Life is a Bowl of Cherries

For most of us in the US, summertime means great summer fruits, so throughout the rest of the summer we’ll spend every Thursday talking about a different fruit, offering up a recipe and posting a fruit-based drink for our Thirsty Thursday column.  

Everything Cherry
Fresh cherries are starting to roll into the markets…the early ones come from Bakersfield, CA and they’re very tart and crispy.  As it gets a bit warmer, northern California farms start shipping, and then the fabulous Washington cherries (Bings, Rainiers and more) will hit the shelves.  Of course, there’s nothing better than just eating them plain, but check out this podcast for other ideas, especially a fruit crisp. You can make up a huge batch of the topping, freeze it and then whip up a fruit crisp based on what looks great at the market all summer long.
http://blogs.kcrw.com/goodfood/2011/05/recipe-amelia-saltsmans-summer-fruit-crisp/

Cherry Thirsty Thursday
If you like cherries, you can create some fun summer drinks with cherry liqueur and/or brandy.  We found some great recipes at http://www.drinksmixer.com/cat/508/