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Ark of Taste Recipes: Aunt Molly’s Ground Cherry

Mar 28, 2017 | Biodiversity, Cooking, Recipe

By Richard Adcock; photo credit Seed Savers Exchange.

These recipes feature an Ark of Taste Garden Challenge seed variety; buy a kit with these seeds here.

“Each season I seek out an ‘ah ha’ flavor, a crop that blows everyone away,” says Mimi Edelman, Ark of Taste co-chair for the Northeast. “The first time I had a ground cherry was in Florence, Italy. I had chosen a chocolate dipped fruit with its skirt of a husk to eat with my espresso; I was immediately smitten.”

The Ark of Taste application for Aunt Molly’s Ground Cherry describes its taste as “a pineapple sweet tomato, with notes of vanilla.” Sounds delicious, right?

Right. In fact, people love eating them plain so much, we had no recipes on file for the ground cherry. To our rescue came Chef Jay Lippin, of Crabtree’s Kittle House Restaurant in Chappaqua, NY. These three recipes for compote, sauce, and mostarda give you ways to eat ground cherries on just about anything.

Aunt Molly Ground Cherry & Ultra Hop Compote

 

Ingredients:

  • 8 fluid ounces Catskill Provisions Fall Honey
  • 32 fluid ounces Red Wine
  • 2 fluid ounces Organic Ultra Hop infused Vodka
  • 2 pounds Aunt Molly Ground Cherries, cleaned
  • ¼ cup Green Coriander Seeds
  • 1 teaspoon Ground  Organic Dried Ultra Hops
  • Kosher Salt  & Pepper to taste

 Method

  1. Caramelize the honey until dark brown (not burnt).
  2. Add the red wine.
  3. Add the infused Vodka.
  4. Cook off the alcohol; add the ground cherries, green coriander seeds, and dried Ultra Hops.
  5. Cook until the ground cherries are tender; then remove the ground cherries.
  6. Reduce the liquid until it becomes syrup; then add the ground cherries back in.
  7. Bring it to a boil and simmer for five (5) minutes and let cool. Then refrigerate.

 

Chef Lippin says: “I serve sautéed Hudson Valley Foie Gras with this compote, on brioche toast.”

 

Aunt Molly Ground Cherry Foie Sauce

 

Ingredients:

  • 4 fluid ounces Catskill Provisions Raw Fall Honey
  • 2 tablespoons Butcher’s Pepper
  • 4 fluid ounces Red Wine Vinegar
  • 16 fluid ounces Red Wine
  • 1 quart Veal Stock
  • 1 quart Dark Chicken Stock
  • 1 pound Aunt Molly Ground Cherries, cleaned

Method

  1. Caramelize the honey until dark brown (not burnt).
  2. Add all the rest of the ingredients and bring to a boil. Then simmer.
  3. Cook until viscous, then puree and season with salt and fresh ground pepper.
  4. Strain through a fine strainer.

 

Chef Lippin says: “When in season I serve this sauce as part of our charcuterie platter at Crabtree’s Kittle House Restaurant.”

 

Aunt Molly Ground Cherry Mostarda

 

Ingredients:

  • 3 tablespoons Coleman’s Dry Mustard
  • 1/4 cup Brown Mustard Seeds, pulsed
  • 1cup Orange Juice
  • 1/2 cup Water
  • 2 fluid ounces Champagne Vinegar
  • ¼ cup Dark Brown Sugar
  • 1 Orange Zest
  • 2 pounds Aunt Molly Ground Cherries, cleaned

Method

  1. Place the Aunt Molly Ground Cherries in a pot.
  2. Mix all the remaining ingredients together; pour over the Aunt Molly Ground Cherries.
  3. Bring to a boil and let simmer for about 5 minutes, remove the ground cherries and reduce the liquid by half. Then add the ground cherries back in.
  4. Let cool and refrigerate for 2 to 3 days until ready to use.