Cherries charmed Billy Boy of nursery rhyme fame, whose sweetheart could "make a cherry pie as fast as you can wink an eye," and apparently kept George Washington from telling a lie, but mostly they are known as the luscious rosy red fruits that develop from the early spring blossoms of a cherry tree. It's likely that they originated in northeastern Asia, but for thousands of years, they have flourished in much of Asia, Europe and North America, areas where they continue to grow today. In the United States, sweet cherries grow primarily in the Pacific Northwest and tart cherries in the Midwest (particularly Door County, Wisconsin and near Traverse City, Michigan).

• Sweet cherries are most often eaten out of hand.
• Sweet cherries can be preserved in brandy or stirred into ice cream to make the flavor New York cherry.
• Tart cherries, also called sour or pie cherries, are excellent for baking pies, cobblers, cakes and crumbles.
• Tart cherries make excellent preserves and jams.
• Cherries are used to make several notable liqueurs, including kirsch (kirschwasser) and Cherry Heering.
• Maraschino cherries are sweet cherries that are pitted, soaked in sugar syrup, flavored and dyed a vivid red or green.

Of sweet cherries, Bing is the most popular variety. It is large, sweet and deep purple-red. Other varieties include Lambert, Royal (or Queen) Ann and Windsor. Tart cherries usually are red and slightly smaller than sweet cherries. Principle varieties include Morello and Montmorency.

Cherries remain mainly a summer fruit. Sometimes sweet cherries from Chile are available in January. Tart cherries, available for several weeks in June, are seldom seen in supermarkets. Look for them at farmers' markets in areas where they are grown. Canned sweet and tart cherries are available in syrup. Tart cherries are canned with sugar and thickeners added to make pie filling. Both sweet and tart cherries are available frozen or dried all year.

Choose plump, firm fruits with glossy skin and no bruises or leakage. Cherries don't ripen after picking, so immature cherries, marked by a small size and poor color, should be avoided. Tart cherries are slightly soft when ripe. Cherries with stems attached keep longer.

1 pound sweet cherries, pitted and stemmed = about 1-3/4 cups. 1 pound tart cherries, pitted and stemmed = about 2-1/4 cups. 1 (16-ounce) can tart cherries, drained = 1-1/2 cups. 1 (20-ounce) bag frozen pitted cherries = 2 cups.

Discard any cherries with broken skin and refrigerate unwashed cherries in a bowl loosely covered with plastic wrap. They will last for several days.

For eating out of hand, rinse cherries under cold running water. Remove the stems. When pitted cherries are called for in a recipe, use the tip of a swivel-bladed vegetable peeler, inserted through the stem end, to remove the pit. Work over a bowl to collect the juice. A cherry pitter is a tool that holds a single cherry while a plunger pushes out the pit. Automatic pitters that hold several cups of unpitted cherries are also available. Canned cherries should be drained before using. When baking with frozen cherries, thaw them partially before using.