for good cheer

I finally got it together and seized the day by making cocktail cherries while this summer fruit is at the height of being in season. This is a project I have been wanting to tackle for a couple years now and the timing always eludes me. These cherries are the perfect partner to that classic of classics, The Manhattan. I originally wanted to brandy them but was out of Brandy and instead of running out just to fetch more I grabbed some spiced rum that was sitting on the shelf and went from there.

I left the cherries intact and cooked up some simple syrup while plucking the stems from a jarful of these juicy beauties. The syrup consisted of 1 cup of raw cane sugar cooked down and boiled in 1 cup of water. Once it starts to thicken up the slightest bit, take it off of the heat. Over a jar stuffed with cherries, I poured the rum  3/4 of the way, added a few drops of the Caribbean Buster's Bitters and a just dash of cinnamon & nutmeg. The last step... topping the goods off with the simple syrup then pop on the lid and refrigerate. They are ready for cocktails within 3-5 days and will get better with a bit of aging. Bottoms up!