Have you ever wondered what to do with a bag full of cherries that no one seems to be eating? Hey, me too. And since I love store-bought dried cherries in my salad, I figured it was high time I tried to make them myself at home. Of course, you do have to pit the cherries. But stick with it; it’s completely worth it in the end. Because these oven dried cherries make for the perfect salad topper or snack.
Oven Dried Cherries
Oven dried cherries are the perfect thing to make when you find yourself with an abundance of cherries. They are great on salads or simply eaten as a snack!
Ingredients:
- 1 lb Fresh cherries stems and pits removed
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 200°F or the lowest setting your oven goes (mine is 170°F). Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- Wash cherries and pat dry. Remove the stems and pits and cut in half.
- Transfer cherry halves to your parchment lined baking sheet, making sure they aren’t overlapping or touching each other
- Bake for 6-8 hours or until cherries have shriveled up into a raisin like looking blob. You’ll want to turn them every few hours so that they dry more evenly.
- Once cooled completely, store in an airtight container.
Notes:
It took closer to 8 hours for my cherries to dry out. I started with the oven at 170°F for the first 6 hours and then raised it to 200°F for the last two hours. I also had a very full baking sheet, so it may take less time if you don’t do a full bag of cherries like I did.