One West Indian cherry has enough Vitamin C for a week. - by Rita Elliott Photo

It's almost the end of another garden cherry season and we are still feeling the pinch of shrinking dollars as the recession maintains a chokehold on Jamaica. For a child (or child at heart), these are fun to eat fresh and firm, right from the tree. They are loaded with Vitamin C.

But for those of us who love the juice, the preferred way is to blend them with a little ginger, sweeten with brown sugar and chill before serving. Did you know that you can combine cherries with other fruits in season, such as mango, pineapple, guava, banana, passion fruit, oranges, grapefruit, papaya, melon and more? Watch the proportions of mango, banana and guava as these fruits tend to overpower all other flavours.

One useful bit of information for persons who just hate to be without the foods they love, is that cherries can be frozen and will last till the next season comes around. Just use premium quality Ziploc bags or plastic containers. After picking, wash them, air/paper towel dry and then fill the containers and store in the freezer.

If you are the Martha Stewart type and prefer a little more creativity, clean them thoroughly, remove stems, place them in transparent glass jars, cover with syrup, white rum or brandy and use them to decorate the kitchen or just to add oomph to a dish or punch in the future. And don't forget to share with neighbours and friends.

On Sunday, I had a special dinner in the country, so on Saturday night, I made the following drink, froze it overnight then thawed it in the country in time for Sunday dinner at 2:30 p.m.

Locally grown

All the fruits are locally grown and taste much better than imported fruits. One tip for fruit punch is to limit the number of fruits used to four so tastes can be discerned.

Remember, all fruits that have gone a little stale can be peeled, cut up and stored for use in fruit punches. Right now I have melon, mango, papaya, ripe bananas, passion fruit and cherries in the freezer. You can make a smoothie with these for the children during the summer months, too.

If you have a favourite drink or other recipe or a kitchen remedy, share it with readers at: lifestyle@gleanerjm.com and win a copy of a recipe book, courtesy of the Norwegian Seafood Export Council. barbara.ellington@gleanerjm.com

FRUIT PUNCH

Before I share the ingredients, I have to confess that, being an expert at fruit punches, I do not measure any ingredient. I usually instinctively know what quantities to use depending on the number of persons who will be enjoying it.

Ingredients

Cherries, peeled and cut

Julie mangoes

A few large guavas, washed and cut up

Fresh, locally grown ginger, peeled and diced

Sugar to taste

Angostura bitters

Lime juice (not a lot, cherries are tart)

A couple dashes of white rum (a must for all my fruit punches).

Method

1. Place ingredients (ginger, guava, mangoes, cherries) in the blender, add water to cover and gradually increase speed from chop to puree, till smooth.

2. Do this until all the fruits are blended.

3. Pour all of the blended fruits in a large container, add sugar and sweeten to taste.

4. Add a few dashes of bitters and rum, strain and serve with ice. For the perfect presentation, pour into the prettiest glass/crystal jug you own and garnish with mint leaves or flower petals. Wash them first. If you don't have a big family, this will last in the fridge for the week. (The drink was enough for 10 persons and the ingredients filled the blender three times).