Dried Michigan Cherries

I discovered last September at the Wise Traditions Michigan Conference in Livonia a cherry purveyor from a farm in MI. Northstar Organics. I bugged the owner of my CSA (and anyone else who might be interested in a source for cherries) to order so we could get some without buying a full case. Well finally we were able to get them (we also got fresh tart MI cherries frozen from the same farm and they are wonderful). I love them and so do 2 of my children and my husband. My favorite use for them is to make soaked oatmeal for breakfast (I soak the oats in water, whey and lemon juice overnight and then dump that in a pot and add a bit more water, some celtic sea salt, butter and cinnamon), I put a bit of Michigan Maple syrup, some dried cherries and some crushed crispy pecans on top!! It is the best breakfast!!

My 3 year old loves the dried cherries for snacking (so do I). I also love them on a salad. They are expensive, but they are so much better than any other cherries I have had. I pay $10 a pound for them and treat them like gold.

Well today we had a cherry tragedy. My 3 year old snuck the jar of cherries outside. I keep them in a mason jar in the cupboard, older siblings must have left the cupboard unlocked (a no-no around here) and Ben took them out for a treat. Of course, he accidently dropped the jar on the patio and crash, it broke and the cherries ended up in a mess on the patio entwined with bits of cottonwood and glass shards. I cried more for the cherries than the son (who was not hurt, but who I had to grab and dig the cherries out of his mouth to be sure he didn't get some bits of glass ingested with them).

It is only cherries, but oh it just broke my heart. Maybe it just seemed so sad because we just had to take our car in for repairs for the third time recently and of course it was one item covered under warranty and one expensive one that wasn't. Money in, money out!!

At least I still have some cherries I froze (dried) to enjoy, I'll have to see if I can get more soon!!