What is the difference between cherry and black cherry?

Red, beautiful and cheery: cherries and sour cherries have many things in common, but they are not the same fruit.

The difference between cherry and black cherry, in fact, is well defined both from the botanical point of view and from that of taste.

This means that the recipes and opportunities to taste both multiply in endless healthy and delicious possibilities: let’s find out more about these delicious fruits!

Botanical differences: fruits and trees of sour cherries and cherries

Although similar and belonging to the same family, cherry trees and black cherry trees are different.

In fact, cherries and corns are the fruit of Prunus Avium, also known as sweet cherry, of which there are many varieties. In Italy alone there are about twenty: the Moretta di Vignola IGP, the Ferrovia and the cherry of Marostica, just to name the best known.

The Prunus Cerasus (sour cherry), on the other hand, is the plant that produces black cherries, sour cherries and morello cherries.

Furthermore, upon closer inspection, there are also differences in appearance between black cherry and cherry: generally the former are smaller and even the shade of red, always beautiful, is more subdued and delicate.

Cherries and sour cherries in recipes: differences in taste and uses in the kitchen

To distinguish black cherries and cherries, however, there is also the taste and texture.

The cherry is sweet and has abundant and juicy pulp; sour cherry is firmer and has a flavor that combines sour and bitter tones.

These characteristics make the two fruits ideal for creating different recipes.

If cherries are excellent in purity or for soft cakes and sweet focaccia, the intense taste of black cherry is particularly suitable for making syrups, liqueurs and jams. The famous Maraschino, for example, or sour cherry jam, essential to prepare the typical Roman tart with ricotta.

RivaReno fresh sour cherry ice cream of the day

Black cherries are summer fruits but we love them so much that in our ice cream workshops we use and enjoy them all year round.

This is why we have created two really rich black cherry ice creams: Morena and Crunchy Amarenata.

The ice cream at the base is for both flavors a very creamy cream to which black cherry syrup and whole black cherries are added.

For the Crunchy Amarenata, however, we really wanted to exaggerate: we also enriched it with amaretti and caramelized hazelnut grains: a real pity of gluttony with an intense flavor and surprising consistency!