Tart cherries without sugar?

I bought ten pounds of frozen tart cherries last summer at the farmers market, with the intent of making jam. Never got around to it, and now am trying very hard to cut back on sugar, so don't want to make jam or pie or any of the obvious things, but I need to get these cherries out of my freezer. A couple days ago, my husband was making unsweetened applesauce, and I threw in a cup of cherries, and it was great. We put in on pork chops, yum. Now I need your suggestions for what else to do with the cherries. Ways to eat them with meat or veggies or other fruit without sugar??

I had 6 pounds defrost in my freezer last week. I strained them and gently simmered the juice for a few hours with some cinnamon, clove and star anise. It was a pretty thick syrup when I was done. I put the cherries back in and cooked them for 45 min or so. For me, it was plenty flavorful, but the rest of the family winced a bit and said it was too tart. So I added about 1/2 cup lt brown sugar. We've had it over pancakes, in cottage cheese, in oatmeal, and I just eat it by the bowlful.

There's a Persian recipe for chicken with rice and tart cherries. Albaloo Polow....

Hi,

In this thread there is discussion of cherries used in savory Turkish dishes. I made lamb meatballs with sour cherries on pilaf a few months ago. If I added any sugar, it was merely a pinch to take the edge off.

Regards,

tavogels wrote:I had 6 pounds defrost in my freezer last week. I strained them and gently simmered the juice for a few hours with some cinnamon, clove and star anise. It was a pretty thick syrup when I was done. I put the cherries back in and cooked them for 45 min or so. For me, it was plenty flavorful, but the rest of the family winced a bit and said it was too tart. So I added about 1/2 cup lt brown sugar. We've had it over pancakes, in cottage cheese, in oatmeal, and I just eat it by the bowlful.

I like this idea. Perhaps you can leave this "concentrate" unsweetened & then use simple syrup, or not, for beverages, syrups, etc.

Supposedly in Michigan they add them to ground beef and make cherry burgers. There is some info on the internet. Supposedly if you add part cherries to the ground beef, you are cutting fat, adding moisture and putting in a healthy hit of antioxidants. My guess would be light one third chopped cherries to two thirds beef. I'd also add some onions to the mix and seasonings too. Maybe a fourth to three fourths instead. I think you would have to play around with it.

Not for nothing, and maybe doesn't work with cherries, but I make a rustic cranberry tart that is simply cranberries & walnuts, no sugar. The sweetness from the roasted walnuts counteracts the tangy berries, and it all works out. It's a 50/50 mix of berrries to walnuts. And I do like my cranberries on the tart side.

I don't know if cherries would work here, since the cherries would most probably be juicier than cranberries.

once I made a cherry pie with frozen tart cherries and I forgot to add the sugar in the recipe - believe it or not, the pie still tasted great!

Here's a recipe for pork tenderloin stuffed with cherries-- I made with sour cherries and it's really good:
http://www.finecooking.com/recipes/cher ... rloin.aspx

This duck one was also excellent:
http://www.finecooking.com/recipes/pepp ... sauce.aspx

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Jen

soak 'em in any brown liquor (bourbon, cognac, brandy, etc.) and they're the gift that keeps on giving. Enjoying some right now as a matter of fact!

I don't know about cherries, but I ran into a lot of uses for unsweetened rhubarb now that we are growing it...it subs well for tamarind. I bet they would work the same way.