Enhance Chicken With Cherry Sauce

Seasons come and seasons go, but cherry season seems to be the fastest one of all.

And it’s an unusual one this year. Okanogan cherries came to Spokane before most local strawberries were ready to pick, says Allen Williamson of Okanogan Farms on Moran Prairie.

“It’s unusual to have cherries out before strawberries,” says Williamson. “Everything’s late this year.”

Williamson expects to have his cherries for another week - it’s about a three-week season - then other fruits, such as apricots, will be available.

If you missed sampling the cherry variety called Vans, a super delicious, plump cherry, you can still get Bings, Rainiers and Lapins for eating and sour cherries for canning and pies.

It’s all a matter of personal preference, Williamson says. Most people are familiar with Bings and that’s what they buy. Try the others, suggests Williamson, who favors the Vans.

Grocery stores typically carry such sweet cherries as Bings and Rainiers, but you’ll need to pick up sour cherries at farmers’ markets and fruit stands.

“We had the first Rainiers in the state and the price was up,” says Williamson, who described the cherries as “absolutely awesome.” Weather factors such as rain and heat can make or break the cherry crop.

If life’s a bowl of cherries, then fill yours with this chicken and cherry sauce recipe.

Chicken With Cherry Sauce

From “Quick, Healthy and Delicious Cooking” (Better Homes and Gardens, 1993). For a sweeter, richer sauce you can use sweet cherries instead of sour; Bing cherries create a plum-colored sauce.

4 medium skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

Ground nutmeg

1/3 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth

1/3 cup unsweetened pineapple juice

2 teaspoons cornstarch

1 teaspoon brown sugar

Dash pepper

1/2 cup pitted sour cherries, chopped

Rinse chicken; pat dry with paper towels. Sprinkle lightly with nutmeg. Place chicken on broiler pan and broil 12-15 minutes, turning once, until cooked and no longer pink.

Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, combine the chicken broth, pineapple juice, cornstarch, brown sugar and pepper. Mix well. Cook and stir over medium heat until thickened and bubbly. Stir in cherries. Cook and stir for 2 minutes more. Serve chicken with cherry sauce.

Yield: 4 servings.

Nutrition information per serving: 172 calories, 3 grams fat (16 percent fat calories), 8 grams carbohydrate, 28 grams protein, 73 milligrams cholesterol, no dietary fiber, 77 milligrams sodium.