Get some great recipes for cherry pie and cherry vinaigrette below as well as information on cherry picking.
Organic Baby Greens with Cherry Vinaigrette, Fresh Cherries and Roasted Walnuts with Laura Chenel Goat Cheese Crouton
Serves 6
1-1/2 c Cherry juice
One Freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 c Extra virgin olive oil
2 Tblsp Honey
Sea salt and freshly ground white pepper to taste
Pinch of crushed chilies if desired
3/4 pound mixed organic baby greens
1 pound cherries, pitted and halved (2 cups)
1/4 pound (1 cup) walnuts, lightly toasted
Whisk together cherry juice, freshly squeezed lemon juice. Slowly add extra virgin olive oil and honey. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Toss the mixed greens with about 1/2 cup of the dressing. Arrange the pitted cherries, toasted walnuts over top, sprinkle with any remaining cherry juice, if needed, and serve immediately.
Crouton Lightly grill or toast a sliced, sour dough baguette and top with fresh goat cheese
Toasting / Roasting Nuts To toast nuts, spread them out in a thin layer on a metal baking pan. Toast at 300° for 12 to 15 minutes, stirring once or twice so nuts brown evenly. The nuts should be noticeably browned and fragrant, but not at all dark brown or burnt. Cool to room temperature and then cover and store up to 1 week in the refrigerator.
Pitting Cherries
When removing the pits from the cherries, hold the fruit over a bowl so that the juices are caught. Use a sharp paring knife to cut a slit into the indentation along one side and then cut halfway around the cherry. Twist off the two halves and pop out the pit.
HomeMade Cherry Pie a la Bacchini's Farm
Makes one 9 inch Pie Crust
2 c all purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
2/3 cup vegetable shortening
6 - 8 tbsp ice water
Sift together the flour, salt and baking powder. Cut in the shortening, using a fork or pastry blender. When the mixture is thoroughly blended, add just enough ice water— a little at a time—until a dough ball forms. Turn the ball of dough onto a floured board and roll lightly until about 1/8 inch thick. Line the pan with the dough, trim off the edges and save them to roll out again.
Cherry Filling
2 quarts fresh cherries, pitted
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 tbsp flour
For the filling, mix together the sugar and flour. Add the mixture to the pitted cherries. Mix with a fork and then fill the pie shell with the fruit.
Roll out the scraps of dough 1/8 inch thick. Cut the dough into strips 1/2 inch wide, and place the strips crisscross over the pie, pinching the edges of the scraps into the dough at the edges of the pie. Bake in a preheated 450° oven for 20 minutes, then reduce the heat to 350° and bake for 20 minutes longer.
More information:
Bacchini's Fruit Tree
2010 Walnut Blvd.
Brentwood
Phone: 925-634-3645
Website: www.brentwoodfruit.com
Chef Faz Poursohi
Chef / Owner of Faz Restaurants & MacArthur Park
Phone: 925-469-1600
Website: www.fazrestaurants.com
