Editorial
Front Page - Friday, July 17, 2009
Kay's Cooking Corner
Kay Bona
Tart cherries: The good just keeps getting better
One of the most beautiful signs of spring is the flowering cherry tree, promising succulent fruit in about two months. And now, according to recent research, there are more reasons to love this tree and the fruit it produces.
Science-based research shows that cherries pack a health-promoting punch. Ruby-red tart cherries are bursting with antioxidants that relieve the pain of arthritis and gout and may help prevent cancer and heart disease.
Not only do cherries taste great, but according to some doctors, 20 cherries provide 25 milligrams of anthocyanins, which help to shut down the enzymes that cause tissue inflammation, so cherries can prevent many kinds of pain.
An Apple a Day or a Handful of Cherries?
While it still holds true that an apple a day keeps the doctor away, it seems that we need our cherries too!
•Tart cherries are bursting with antioxidants. Tests show that Montmorency tart cherries have high ORAC values.
ORAC stands for oxygen radical absorption capacity and is a measure of how many antioxidants are in a food product and how powerful they are.
•New studies indicate that cherries also have significant levels of melatonin, a potent antioxidant that kills free radicals, which are toxins believed to cause or worsen many diseases.
•Tart cherry juice concentrate is used as an all-natural alternative for more than 70 million people suffering from arthritis and other chronic joint pain.
They contain powerful antioxidants that relieve the pain of arthritis and gout, protect against cardiovascular disease, and inhibit cancer tumors.
Some people claim headache relief, and a better nights sleep.
All the medical information above is based on the tart cherry.
Cherry History
Cherries are one of the world’s oldest cultivated fruits. The cherry tree, Prunus avium, is native to Eastern Europe and western Asia and is part of the Rose family.
Today, 90 percent of the commercial cherry crop is grown mostly in Michigan, California, Oregon and Washington.
The most popular variety is the Bing cherry, developed by Seth Luelling in Milwaukie, Oregon in 1875. Allegedly it is named after his Manchurian foreman.
Sweet and Sour Cherries
Usually eaten out of hand, sweet cherries are larger than sour cherries, heart-shaped with sweet firm flesh. They range in color from golden, red-blushed Royal Ann to dark red to purplish-black Bing, Lambert and Tartarian are other popular dark cherries. Sweet cherries also work well in cooked dishes.
Sour, or tart cherries, are more globular in shape with softer flesh. The Early Richmond variety is the first available in late spring and is bright red in color, with the Montmorency soon following.
So grab a handful of cherries and nibble away! Or better yet, make this wonderful Double Cherry Pie!
Double Cherry Pie
4 cups frozen unsweetened tart cherries, or 2 (16-ounce) cans unsweetened tart cherries, well drained
1 cup dried tart cherries
1 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons quick-cooking tapioca or cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
Pastry for 2-crust, 9-inch pie
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 tablespoon butter
Combine frozen cherries, dried cherries, granulated sugar, tapioca and almond extract in a large mixing bowl; mix well. (It is not necessary to thaw cherries.) Let cherry mixture stand 15 minutes. Line a 9-inch pie plate with pastry; fill with cherry mixture.
Sprinkle with nutmeg. Dot with butter. Make a lattice top out of the remaining pastry. Seal and flute edge. Bake in a preheated 375-degree oven about 1 hour, or until crust is golden brown and filling is bubbly.
If necessary, cover edge of crust with aluminum foil to prevent over browning.
|
|