CHERRY COMPOTE RECIPE
**This post was originally published on June 16, 2016
During cherry season, one of my favorite things to make with cherries is a compote – this cherry compote recipe is so simple to make, and you can do so many things with it! We like to put cherry compote on top of ice cream, plain yogurt, pancakes, toast, and even brownies!
{ Scroll to the end for the printable recipe! }
What you need to make cherry compote:
- 3 cups of pitted cherries
- the juice of 1 orange
- 1 tsp. cinnamon
- 1/3 c. water
How to make cherry compote:
This cherry compote recipe is really simple! You’ll need 3 cups of pitted cherries (HERE is an easy trick to get those done quickly!)
You’ll also need the juice of one orange, a teaspoon or so of cinnamon, and 1/3 cup of water.
If your cherries aren’t sweet, or if you’re using another fruit that needs sweetened, you may want to sprinkle in some sugar or sweetener of your choice as well. I’ve never added sugar to my cherry compote recipe since cherries are naturally very sweet, and it’s always been plenty sweet enough.
Combine these ingredients in a covered saucepan on the stove, and turn the heat on medium-high to bring it to a simmer. Your house will smell SO SO GOOD.
How long does it take to make cherry compote?
This is a quick cook — when your cherry compote mixture comes to strong simmer, turn the heat down to a low simmer and leave covered and simmering for about 5 minutes. After the 5 minutes, remove the pan from the heat and remove the lid.
You’ll let your cherry compote sit and cool off — don’t worry if it seems thin, because it will thicken as it cools!
Blend your cherry compote: when your cherry compote is cool enough, take a stick mixer 
Yum!! I hope you enjoy this cherry compote recipe as much as we do!
We love eating this on pancakes most of all! Don’t forget to tag us on Instagram (@sixcleversisters) when you share your pretty pictures of your cherry compote!
What do you do with cherry compote?
A great way to use cherry compote is to put it on plain Greek yogurt — you’re sweetening it with fresh fruit, but without all the sugar that the store-bought ones have in them! Delicious!
Cherry compote on pancakes is another option, and it’s one of my favorites!
Speaking of breakfast, cherry compote is delicious on oatmeal!
If you haven’t tried this cherry compote recipe on brownies – we’ll testify that it tastes De.Li.Cious! 😉 Berries & chocolate….wow! Such an easy way to “fancy-up” a simple dessert if you are entertaining company! Try it on ice cream or cheesecake, too!
A compote is simply a fruit sauce made by briefly cooking fresh or frozen fruit with a bit of water and adding sugar if the fruit sugars aren’t enough to create a type of syrup. Your compote can be larger pieces of fruit combined with the syrup, or you can blend the fruit and syrup into more of a sauce.
If you have more cherries than you know what to do with, besides eating fresh, I highly recommend this cherry compote recipe because it’s great to have on hand to top pancakes instead of syrup, use in oatmeal for a natural sweetener, and top ice cream, brownies, or cheesecake with.
I also recommend making your own cherry pie filling and freezing it to have on hand for quick pies! This recipe from My Baking Addiction is a great one!
As mentioned above, this cherry compote recipe is so versatile – top oatmeal or pancakes or yogurt with it for a healthier alternative to sugar-based sweeteners, or top ice cream, brownies, and cheesecakes with it for a fancy topping!
It’s as simple as pouring a hot simple syrup into a glass jar stuffed with cherries, leaving a little room at the top for it to seal! This Stemilt post has clear instructions on how to preserve cherries quickly.
This cherry compote recipe won’t need extra thickening, but if you’re using another fruit that has more water in it, you may need to simmer longer in order to reduce it further. The water will evaporate as it cooks, which results in a thicker compote. Another option is to mix about a teaspoon of cornstarch with just a dash of water (enough to mix into a slurry) and then whisk that into your slurry to thicken it immediately.
:: PIN FOR LATER ::
Cherry Compote Recipe
This easy cherry compote recipe is quick to prepare! Use it as a naturally-sweet topping for oatmeal, pancakes, ice cream, cheesecake, brownies, and more!
Ingredients
- 3 cups pitted cherries
- the juice of one orange
- 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
- 1/3 cup water
Instructions
- Combine the ingredients in a covered saucepan on the stove
- Heat on medium-high to bring it to a simmer.
- When your cherry compote mixture comes to strong simmer, turn the heat down to a low simmer and leave covered and simmering for about 5 minutes.
- After the 5 minutes, remove the pan from the heat and remove the lid.
- When the mixture has cooled enough, blend it smooth with a stick mixer or blender.
- Enjoy!
Notes
Store in a clean jar and refrigerate for about 10 days.
This freezes well.
