(Gerry furth-Sides)  We love dried tart Cherries so much we almost forgot the decadent taste of fresh, sweet cherries.  This summer, thanks to Melissa’s Produce, we reveled in Bing Cherries.  So soft to the touch and very plump and juicy, they are perfect straight from a bowl with their fun stems.  We happily ate them from breakfast to supper. Mouthwatering with a rich flavor, Bing Cherries make any mixed fruit salad, sauce for meat dish sauce or a freshly baked dessert unique.  (hear the classic by Doris Day via the link below!)

Robert Schueller of Melissa’s Produce Marketing Director,  told us that Washington is best known for the Bing sweet cherries in the United States,  though they are also known for Rainier cherries too!  (see below why we are especially fond of these). He explained, “There are 2 types of Cherries:  sweet and sour.  The Bing and Rainer are the most common varieties, distributed fresh to 99% of the market.   However, only less then 1% go to market fresh because  most don’t know they are “sour,” or “cooking” cherries, with entire Cherry crops typically going straight  into the processing industry to be used for pie filling, bakery, dried, canning, and the like.  These need to be cooked to be sweet in taste — think of sour cherries like the seville for oranges.

Cherries are related to plums and more distantly to peaches and nectarines.  There are approximately 65 cherries to a pound.  Fresh cherries work in every dish from morning oatmeal a sumptuous, pork loin sauce with cherries and wine and fresh cherry galette for dessert.  Below a succulent pork loin is served, summer style, with corn on the cob.

The 45th Parallel, a line of latitude halfway to the Equator and halfway to the North Pole, is considered the ideal place for growing cherries because of its temperate climate.   In Northwestern Michigan the surrounding Great Lakes and rolling hills help create a surprising temperate climate, as does the Mr. Rainier area in Washington state. There are more than 1,000 varieties of cherries in the United States, but fewer than 10 are produced commercially.

Along with being sumptuous in color, taste, texture, cherries are extra special because they have the shortest period between flower blossom and harvest of any tree fruit (60-75 days).  Italian history points to Roman general Lucullus, as introducing cherries to Europe around 74 BC, and also committing suicide when he realized he was running out of cherries!  So much for the short season.

Sweet cherries are valued for health reasons because they are found to  stabilize blood sugar, strengthen the immune system and help fight diseases like gout and arthritis.  They are also low in calories (90 calories to a cup) and a good source of potassium and vitamin C. And cherries area great source of anthocyanins, bioactive compounds that provide antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, cardiovascular and other benefits. Research shows that melatonin, catechins and flavanals in cherries contribute to the fruit’s healthfulness, too.

Cherries migrated with the colonists from Europe in the 1600’s.  Henderson Lewelling traveled from Iowa to western Oregon by ox cart in 1847.  He brought with him the first cherry trees planted in the Northwest.   Seth Lewelling, Henderson’s younger brother, was responsible for the creation of the most famous sweet cherry variety grown today, the Bing.  The cherry is named after Seth Lewelling’s Manchurian orchard foreman and friend, Bing, who was over 7 feet tall.

The Rainier cherry is celebrated on July ll.  It was named after Washington State’s famous volcanic peak, was created in 1952 by cross-breeding the Bing and Van varieties.  This cherry was developed by Dr. Harold W. Fogle of Washington State University in Prosser, Washington.

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