Maraschino Cherry Cupcakes Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What to do with a jar of maraschino cherries? ›

Maraschino cherries shine best as a garnish — the bright red fruit and stem are so eye-catching on cakes, co*cktails, and ice cream. Here, they crown a gorgeous multi-layered trifle with fresh berries, banana, whipped cream, and white cake.

In their modern form, the cherries are first preserved in a brine solution usually containing sulfur dioxide and calcium chloride to bleach the fruit, then soaked in a suspension of food coloring (common red food dye is FD&C Red 40), sugar syrup, and other components.

Application. These cherries are commonly used as a garnish in drinks, ice cream sundaes and embellishment in decorated cakes. They can also be used in cookies, muffins and cold cake fillings such as black forest cakes and as a topping in pineapple upsidedown cake.

Maraschino cherries supply only a small amount of certain nutrients. A 3.5-ounce serving of the cherries supplies 54 mg of calcium and 21 mg of potassium, 45 international units of vitamin A, and 1.5 µg of vitamin K.

According to Tracey Brigman, EdD, associate director of the National Center for Home Food Preservation, an unopened jar of co*cktail cherries can last for up to two years. “Once opened, they can keep for about 6 to 12 months, as long as they are continuously refrigerated during that time,” Brigman continues.

Baking tip #2: adding milk to your box cake mix in place of water adds a dense texture to your dessert leaving it moist and flavorful like a homemade cake. Or, if you prefer, you can add buttermilk, giving your cake a tangy flavor to balance out the sweetness.

"Baking fluffy, moist cupcakes is all about creating air bubbles in your batter that expand in the oven," she says. "If you overmix your batter, you collapse those bubbles and end up with a brick-like cake." Always mix at a low speed to avoid this, stopping just as all ingredients blend.

If you're a fan of both maraschino cherries and chocolate, you can stir just a few drops of the potent liquid from the jar of cherries into a cup of your favorite hot chocolate, leaving it tasting like a cherry cordial truffle.

Are maraschino cherries soaked in grenadine? ›

Contrary to popular belief, grenadine is not a cherry-flavored syrup. Maraschino cherries have nothing to do with it. This sweet-tart syrup is actually made from pomegranates, and it is surprisingly easy to make at home. Think of grenadine the way you might consider simple syrup and sour mix.

The chopstick method

Remove the stem from a cherry and hold the fruit between two fingers. Grab a hold of a chopstick and position the smaller end into the stem hole. Gently but firmly press the chopstick down into the pit and push it out of the cherry.

Does a maraschino cherry stay in your stomach for seven years? Uhm, no. That's another one of those weird urban myths you don't need to worry about any more. You digest maraschinos just as you would any other fruit or candy.

Luxardo cherries and Maraschino cherries are both technically Maraschino cherries, but there is quite a difference between the two. The former is considered artisanal and high-end, perfect for a craft co*cktail garnish; while the latter is bright red and ideal for topping an ice cream sundae.

Generally speaking, Maraschino cherries are sweet and Amarenas are sour. The traditional European method for creating maraschino cherries is to preserve Marasca cherries in maraschino liqueur (think Luxardo Maraschino).

Freeze-friendly- you betcha. I am freezing most of these in little ziploc bags, and will even freeze the juice (of which there is LOTS) to use for the aforementioned Cherry Chew Squares.

Do maraschino cherries need to be refrigerated? Yes.

An urban myth prevented me early on from eating them – word got around they were preserved in formaldehyde and could not be digested. Not quite, as it turns out. The cherries are actually preserved in sodium metabisulfate, calcium chloride and citric acid and subsequently dyed those alarming shades of red and green.

It is used in several classic co*cktails including the Aviation, Martinez, ‎Hemingway Daiquiri and Last Word. You can also add a little to a seltzer water with a squeeze of lemon for a nice light summer spritz.