« PREMIUM FRESH CHERRIES | Main | I scream, you scream, let's all get ice cream »
July 12, 2006
DRUNKEN CHERRIES
Cherry season is here and with it brings to mind a funny family story about my grandfather getting unintentionally schnockered on a Russian liqueur that my bubbe made and stored in their basement. The drink, called vishniak, is a simple concoction of cherries, vodka and sugar that is stored in glass jars in a cool, dark place for a few months before it's ready to drink.
The story goes that my grandfather nipped down to the basement to snack on what he thought were just plain, old preserved cherries. Little did he know. As my father told it, he clearly remembered hearing my grandfather's plaintive cry for help and went down to find him completely blotto, surrounded by empty jars and looking a little bewildered by what had happened to him, as well as the angry cries from my bubbe screaming that he'd ruined her vishniak.
The sweet drink is meant to be consumed like a cordial and since this is cherry season, now is the perfect time to make it. By the time steeping is finished (it takes three months), it would make a terrific holiday gift. Once the liqueur is strained, save the steeped cherries, chop them up or halve them and serve over pound cake or ice cream. It's a delicious treat that lasts well after cherry season has come and gone.
VISHNIAK
(from cookadvice.com)
1 pound fresh Bing cherries
1 pound granulated sugar
1 liter Vodka, rum or brandy (the higher proof -- the better)
1. Rinse and stem the cherries.
2. Place them in a clean glass container.
3. Pour the sugar over the cherries.
4. Do not stir or shake.
5. Pour the liquor over the sugar and cherries.
6. Do not stir.
7. Cover with a lid. Put the jar in a cool, dark place and let it stand
three months.
8. Strain into 2 (1-quart) bottles; reserve and refrigerate cherries to
serve over ice cream or pound cake, etc.
NOTE: This produces a very sweet liqueur.
Posted by Sharon Kaplan at July 12, 2006 6:45 PM