In July I received some beautiful sweet cherries, courtesy of Northwest Cherry Growers and my appointment as a Canbassador. I candied some for holiday fruitcakes, and made some luscious cherry berry butter. But I also was inspired by an Instagram post to try my hand at making cherry cordials from scratch.

What is a Canbassador?

As a Canbassador my job is to make all kinds of wonderful preserved cherry items and then write about them. Fresh stone fruit is one of the very best things about living here in the mid-Columbia, but luckily our sweet, juicy cherries are shipped all over the country – so you can get some too!

Make Your Own Cherry Cordials

My grandfather loved cherry cordials. He always kept a box squirreled away, and it was a treat when he shared them. But once I became an adult, most cherry cordials were just too sweet and cloying. Decades went by without me even thinking about them.

But then inspiration hit. David Lebovitz posted an Instagram photo of cherry cordials at a shop in France AND I had a few northwest cherries in the refrigerator. Suddenly I had to make my own.

This is not a quick and easy project, but it isn’t as time-consuming and difficult as it looks either. And the end result is delicious.

Soak Cherries in Kirsch

First, I very carefully pitted the cherries, leaving the stems intact. However, you could leave the pits in if you like.

Then they went into a glass jar.

I combined a little sugar (about 1/3 cup but you can use more) and some Kirsch (cherry brandy), then poured it over the cherries, and placed it in the refrigerator for about a month (at least 2 weeks).

Alternatives

If you can’t still find fresh cherries, drain a can of cherries and use them. Or you could use maraschino cherries, or even thawed sweet cherries.

See the Next Steps:

Make the Fondant

Dipping in Chocolate

Full disclosure: This recipe was made with cherries I received from Northwest Cherry Growers.