52 Sundays of Dessert: Week 18

[starling_81]

Happy Belated Fourth!

I couldn't stop myself. I saw this recipe come up and I had to nix something else so I could make it. And for Fourth of July too! I mean, what is more American? Yesterday, I made Root Beer Float Cupcakes. Or at least, cupcakes in the closest form to an actual float that you can get.

Comments

[harashteb]

Yum, yum!! So, are you telling me that those candied cherries you buy at the grocery store that aren't "natural" are toxic?? Yikes!!

We had a great 4th! Got moved into a rental house the day before! It's super great and has an awesome fenced-in backyard!! Trying to settle in.

[starling_81]

Well, apparently they no longer use the harmful red dye that they used to, but I believe they are still made by first soaking cherries into several different substances, including sulfur dioxide, for several days. (I even read in one place that bleach was or can be used too. Not sure if that's true.) Sulfur dioxide isn't exactly good for you and deadly in large amounts. Obviously a couple of maraschinos aren't going to kill you. But because the cherries are pretty much bleached out after that, they soak them in sugar and dye them. To me, leeching a perfectly happy fruit with chemicals just so you can preserve it and then reintroducing flavor and color is creepy. Never really cared that much before, but I figured if there was an equally tasty but chemical-free version out there, I wanted to try it!

Sweet!! Glad you found a new place. Moving is always a hassle, but hopefully it's got lots of space for you. =)