Easy delicious cherry recipes for cherry season and beyond using fresh, frozen, and canned cherries!
Cherries have a way of sneaking up on me every year. In California, the season kicks off as early as April and can stretch into August, depending on where you are, but June is when they really shine. Whether you’ve got a bowl of fresh beauties, a bag of frozen ones, or even a can in the pantry, these recipes make sure nobody misses out on cherry bliss.
cherry FAQ’s
Store fresh cherries wrapped in paper towels or in a paper bag, in the refrigerator. Don’t wash them before storing they should be dry, not wet.
I love my inexpensive cherry pitter, it does the job quickly and easily. 
Wash them, remove the stems, and then pit them. Lay them out in a single layer on a baking sheet lines with waxed or parchment paper (to prevent sticking.) Put the tray in the freezer until the cherries are hard. Then transfer the cherries to heavy duty zip lock freezer bags, pushing out any extra air as you zip them up. Label the bags and use within a year.
Sweet cherries are the most common type of cherry you’ll see in your supermarket. There are 2 main varieties: Bing and Ranier (which are yellow.) They have a sweet flavor and these are the ones we eat out of hand.
Sour cherries are a special variety grown in the upper Midwest. They are, as you might expect, sour, but this makes them delicious when baked into pies, etc. If you don’t live in the Midwest you can find them frozen or canned.
Cherry Almond Crisp Dump Cake
Whoever said ‘easy as pie’ obviously never made this crisp! This cherry recipe is super convenient because it starts with a cake mix.
Cherry Pie Filling
My cherry pie filling recipe is the thick, juicy cherry pie filling of your dreams ~ just 3 ingredients and a few minutes to make it!
Fresh Cherry Lemonade Popsicles
I dare you to find something more refreshing, these popsicles are bursting with fresh fruit flavor.
Cherry Crumble Pie
Cherry crumble pie is a timeless recipe passed down from generation to generation, made with love and plenty of sweet juicy cherries!
Sweet Cherry Almond Bars
When you’re done gorging on fresh cherries, bake them up into these juicy almond bars. Almonds, almond meal, and almond extract make this a cherry and almond lover’s dream.
Fresh Cherry Dessert Sauce
This luscious sauce ice cream, cheesecake, pound cake, chocolate cake, even oatmeal!
Whitefish with Cherry Salsa
One bite and you’ll wonder why you never thought of this!
Sour Cherry Almond Bars
The cherries are nice and tart, the almond scented crumble dough is chewy and butterscotch-y!
Cherry Almond Tart
This easy almond scented tart can be a simple dessert, or a very elegant sidekick to a cup of good coffee.
Amarena Cherry Gelato
Probably the most luxurious homemade ice cream yet ~ wild Amarena cherries are uniquely delicious! (Cherries also feature in my Manhattan Cocktail Ice Cream!)
What a delicious round up of cherry recipes Sue! Thanks so much for including mine!
Sue, your beautiful photography combined with your user friendly, yet imaginative recipes never cease to inspire. You have shown us life can be more than a bowl of cherries. Brava! Ellen Easton, Red Wagon Press
I made the Cerry Almond Bars and they never congealed. But it was so delicious!! The recipe is great!! Did I use too much fruit maybe?? I want to try again!!
Hey Lynn ~ it sounds like your cherries were very juicy. The cornstarch should take care of thickening them. Maybe use a touch more next time.
There’s nothing better than summer cherries, what a delicious round up!
Just have to tell you, I own a home-baking business, with a stall at a local Farmers market here in Vancouver. I made your Cherry Almond bars to sell at last week’s market, and were they ever a hit! Completely sold out, and people were looking for them again this week. I think they will become part of our regular rotation for sure!
This is so great, Vancouver is such a fabulous place and I’m thrilled to be a small part of the ‘foodie’ scene!!
Wow! Who would’ve known you can do so many awesome things with cherries. I don’t think I would like them in a salad but I would definitely have them in a smoothie. Or that Cherry Chocolate Bourbon Soda! I’ve never had one before
So excited about all the gorgeous cherries! A fabulous group of recipes Sue! Thanks so much for including mine!
I bought a litre of pure cherry juice from an organic cherry farm. Do you have any suggestions on how I might use this? thanks.
I have a confession to make. I made your cherry salsa and fish recipe and it was, as promised amazingly delicious! The next day, I wanted to make a sandwich with some leftover shredded pork roast. As I was getting the pork from the fridge, I spied the little container of leftover cherry salsa. I thought, ‘why not?’ and spooned the salsa on top of the pork. OMG! The rich pork and tart, spicy cherry salsa was a marriage made in heaven! I love it when a recipe turns into a doubleheader! Keep those wonderful recipes coming and I’ll try to keep up! 🙂
That’s a great idea, Lynn, in fact my husband really wanted me to do the cherry salsa with pork instead of fish, I guess he was on to something…now I’ve got to go make another batch of salsa so I can try it 😉
I have cherries in my fridge now and see so many wonderful recipes to try. Love produce this time of year!