The Cherry on Top! Get to know Maraschino Cherry

You must have seen it a lot, on a blackforest cake or maybe at some other dessert, there is always a decoration in the form of a cherry with a bright red color stem. It is called Maraschino. Thanks to the appearance of cake or ice cream and friends often appear to be more tempting. But have you ever wondered, why exactly is this red cherry called Maraschino Cherry?

Get to know Maraschino Cherry

Made from cherries, Maraschino Cherry is a kind of candied cherry that has long been used as a garnish on many types of desserts and even cocktails. These cherry sweets that are identical with their ‘eccentric’ colors were first popular in the late 19th century in America, before they spread throughout the world. The name Maraschino itself is said to be taken from Marasca Cherry, a type of cherry originating from Croatia.

Maraschino Cherry - [ via freepik.com ] — Maraschino Cherry – [ via freepik.com ]

The history of Maraschino Cherry begins in the early 19th century in Europe. At that time, Marasca cherries were often used by the people there to be soaked in an alcoholic drink named Maraschino. This liquor with cherries became popular and demand was increasing while the availability of Marasca cherries were very limited. The price became expensive and only be consumed by the rich and noble. As a result of this scarcity, other types of cherries are then tricked as raw materials, replacing the Marasca type cherries.

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In America, processed cherries were banned because at that time the law was prohibiting alcoholic drinks. The entrepreneurs and cherry growers then racked their brains to find products like Maraschino but the alcohol-free version. Then finally, in Oregon around the 1930s, a professor named Ernest H. Wiegand managed to find a method of preserving cherries without alcohol. This method later became the method of processing Maraschino Cherry which is used until now

How to Make Maraschino Cherry

Maraschino Cherry factory-made is usually made of cherries that are soaked with sugar and food coloring. It is also available in other colors such as yellow, green and orange. There are even some manufacturers that provide cherry with other flavors such as pineapple or orange flavor. In addition to factory-made, it can also be made at home easily, for example, the recipe quoted from Living Homegrown for example.

Maraschino Cherry buatan rumah dalam toples kaca - [ via freepik.com ] — Homemade Maraschino Cherry in glasses jar – [ via freepik.com ]

To make a jar of homemade Maraschino Cherry, you need about 2 cups of freshly washed cherries and sugar to soak the cherries. The trick, you just enter the fresh cherries that have been taken seeds into glass jars. You can add other herbs as a scent like cinnamon if you want. After that, pour the cooled sugar solution, which you can make by boiling a cup of water with a cup of sugar 1 tablespoon of lemon juice and 1 teaspoon of almond extract. After the cherries are submerged in a sugar solution, cover the jar and store in the refrigerator for about 6 weeks or preserve them with the water bath method to last longer.

Not unexpectedly yes, behind the beauty of the red cherry stalk on this one turn out to be a pretty exciting story to listen to. The sweetness of the Maraschino Cherry will also be even more tempting, especially when combining with products from Pondan which is guaranteed to be delicious! Not only easy and practical, but Pondan products are also available with a variety of variants that will certainly make mom & sis keep on creating a variety of cakes in the kitchen. You can get Pondan products through the Pondan website or by shopping at your favorite e-commerce site. Let’s be creative with Pondan!