I have mentioned before that I love sour cherries and these simple-to-make fritters are just delightful. I like to make them and not tell my guests about the hidden sour and sweet cherry inside, so they get a very pleasant surprise, The kirsch- spiked mascarpone is perfect for dipping. You can easily use Marsala or Grand Marnier in the mascarpone as both work beautifully.
Sour cherry fritters with boozy mascarpone
300g plain flour
110g caster sugar
75g hazelnut meal
3 teaspoons baking powder
Finely grated rind of 1 orange
Scraped seeds of 1 vanilla bean
250 ml milk
60g butter, melted and cooled
1 egg, lightly beaten
For deep-frying: vegetable oil
15-18 jarred pitted morello cherries (about 200g, drained)
Boozy mascarpone
300g mascarpone
30 ml kirsch
30g pure icing sugar, sieved
Scraped seeds of 1 vanilla bean
Cinnamon sugar
80g pure icing sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
Mix flour, sugar, hazelnut meal, baking power, orange rind, vanilla seeds and a pinch of salt in a bowl, make a well in the centre, then add milk, butter and egg. Mix until smooth and combined, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour to rest.
Meanwhile, for boozy mascarpone, whisk ingredients in a bowl until thick and combined, then refrigerate until required.
Preheat oil in a deep saucepan to 180C. Spoon heaped tablespoons of batter onto a sheet of baking paper. Press a morello cherry into the centre of each, ensuring that the batter completely encloses the cherry. Deep-fry in batches, turning occasionally, until puffed, golden and cooked through (3-4 minutes). Drain on absorbent paper.
For cinnamon sugar, sieve ingredients to combine, then sieve over the hot fritters and serve with the boozy mascarpone for dipping.
