I follow the Ann Arbor Farmers Market on Twitter, and when I saw that cherries were available at the Wednesday morning market, I made a significant detour on my way to work, arriving at the office with smoked fish and two kinds of cherries – tart and sweet – and no plan for what to do with them. That is, apart from eating them by the handful.

Two options presented themselves, both delicious and infused with and/or involving alcohol. First, Sour Cherry Lambic Sorbet using a recipe from Jeni of Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream fame. Despite Shane’s giant beer stash (not BeerStache), we didn’t have a lambic on hand – and the New Glarus Cherry Stout was deemed too precious for ice cream. A Founder’s Cerise would have to suffice.

Take a couple of cups of sour cherries pitted, then blended til smooth. Combine with a cup of Cerise and a not so simple syrup, freeze in the ice cream maker, and stick in the freezer for a couple of hours. Serve to a half dozen friends who have just devoured ribs and are halfway through a pretty epic round of beer tasting.

The rest? Well, let’s say that they’re destined for great things – and that I’ve finally found a use for the bottle of Crown Royal that we unearthed in my grandparents’ basement two Christmases ago, tucked far back on a shelf next to a box of cereal that expired in 1998.  The next 6 weeks are going to be torturous – but then oh the Manhattans I will drink!

Recipes:
Sour Cherry Cerise Sorbet from Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream by way of Food & Wine – and now I really can’t wait to get her cookbook!
The Boozy Cherries recipe came from Put ’em Up!, a present from my fantastic friend Janet. I couldn’t find the recipe online anywhere, but it’s very similar to this one from our friends at Well Preserved.