flageolet beans with the green beans and half the herbs and transfer to the dish.

Season with salt and pepper and add enough bean broth or broth and a little cream to moisten the beans.  Cover and bake until heated through, about 25 minutes.  Garnish with remaining herbs and serve.