Category is...Bowl of Cherries
This dinner party menu celebrates the season's it-girl, the cherry, by marrying her with bold Korean flavours and low-effort, summer-friendly preparation.
It’s stone fruit season in my neck of the woods. And for me, that means it’s cherry season. Cherries and I go way back. I remember countless summers lazing with a paperback and a huge bowl of fresh, sweet cherries balanced on my lap. The pages of my book would be progressively streaked with cherry juice as I mowed my way through bowl after bowl. I haven’t grown out of this behaviour. More than a few bowls of unadulterated cherries have been consumed this summer. But while cherries don’t need a lot of zhuzhing, zhuzhing is a lot of fun. So I made Bowl of Cherries the theme of this week’s Hardcore Supper Club. You know, as in the saying “life is a bowl of cherries”? An expression that highlights the pleasures and joys of being alive. While the saying is sometimes used ironically, that is not how I’m deploying it today. Joy and pleasure are peppered throughout this menu, and it’s August - peak summer. We’re leaning into joy. When I developed this menu, the mission was clear: How can I integrate as many cherries as possible? What emerged was a largely Korean-inspired menu. I know you’re going to love it, so let’s dive in!
Sour Cherry Soju Highball
The meal kicks off with a Sour Cherry Soju Highball. I prefer a highball for a dinner party setting because it’s a simple stirred mixed drink. A highball is a composition of a base spirit and a nonalcoholic mixer. The alcohol can be a spirit, wine, fortified wine, or a mixture of all of the above. Technically, something as simple as a screwdriver is a highball.
In the sour cherry soju highball, the base spirit is, predictably enough, soju, a Korean distilled alcohol derived from rice, wheat, and/or barley. It is often compared to vodka because of its neutral flavor. But it has a lower ABV. Vodka typically clocks in at 40%, while soju usually falls somewhere between 16-25%. Soju is available in numerous flavours. But in this drink, I went with the classic. I also added a little Kirsch, a colourless brandy made from morello cherries, to double down on the cherry flavor.
The drink is rounded out with a Lemongrass Basil simple syrup for a slight savoury note, tart cherry juice, and sparkling water to finish. The result is a lip-smacking welcome cocktail that is relatively low in alcohol and simple to mix. In other words, it’s the perfect way to start the night.
Cherry Gochujang Gazpacho
Moving on to the opening course, we have our Cherry Gochujang Gazpacho. I have to admit, gazpacho isn’t my first choice when it comes to soup. Indeed, I haven’t had many in my life, but the ones I have encountered were, well, a little bland. But this less-than-traditional rendition is anything but.
The first thing we’re going to do is rip the fluffy guts out of a baguette. We will only need the interior of the bread for the gazpacho. But fear not, we are going to tear up and toast the crusts for the salad portion of this menu. We don’t want the crusts involved in gazpacho because we want it to be nice and smooth. The crusts will compromise that dream.
Then we’re going to toss some coarsely chopped Roma tomatoes and pitted sweet cherries with gochujang, a Korean fermented pepper paste. Half of the tomatoes and cherries are poured over the guts of the baguette, then cucumber, green pepper, shallots, and smashed garlic are placed on top. The remaining tomatoes and cherries are added, and a whole lot of olive oil is poured in. We finish the layering process with rice wine vinegar and let the whole thing sit for an hour before blitzing it to silky perfection.
The gazpacho can be made up to three days in advance, which is always a bonus when entertaining. And the plating is very simple. Just pour the gazpacho into small glasses and garnish with a dollop of sour cream and half a cherry. Easy stuff!
Cherry Cola Galbi Rice Bowls
Now, let’s talk about the main event: Cherry Cola Galbi Rice Bowls and a Sweet Cherry Kimchi Salad with a Gochujang Vinaigrette. We’re playing with some Korean BBQ legends here. Galbi are beef short ribs, sliced thin and marinated before being grilled to melty perfection. Here I deployed a marinade with soy sauce, cola, and tart cherry juice at its core. The beef is left to marinate overnight before being grilled. And this meat cooks quickly. No more than 2-3 minutes a side. So this is easy enough to cook while in the middle of entertaining. From there, all you have to do is fill some bowls with steamed rice and sliced veg ( I used cucumber and watermelon radish, but feel free to get creative) and plunk the ribs on the table with a pair of scissors to separate them.
Sweet Cherry Kimchi Salad
The companion to these rice bowls is my Sweet Cherry Kimchi Salad. This salad is loaded with pitted sweet cherries, cherry tomatoes, kimchi, and torn radicchio. You’ll also notice croutons made from the crust of the baguette we didn’t use in the gazpacho - waste not, want not. The salad is dressed in a simple vinaigrette comprised of gochujang, garlic, sesame oil, rice wine vinegar, and a hit of honey for balance. You can make the dressing in advance and tackle your mise en place before your guests arrive, so all you have to do is toss everything together and go.
Black Sesame Cake with Sour Cherry Glaze
And finally, we have dessert. I’m not going to go into much detail about this Black Sesame Cake with Sour Cherry Glaze here because it was the free recipe this week. You can read all about it over here. I love this cake for entertaining because the only thing you have to do the day of is decorate the beauty. And if you’re not into this retro-look and would rather serve it with the glaze and nothing else, it will still look elegant, and taste incredible.
