My Adventures with Cherry Compote in Baking
So, the other week I found myself with a rather large jar of homemade cherry compote. I’d gone a bit overboard picking cherries, you see. Cooked them down with a bit of sugar, splash of lemon juice, nothing fancy. It was great on yogurt and stuff, but there was just so much of it. I thought, right, let’s see what happens when I try baking with this stuff.
First off, I figured I’d keep it simple. Muffins. Made a basic vanilla muffin batter. My idea was to swirl the compote through each muffin cup before baking. Looked pretty good going into the oven. But, well, most of the compote sank straight to the bottom. They weren’t bad, mind you – kinda like a muffin with a jammy bottom – but not quite the effect I was hoping for. Note to self: compote is heavy and wet.
Okay, round two. I thought maybe incorporating it directly into the dough or batter might work better, but gently. Scones seemed like a good candidate. I whipped up my usual scone recipe. Right at the very end, just before bringing the dough together, I carefully folded in spoonfuls of the cherry compote. Tried not to mash it too much, wanted those nice cherry chunks. This worked out much better! The scones baked up beautifully, with lovely pockets of warm, gooey cherry compote scattered throughout. They were maybe a bit softer than usual because of the extra moisture, but totally delicious.
Trying Fillings and Layers
Feeling a bit more confident, I decided to try using the compote as a proper filling. Had some puff pastry in the freezer, so I made little turnovers or hand pies. Just cut squares of pastry, put a dollop of compote in the middle, folded them over, crimped the edges, and baked ’em. These were a definite win. The pastry contained the compote nicely, and it got all bubbly and delicious inside. A little egg wash on top made them golden brown.
I also tried using it between cake layers. Baked a simple sponge cake, sliced it in half, and spread a generous layer of the cherry compote before adding the top layer and some whipped cream. It worked okay, but you have to be careful the compote isn’t too runny, otherwise, it can make the cake a bit soggy or squish out the sides. Making the compote a bit thicker, maybe cooking it down a little longer or adding a tiny bit of cornstarch when making it, would probably be best for cake fillings.
What I Learned
So, after messing around for a couple of afternoons, here’s what I figured out about baking with cherry compote:
- Folding it in works well: Gently folding it into batters or doughs like scones or quick breads gives nice bursts of flavor without making everything wet.
- Great as a filling: It’s fantastic inside pastries, hand pies, or even turnovers where it’s well contained.
- Swirling is tricky: Swirling it into muffins or cakes can lead to sinking unless your batter is very thick or the compote is less runny.
- Watch the moisture: Compote adds extra liquid, so sometimes you might need to adjust baking times slightly or expect a slightly softer texture.
Overall, it was a fun experiment! Definitely found some good ways to use up that compote beyond just spooning it over ice cream (though that’s always a good option too). It adds a lovely homemade, fruity touch to baked goods. Give it a try if you ever have some compote lying around!
