Tart Cherries

Clarkdale Fruit Farm is selling tart cherries at the Greenfield farmers market, courtesy of the El Jardin Bakery booth (Clarkdale folks will not be there themselves). I bought a couple quarts last week, pitted them, and put them in the freezer. Tart cherries are okay eaten out of hand, but don't really compare to sweet cherries for that application. On the other hand, they are definitely superior for use in pies, preserves, etc. Like cherry pie at Thanksgiving? Freeze some tart cherries now!

To prepare tart cherries for freezing (assuming you don't have a cherry pitter; I don't), remove the stems and pits. I have found the easiest way to remove the pits is to partly squeeze and partly pull apart each fruit with my fingers. Sometimes the pit will come out if you pull the stem just right, too. You'll want to do this in a bowl over the sink, since they are quite juicy. Then pack the pitted fruit into freezer bags and stash it away--unless, of course, you have a hankering for some cherry pie sooner rather than later.