Stop what you are doing right now, and make these homemade maraschino cherries. Seriously, what could be more important than syrupy, luscious, red maraschino cherries? Working? Taking care of your children? Writing your dissertation? All of that can wait. This is important! Plus, it doesn’t take very long once you’ve acquired the supplies, and then you can get back to your other responsibilities.
First, you are going to need some cherries and a cherry pitter (affiliate link). Yes, it is worth buying a cherry pitter just for this (I did), but I’m sure you will need to pit cherries and olives lots of times in the future to get your money’s worth.
Next, you need some maraschino liqueur like Luxardo. Finally, a cinnamon stick would be nice, but it’s entirely optional. What else? There is nothing else!
All you need to do is pit your cherries and put them in a glass jar or bowl with a tight-fitting lid. Then, simmer your liqueur with or without a cinnamon stick. When it cools a little, pour it over your cherries. THAT’S IT. Keep those babies in your refrigerator a couple weeks (if they last that long).
As it turns out, simmering Luxardo makes your kitchen smell deliciously boozy. I so wanted a Manhattan when I was making these, but it was noon on a Thursday, so I restrained myself. You can bet I’ll be enjoying one this weekend though! Next week I will bring you a new cocktail recipe featuring these homemade maraschino cherries. If you can’t wait, you should try my Cherrytastic Manhattan.
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Homemade Maraschino Cherries
You only need a couple ingredients to make your own wonderful maraschino cherries.
- Total Time: 12 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
Ingredients
- 3 cups red cherries washed and pitted
- 1 1/2 cups maraschino liqueur I recommend Luxardo
- 1 cinnamon stick optional
Instructions
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Place your pitted cherries in a quart-sized glass jar or bowl with a tight-fitting lid.
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Add liqueur and cinnamon stick to a small sauce pan, and bring to a low boil. Simmer for 3 minutes and turn off heat. Allow to cool for about 2 minutes.
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Pour liqueur over cherries, seal container, and place in your refrigerator. Flavor will be best if you wait at least 24 hours to eat them, and they can be safely stored for at least two weeks.
Notes
I’m not sure if all of the alcohol is cooked off during simmering, but I’m thinking not. I would NOT recommend giving these to children.
- Prep Time: 5
- Cook Time: 7
BCTBC says
I think I’ll warm the liqueur rather than boil it to keep some extra zing!
Andi - The Weary Chef says
Sounds good to me!! Thanks :)
Ginny McMeans says
I love this! I pinned it to my ‘cocktail hour’ board and I will be making these.
Andi says
Thanks, Ginny! I think you will love them!
Holiday Baker Man says
These look pretty amazing. Perfect for an adult sundae!
The Weary Chef says
Thanks so much! I think I would put about 5 on my sundae ;)
Catherine says
Dear Andi, Thank you for sharing…I never this is how you made maraschino cherries. So easy! Blessings, Catherine
The Weary Chef says
Thank you for your visit, Catherine! I didn’t know they were so easy to make either until I started looking for recipes. Please stop by Friday to see a new cocktail recipe using these cherries!
Sandra - The Foodie Affair says
These are gorgeous!! I happen to have a cherry pitter. yay!
The Weary Chef says
Thanks, Sandra! I need to get some more cherries while they are still available.
Julie @ This Gal Cooks says
I love maraschino cherries. Seriously, my favorite part of an ice cream sundae. I love the cherry on top! Pinning this, Andi! Thanks for sharing this recipe. :)
The Weary Chef says
Thanks, Julie! You should definitely try making these. I think you would love the cooking aroma too :)
Claire @ A Little Claireification says
Andi these look delicious and I love how easy they are to make. And mmmm. A boozy smelly kitchen. lol Pinning! Thanks for linking up to our “Best Of The Weekend” party!!
The Weary Chef says
Thanks, Claire! Nothing better than a boozy kitchen ;)
Krista @ joyfulhealthyeats says
Wow! I didnt realize that they were that easy to make! I need to get a cherry pitter stat! :) Thanks Andi.
The Weary Chef says
Thanks, Krista! The cherry pitting was actually pretty fun, so now I want to put cherries in everything while they are still available ;)
Samantha @ Five Heart Home says
Hopping over from the Strut Your Stuff Saturday Link Party to say that I love this idea! I can’t bring myself to eat regular maraschino cherries after I read how they are made…yuck! Pinning for future reference. :)
The Weary Chef says
Thank you so much, Samantha! Sorry for the delayed response, but this weekend has been a little nutty. These cherries are definitely better than the bright red store-bought kind, so I hope you get a chance to try the recipe. Thanks again for your visit and comment!
Liz says
Dagnabit–our neighbors brought us three bags of cherries and we couldn’t eat them fast enough so I had to toss what was left today :-( If only I had known! Had heard and read it was easy to make these, but have never known details. Thanks for filling me in :-) Hope your summer is going well. Hoping to be around again for a while now, but seems there’s always somewhere to run off to with someone. Never a dull!
The Weary Chef says
Liz, you are breaking my heart! I didn’t make these until yesterday, so I wasn’t holding out on you. Maybe they will bring you more cherries soon like the repeat banana performance. When do your girls start school? First day here is around August 19th or whatever the Monday is.