If you love cherries as much we do in our household, then you’re probably aware that it’s National Cherry Day today. According to CherryAid, in the last 50 years we’ve lost 90% of our cherry orchards and now import around 95% of the cherries we eat.
Eat them raw!
Luckily, my Saturday market man had lots of lovely British cherries this weekend and eaten as they are, they are incredibly good for you despite containing a lot of sugar. They have been listed among the top superfoods for their antioxidant properties due to their high level of anthocyanins which are apparently great for lowering the levels of bad cholesterol (LDL) and reducing the risk of heart disease. As I said, they are high in sugar – a handful could contain as much as 20g of sugar!
Grow your own
You could do your bit and buy a little cherry tree. There are many dwarf varieties available nowadays which work well even in the smallest gardens like mine. Look out for patio varieties like Stella, Sunburst and Crown Morello. These are all British dessert cherries which can be harvested from the middle of July and are perfect for jams, pies or even wine.
If you don’t have a garden or patio, try finding a community orchard near you. North London’s Forty Hall Farm has recently planted several varieties of cherry trees and is always in need of volunteers to continue reconstructing the orchard back to its former glory.
Cherry, Apple and Pear Trees at Forty Hall Farm Community Orchard
Get baking!
Cherries are of course amazing in cakes and desserts so if you have a few mushy ones, here are a few recipes to get you baking 
Cherry Cupcakes – simple sponge with cherry jelly or fresh cherry filling. I made these on The Great British Bake Off.
Cherry Cupcakes
Cherry and Almond Muffins – perfect for using up mushy or over ripe cherries
Cherry and Almond Muffins
And finally some Cherry Clafoutis. This recipe is from Pascale Aussignac and it’s incredibly simply and delicious. Perfect for packed lunches or picnics!
Cherry Clafoutis from Great British Chefs
How do you like to eat cherries?
Related articles
- A cherry orchard belonging to a past time (telegraph.co.uk)
- Savoury cherry recipes on BBC Food (bbc.co.uk)
- Cherry Soup and other cherry recipes (greatbritishchefs.com)
I always thought that cherry pie with ice cream was the best way to eat cherries, but your cherry cupcakes might just change my mind!
I do rather love cherry pie too. Really comforting on cold evenings like we’re having
My favorite is sour cherry pie, with the extra juice made into cherry syrup for pancakes. But this year I made a cherry and chocolate focaccia that was fabulous. I also like that old standard Cherries Jubilee (cooked, flamed with brandy and served over ice cream).
I LOVE the sound of cherry and chocolate focaccia! Do you have a recipe?
I always try to buy British cherries, but seem to only find imported ones and now I know why. We’re looking for a fruit tree to replace a plum that has died. Since we have 2 other plums I think a cherry should be planted. Size is not an issue, any ideas? GG
So the lovely chap at Morgan and Thompson suggested Morello. He is @gardeninggreek if you want to follow him. But also check my twitter stream as a few people commented back on the tweet. Xx
I love cherries. I gazed through a small punnet at my desk today – the flavours brought me to my own summer, where rain is far away.
Interestingly I had no idea that they had so much sugar in them!
Great post Urvashi.
Thanks Nicky x
Hi lovely! Happy National Cherry Day xx I got 1/2 kilos worth yesterday and was just thinking of what I could bake with them. Didn’t know they contained so much sugar though and I eat them raw by the bowl-ful…lol.
I only bake with the soft ones. They are too good at this time if year not to devour in one sitting.
Cherries are my favourite fruit so this time of year I will just eat them as is. I also love proper sour cherries, Turkish ones, added in to homemade granola – great for joint pain too. But nothing beats a perfectly ripe, sun-kissed cherry for fruity perfection, imho. I like your clafoutis. I do a chocolate cherry one that i have yet to blog…
Joint pain eh? Fab to know!
Catching up on blog posts, I to did a post about the beautiful British cherry, it’s so good that there is so much being done these days to preserve the British cherry. Even supermarkets are doing there bit!