Crystalized Ginger Cherry Relleno
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~ raw, vegan, gluten-free, nut-free ~
Take a ripe, plump and juicy red cherry, pop the pit out, slide a piece of dried ginger in the space created by the missing pit, place it on the mesh sheet that comes with the dehydrator and dehydrate away.
Then once it is completely dry, drown it in a pool of rich, luxurious dark chocolate… oh, but wait there is more… like the chocolate hugs the cherry which is hugging the ginger, sprinkle a light fairy dusting of crystallized ginger on top! And that my friends are a Crystalized Ginger Cherry Relleno! It is quite an experience to behold and taste.
It is hard to believe, but another cherry harvest has come and gone. I must admit that creating cherry rellenos has become one of my favorite traditions. The sweetness from the dark chocolate and cherry are a perfect duo to stand up to the heat of the ginger.
You will notice below that I didn’t list out quantities of the ingredients. Use what you have or how many you want to make. You can make as little as 2 (but that would just be silly) or make 30. So, I am going to let you go now because I don’t want to take up any more of your time… you need to use your time wisely by making these rellenos. :)
Ingredients:
Preparation:
- Wash/dry and remove the stems and pits from the cherries. You can leave the stems on for fun if you wish. I did on a few.
- Dice the dried ginger into small cubed pieces. Fresh ginger won’t work, way to HOT in flavor. ( I tried. )
- Stuff a piece of ginger into each cherry. Place the stuffed cherry on the mesh sheet that comes with the dehydrator.
- It is important that the stuffed cherries are dry before placing them on the mesh sheet so pat them with a paper towel.
- If they are wet going into the dehydrator, the water will bring out the juices in the cherry/ginger and create a sticky puddle underneath it.
- Dehydrate at 145 degrees for 1 hour, then reduce the temperature to 115 degrees and continue to dry for approximately 24 hours or until dry. Remove and allow them to cool to room temperature.
- If making this raw – Prepare the hardening chocolate recipe.
- If using store-bought chocolate chips –
- Melting in a double boiler – Bring the water to a simmer, pour the bag of chocolate chips into your double boiler.
- Stir constantly, once most of the chocolate chips are melted reduce the heat to the lowest setting. Continue stirring until all of the chocolate is melted.
- Be careful that you don’t allow any moisture into the pan, this will cause your chocolate to seize.
- Once melted, turn the heat off and start dipping the cherries.
- Dip each dried, stuffed cherry into the chocolate, coating it well, tap the excess chocolate.
- I used a small fork as a platform to hold the cherry, tap it on the side of the bowl, scrape the bottom of the fork with the edge of a spatula and slide the cherry onto the tray with a toothpick.
- Place on a solid surface (etc. cutting board, tray, teflex sheet, wax paper).
- Sprinkle a dusting of crystallized ginger on top.
- Allow the chocolate to harden.
- Store in an airtight container. If your house is warm, store them in the fridge or freezer, just be sure that they are well sealed. I kept a jar of them in the cabinet for several weeks, and they stayed fresh.
Culinary Explanations:
- Why do I start the dehydrator at 145 degrees (F)? Click (here) to learn the reason behind this.
- When working with fresh ingredients, it is important to taste test as you build a recipe. Learn why (here).
- Don’t own a dehydrator? Learn how to use your oven (here). I do however truly believe that it is a worthwhile investment. Click (here) to learn what I use.
Stuff dried ginger pieces into the cherry after it has been pitted. Dehydrate and dip in chocolate.
Dip in chocolate and place on parchment paper to dry.
© AmieSue.com
Tags: Dairy Free, Dehydrated, Gluten Free, Nut Free, Refined Sugar Free, Soy Free, Vegan
Does all crystalized ginger have sugar on it?
From what I have seen yes Julie.
I love your recipes and this seems so fancy! :)
We eat with our eyes first so I do my best to honor the beauty that Mother Nature has provided for us. :)
How do you make a Dusting out of the ginger. The only ginger I have bought has been gummy. Is there a Hard ginger to purchase? If so, are you using two different kinds of ginger?
thank you
Hello Elaine, I posted a link in the recipe above on how to make your own crystalized ginger. That should answer your questions. amie sue
Hello Amie Sue, (again. 😊 I am a pain!)
Ginger is usually too hot for my taste so I have never tried to dry it, and I rarely use it in food, but these sound and look so delicious. I thought about stuffing the cherries with ginger crystals instead of dried. What do you think, too sweet?
Hello Veronica,
You are not a pain, don’t say such things. :) Yes, you can use ginger crystals just fine. I personally don’t think it would be too sweet. Let me know how it goes. amie sue
Dear Amie Sue, the times of cherries are gone and now we get beautiful organic white, red and dark blue grapes from Italy in our markets. But as you knew we found organic cherry gardens and we could enjoy a lot of them this summer. now we know where to find them next July. :)
I stuffed them both with ginger and cashew. After dehydrating them half were coated with chocolate and the other half went into the chocolate molds! i used dried rose petals and 2-3 lavender flowers in the molds to mark cashew or ginger! By surprise the taste and look became very especial!!
You see Amie Sue,..your recipes flowering in our homes :)
Love you, many blessings :)
Good morning Afsaneh,
I love that you took full advantage of the cherries this year! You made some wonderful recipes. I have a lot of these in the freezer myself and will dip in chocolate as needed. I love that you added them to chocolate molds, sooo smart! Thank you so much for sharing my friend. I always love reading about your adventures in the kitchen. Have a blessed day. amie sue