The BEST Cherry Filling
Calories: 180kcal
Adjust Servings Here: 2 Cups
Description
A cherry filling is a simple and easy recipe that gets done in minutes and is an absolute treat. You can also use it in so many different ways. And, try a spoonful over your breakfast yogurt, a stack of pancakes, or waffles. Layer it between cake layers like a cake filling. Spread it in a pre-baked crust as a cherry pie filling or use it on your favorite desserts and ice creams, or desserts.
Ingredients
- 7 oz (200 g) Cherries
- ¼ cup (50 g) White sugar
- 1 tablespoon Cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon Lemon juice
- ½ cup (120 ml) Water (divided)
- ¼ teaspoon Salt (optional)
Instructions
- Wash and pit the cherries. Place them in a large bowl to contain any juices.
- In a saucepan, over medium heat, add the cherries, sugar, lemon juice, and ¼ cup water. Cook on low to medium heat until all the sugar has dissolved. Use a vegetable masher to mash some of the fruit. Pro tip - Mashing will add a nice thicker consistency to the topping but make sure to leave some cherries whole.
- Combine the remaining water with corn starch. Add it to the saucepan. Continue to cook on low heat until the filling boils and becomes thick and glossy. When thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon or spatula it's ready.Pro tip - Cornstarch can settle to the bottom of the water. So, you must stir it just before adding it to the saucepan.
- Remove and pour into a mason jar. Let cool completely or use as directed in your recipe. Pro tip - The filling will thicken as it cools so keep that in mind when you take it off the heat.
Recipe Notes
- You can use fresh or frozen fruits. Make sure to check if the fruits are sweetened and adjust sweetness accordingly.
- Also, if the fruits are frozen you may need a little less water. You can omit the additional water and add only sugar, lemon juice, and salt. Once the sugar dissolves adjust water if necessary.
- Use fine-grain white sugar so it dissolves easily and does not affect the color of the filling. For example, brown sugar can give a very dull red color.
- Overcooking the fruit filling causes the cornstarch to become lumpy. If that happens just add a little water and cook to the right consistency.
- This filling will stay in the fridge for a week but can be frozen in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- This batch would be enough a
- cake filling for 2 x 8-inch cake layers,
- a tart filling for one 9-inch tart, and
- dessert servings with a 9-inch cheesecake.
- You can use this same recipe to make any other fruit filling such as blueberry, blackberry, raspberry, mango, cherry, etc.
- Doubling the recipe - If you double the amount do not double the amount of water and cornstarch. You can add ½ cup water with 1 tablespoon of cornstarch for up to 500 grams / 15 oz of fruit. Otherwise, it takes longer to reduce the water.
- The cornstarch needs to be activated for the filling to thicken up. Otherwise, it will be very syrupy with a starchy taste.
- If the filling is too thick means the water is reduced considerably, you can add a little more to bring it to consistency. Add regular water when still hot or warm water when the filling has cooled.
- When cooled, if the filling is too thick, first give it a good mix, only then add a few tablespoons of water as necessary.
- If used to fill a cake, make sure to fruit filling make so to make a frosting dam around the edges of the cake. This will prevent the filling from coming out of the sides of the cake. See my video, how to level, fill, torte a cake
The nutrition information and metric conversion are calculated automatically. I cannot guarantee its accuracy. If this data is important to you please verify with your trusted nutrition calculator. Thank you
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