Candy-Bitter Macerated Cherries With Marcona Almonds, Mint, and Ricotta Recipe

I’ve such combined emotions about summer time. On the one hand, it is wonderful. That is the season of days on the seaside, picnics within the park, cookouts, lengthy stretches of daylight, and a few of the finest produce of the yr. In loads of locations, although, together with my hometown of New York Metropolis, it is also oppressively scorching and humid—simply final evening, I waddled dwelling in uncomfortably drenched garments after a sweltering salsa dance class. So if there’s one factor I really like about this time of yr, it is a recipe that includes zero warmth and subsequent to no effort. That is why we’re bringing you the Best Summer season Ever, a group of seasonal recipes which can be all superbly easy. We’re speaking not more than 4 principal elements (not together with pantry staples, like oil and salt).

I needed to leap proper in with cherries earlier than their all-too-short season involves an finish. The concept: a sweet-savory preparation that is simply as nicely suited to dessert as it’s breakfast or a noon snack. I began by pitting a pint of juicy cherries—by far probably the most labor-intensive a part of the entire course of. I took a paring knife and slid it via the flesh of the fruit, circling the pit. Then I twisted the 2 hemispheres aside and plucked the pit out. You probably have a cherry pitter, you should utilize that after which slice every cherry in half with a knife afterward.

I tossed the pitted, halved cherries with a combination of honey, crimson wine vinegar, and a really beneficiant bathe of freshly floor black pepper. The ensuing taste combination is the sweet-sour mixture that Italians name agrodolce.

I just like the black pepper within the combine as nicely as a result of, as a spice, it mirrors the sweet-savory duality of the sauce—it has some qualities of sweeter spices, like cinnamon or allspice, together with a scorching funk that makes it work in nearly any savory utility (thus its presence in a lot of the meals we prepare dinner and eat).

Sticking with that Italian inspiration, I made a decision to serve this with good, recent ricotta cheese. However beware: Mass-market ricotta won’t work right here. You undoubtedly need to hunt down the high-quality stuff—Calabro is our favourite supermarket-available model, or head to a specialty market or dairy.

For a completion, I added some mint for freshness and a topping of crushed Marcona almonds. These have an oilier texture than different almonds, making them extra tender, nearly like macadamia nuts. (In actual fact, if you do not have Marconas, macadamias could be a very good substitute right here.)

You probably have some flaky ending salt, like Maldon, it is a nice time to interrupt it out and sprinkle it on prime.

And, when you have some actually good bread, this could additionally make a superb topping for toasts. However, in fact, “actually good bread” would rely as a fifth ingredient, so let’s simply name that an unofficial suggestion to make your Best Summer season Ever even higher.

July 2015

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