Dark Cherry Sauce

This slightly sweet Dark Cherry Sauce is very versatile... perfect over ice cream, pound cake, pancakes and waffles... and much more... in fact the inspiration for it was from my childhood...

My Grandmother would make a cherry sauce to be served with chicken... loosely translated.. the dish was called soup, meat and sauce... meaning.. she cooked the meat in the soup.. and then served the meat with the sauce.  As a kid... I was less than thrilled with the soup and the chicken... but the sauce made an impression...

TIPS

You can use fresh or frozen or canned dark cherries... but fresh.. you will have to pit them... and you will need to cook them more and adjust the sugar...

My recommendation is to try my recipe using the readily available canned cherries and then venture out on your own after you know what you are striving for with sweetness and texture.

The canned dark cherries I found in the supermarket were in heavy syrup... so with that in mind.. I used far less sugar than I would if they were in light syrup... the cherries I used were not overly sweet and the "syrup" was very thin.. so it really needs to be cooked...

I used Del Monte Dark Cherries... I personally like the brand.. but you can use whatever brand you prefer.

This sauce is about the thickness of maple syrup... if you want something thicker.. you will need to add more cornstarch... add an additional 1 teaspoon of water and cornstarch... dissolve it the same way the instructions tell you... and add it... cook it for a while and if it's still not as thick as you like.. repeat.

This is very easy.. can be stored in the fridge... I store it in mason jars.

This is absolutely delicious no matter what you serve it with... I hope you try it.

Recipe:  Dark Cherry Sauce

All you need:

1 can (15 oz.) Del Monte Dark Cherries pitted in heavy syrup

1/3 cup water

1/3 cup sugar

1 tablespoon cornstarch

2 tablespoons water

All you need to do:

Put the canned cherries with their syrup into a small saucepan.

Add the 1/3 water and the sugar.  Bring to a boil and stir frequently.  Boil for about 2 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a small ramekin or custard cup... mix the cornstarch and the 2 tablespoons water.  Stir until the cornstarch is completely dissolved. 

After the cherry mixture has boiled for about 2 minutes, lower the heat to medium and add the cornstarch mixture.  Stir constantly, cook for about 2-3 minutes or until the mixture has slightly thickened.

Remove from the heat and allow to cool.  Serve warm or cold.  Store in jars in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.