Move over, blueberries. There's a colorful rival for your "superfruit" crown. It's the cherry, notably the sour cherry, used in pies in the U.S. and in soups and sauces in Europe. It ranks high in antioxidants, specifically a group of potent flavonoid antioxidants—anthocyanins—now getting attention for their ability to retard aging, preserve memory and other neurological functions, fight inflammation, and combat cancer.
Animal studies at the University of Michigan suggest tart cherries may also reduce a trio of risk factors associated with heart disease. A cherry-enriched diet appears to help lower body fat, total weight, and cholesterol levels.
The sour cherry is slightly smaller, redder, and richer in anthocyanins than its cousin, the sweet cherry. It's also more astringent, making it ideal for cooking.
Only relatively recently have scientists begun to explore the disease-fighting ability of an array of naturally occurring bioactive compounds, many of them pigments, found in fruits and vegetables. Besides containing their own unique combination of anthocyanins, tart cherries are one of the few foods to contain melatonin, which helps regulate circadian rhythms and natural sleep patterns.
Healthful and tasty as they are, cherries have an image problem. Consumers regard them as the least nutritious fruit, thanks to all those cherry pies at the diner and the maraschino cherry, that strangely textured, Day-Glo globe of cured fruit.
Finding fresh sour cherries in your local market can be a challenge, unless you live in Michigan, where they are grown. They're most often available dried, frozen, or canned and can be purchased via the Web, often directly from growers.
Dried Tart Cherries Antioxidant score per 100g (3.5 oz): 6,800
Acai Fruit Antioxidant score per 100g (3.5 oz): 5,754
Blueberries Antioxidant score per 100g (3.5 oz): 2,400
Frozen Tart Cherries Antioxidant score per 100g (3.5 oz): 2,100
Strawberries Antioxidant score per 100g (3.5 oz): 1,540
Raspberries Antioxidant score per 100g (3.5 oz): 1,220
All Souped Up
Late summer is prime time for zingy cold soups.
• Servings: 4
• Total Time: 20 minutes plus 2 hours for chilling
Ingredients
- 3 cups plus 2 Tbsp cold water
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 1 stick of cinnamon
- ½ to 1 tsp grated lemon zest
- 1 ½ lb fresh or frozen pitted sour cherries
- 2 Tbsp cornstarch
- 3 Tbsp sour cream
- 1 ½ Tbsp heavy cream
Directions
Combine 3 cups of water, sugar, lemon zest, and cinnamon in a heavy saucepan and bring to a boil for 2 minutes. Add cherries, return to a boil, then turn heat down to a simmer for 15 minutes. Remove cinnamon stick. In a small bowl, combine cornstarch with 2 Tbsp water and stir until smooth. Whisk into the cherry mixture, and cook until soup is slightly thickened, 2 or 3 minutes. Cool soup, uncovered, then refrigerate, covered, until chilled. Soup may be put through food processor for smoothing, or ladled into bowls as is. Whisk together sour and sweet cream and drizzle into bowls.
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