Lisa Food Blog : Valentine

Hello Wednesday Food blog read this weeks food blog is all about a classic dessert for Valentine > Cherries Jubilee

February is National Cherry Month….. Lisa

Cherry Jubilee

historians generally credit Auguste Escoffier for creating cherries jubilee in the late 1800s, to mark Queen Victoria’s Jubilee celebration, since the monarch was fond of cherries

Recipe:

½ cup white sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
¼ cup cold water
¼ cup orange juice
1 pound Bing or other dark, sweet cherries, rinsed and pitted (or use frozen pitted cherries)
½ teaspoon finely grated orange zest
¼ teaspoon cherry extract
¼ cup brandy (Kirsch (cherry brandy)
3 cups vanilla bean ice cream

Substitute fresh cherries for : 1 (15-ounce) can dark sweet cherries, drained, reserve 1/4 cup juice

Whisk together the sugar and cornstarch in a wide saucepan. Stir in the water and orange juice; bring to a boil over medium-high heat, whisking until thickened. Stir in the cherries and orange zest, return to a boil, then reduce heat, and simmer for 10 minutes. While the cherries are cooking, spoon the ice cream into serving bowls.
Remove the cherries from the heat, and stir in the cherry extract. Pour in the brandy, and ignite with a long lighter. Gently shake the pan until the blue flame has extinguished itself. Spoon the cherries over the bowls of ice cream

Note on flambeing

The flames may get quite high when flambeing, so pay attention to anything flammable above and around where you ignite the cherries. When the initial large flame has died down, a small blue flame will continue to burn for several seconds. Shake or stir the cherries gently to expose more alcohol to the flame, being careful that they do not burn. The goal is to have the small, blue flame.

Substitute 2 tablespoons apple juice. If using apple juice, cherries and sauce will not ignite.