Cooking with fresh cherries

The Provençal landscape is dotted with cherry trees: the rather tart rosy golden Rainier and Napoleon cherries destined for fruit confit (candied fruit) and ideal for confiture (jam); juicy bright red Summit and Reverchon cherries for eating fresh from the tree.

The Vaucluse is the leading départment for cherries and Apt leads the world in candied cherries and other fruits, a confectionery which traces its history to the papacy of Avignon in the 14th century.

I adore eating all types of cherries and find the Rainiers are perfect for making jam as they have the right acidity so the jam is not too sweet and you can remove the stones without staining your fingers. I also enjoy making a very simple clafoutis.

La Raffine recipes

Each year I collect the year’s harvest of cherries and my husband and I make a dozen pots of jam and a few jars of coulis. We have experimented with many recipes but beware even the weather can affect the final texture so I often test a small quantity first.

Jam

1,2 kilo of cherries

800 g of crystallised sugar

juice from 1 lemon

Destone the cherries and simmer slowly with lemon juice for 5 minutes. Add the sugar and stir slowly until it is dissolved. Bring to a boil for 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and a little melted butter to remove air bubbles. Pour into pots with lid loosely in place (they will form a suction as the jam cools). Tighten lids and store in a dark place.

Coulis

300g of cherries

Juice from half a lemon

1/2 cup of water

50 g sugar

Destone and the cherries. Mix with the lemon juice, water and sugar. Cook for 10 minutes. Mix in a blender.

Clafoutis

500g fresh cherries

75g caster sugar
3 tbsp kirsch or other brandy
50g plain flour + 1/2 tsp of baking powder
Pinch of salt
2 eggs, beaten
250 ml milk
Finely grated zest of ½ lemon

Wash, remove the stems and destone the cherries

Preheat the oven to 180C/gas mark 6. Grease a baking dish which holds the cherries in one layer,

Sift the flour into a mixing bowl and add a pinch of salt and the sugar. Whisk in the eggs, followed by the milk and melted butter, until you have a smooth batter and pour over the berries in the baking dish.

Bake for about half an hour, at 180 degrees until just set but still a bit wobbly.

Serve warm, rather than hot possibly or cold with a coulis