Behold, a highly subjective list of things you probably buy pre-made that you should really be making yourself.  I’m not going to be telling you that you should weave your own cloth, or be lovingly nurturing a sourdough starter for homemade artisan bread (though if anyone out there knows how to do that and wants to coach me, email me please!)  But all of the things on this list are (a) relatively easy (b) substantially more delicious in their homemade incarnation, with no artificial chemical weirdness.  They’re also often more cost-effective.  Win-win.

• Microwave popcorn
• Granola
• Oreos
• Spaghetti Sauce
• Salad Dressing (there are a zillion recipes, I have several favorites)
• Maraschino Cherries (see below)

I wrote about Maraschino Cherries over at LiveWell yesterday, and at Swistle‘s request, I’m sharing the recipe.

Maraschino Cherries

Technique 1 (easiest):

Adapted from The Essential Cocktail by Dale DeGroff (LOVE THIS BOOK.  Buy it.  Seriously.)

Ingredients:

• some amount of sour cherries (also called pie cherries; they’re bright red and slightly smaller than Bing cherries); if you’re using brandy or bourbon, you can also use dark sweet cherries, but the results won’t be as pretty.  (I used a quart, and it yielded 4 8oz jars of cherries).
• white sugar
• maraschino liqueur (like Luxardo), or brandy, or bourbon
• mason jars

1. Wash the cherries.  (I remove the stems but leave the pits; you can leave the stems to get a more traditional look, or you can remove the stems and the pits for ease of eating.  I find removing the pits isn’t really worth the effort.)

2. Pack the cherries tightly into mason jars.  Pour in sugar to surround them so they’re packed in sugar.  Allow to macerate for a day or two in the fridge.

3. Open up the mason jars, pour in marashino liqueur to fill, shake, and let steep for at least 2 weeks, shaking occasionally to help dissolve the cherries.  You’ll end up with delicious cherry syrup and lovely cherries.  Enjoy.

Note: with this method, you’ll sometimes end up with extra sugar in the bottom of the jar that doesn’t dissolve.  This is no biggie, but if you’re giving the cherries as gifts or something, it’s not the most attractive.  To prevent this, there are two variations:

• you can soak the cherries in simple syrup (one part sugar to one part water, heated until sugar has dissolved) for a day or two, then pour out 2/3 of the simple syrup and fill the jar with the liquor of your choice.
• Or,  you can simmer the cherries in some simple syrup for a few minutes (no more than 5) then drain them, put them in jars, and pour in the liquor.

What’s that you say?  Cherries aren’t in season where you are?  Then try this hack:

Technique 2: (cheaters way; but still yummy)

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1 cup bourbon or brandy
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped (optional)
• 1 strip lemon or orange zest (optional)
• 3/4 of a pound of dried cherries, the closest to inact you can find (some dried cherries are sold in little bits; those will not work.  I’ve found intact dried cherries at Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods.)

1. In a saucepan, combine water, liquor, sugar, and vanilla bean and zest, if using.  Heat to boiling and cook for 7 minutes, until sugar is dissolved and it looks syrupy.

2. Add cherries and simmer- DO NOT BOIL- for 5 minutes.

3. Transfer fruit and syrup to a clean dry mason jar.  If you can stand waiting, let them “cure” at room temp for a few days, then store them in the fridge.

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Um, that’s way more than you ever wanted to know about cherries.  Well, hopefully the one person still reading this will enjoy their sweet, boozy goodness!