Whilst I'm on the subject of cherries …

Here's another addition to your speedy dessert recipe section but before I begin, you have a choice of cherries :

Frozen cherries create their own juice.

I use frozen Dark Sweet Cherries which I get from

Sainsbury's - they come in 500g bags.

Tinned cherries have syrup or juice

Fresh cherries will need extra juice – you can

get cartons of cherry juice from either Waitrose or M&S.

Bear in mind their season is short and they are expensive

for jamming

Cherry Jam

250g black cherries, stoned

2 tbsps of arrowroot

2 tbsps Kirsch or Cherry Brandy - optional

4 tbsps maple syrup

If using frozen cherries defrost and set aside the juice. If using tinned cherries drain and set aside the syrup. Using a blender, blend half of the cherries with 120ml (4¼ fl oz) of the juice from the defrosted cherries or the cherry syrup from the tinned, arrowroot, 2 tbsps of Kirsch or Cherry Brandy and the maple syrup. Blend until smooth then pour into a saucepan, add the remaining cherries, bring to the boil and let it reduce for 10 minutes until it becomes jam like. Pour into a bowl and leave to cool and thicken.

I'd not recommend using cornflour as a thickening agent – your jam will be cloudy. Arrowroot gives you a glossy finish.

The “cherry jam” will not last for ever and has what I call a soft set. A soft set jam makes for a perfect layer in a cherry version of the emergency desserts.

Use either raspberries or cherries and layer with the compote and/or jam, using the crushed Amaretti biscuits and meringues in the December thoughts … as mentioned in the previous post. If you want a grown up version add Cherry Brandy or Kirsch to the cherries or Chambord Raspberry Liqueur or Framboise to the raspberry. The almond in the Amaretti goes well with both fruits.

The time has come to measure your waistline or try on those jeans that did fit and discover how much damage you've done over the holidays!