Mary Gwynn celebrates the revival of a local favourite with recipes and serving ideas...

Don't miss out on the short but sweet Kent cherry season and rediscover one of the great flavours of the British summer. Mary Gwynn celebrates the revival of a local favourite with recipes and serving ideas...

Kent's cherry orchards go back to Tudor times but cherries themselves were brought to this country by the Romans all the way from Persia. According to legend, wild cherry trees grow alongside Roman roads across Britain, a relic of the stones that Roman soldiers spat out as they traversed the country. As a child I gorged on cherries and wore them as earrings with my sisters as we holidayed with our grandparents outside Canterbury, but my children have had to make do with imported fruit from the States, Turkey and Holland. Not the same thing at all, as a fruit that has travelled across continents in chilled containers for up to three weeks cannot compete in flavour with its cousins from a few miles down the road, picked within a couple of days of eating.

Until very recently our cherry orchards were at risk of disappearing altogether. The once prized orchards of Kent have been reduced by 85% over the last 50 years – there are now less than 1,000 acres in cultivation. We currently import up to 95% of the cherries eaten here. But thanks to the CherryAid campaign, launched by local food champion Henrietta Green of FoodLoversBritain.com, the cherry is making a comeback. As shoppers increasingly seek out local seasonal produce, local farmers have begun to plant orchards again, utilising modern growing techniques to ensure hardier trees that can withstand the vagaries of our weather.

In recognition of this reversal of fortune, National Cherry Day took place on 18th July to celebrate the short season of this treasured national fruit. So if you've missed cherries so far this summer, make the most of the last few weeks they are available locally. Eat them freshly picked dipped into thick cream or use them in either sweet or savoury dishes. In pies, crumbles, ice cream or partnered with chocolate or almonds as in the recipes featured here, their sweet flavour and rich colour are intensely satisfying. If using for cooking, search out a cherry stoner to make removing the pits a simple process.

From a healthy eating angle, cherries are rich in vitamin C and potassium and are a good source of pectin, which helps to control blood cholesterol levels. They contain 16 antioxidants that fight cardiovascular disease and arthritis; they have also been found to help people suffering from gout and the compound that gives cherries their vibrant colour – anthocyanin - is both an antioxidant and an anti-inflammatory. Cherries have only 54 cal/100 grams and virtually no fat and 10 will give you one of your five-a-day servings of fruit and vegetables.

Buy Kentish cherries from now until almost the end of the month from your local farmers' market, from Brogdale Farm outside Faversham and other local farmers or from roadside cherry stalls. You can pick your own from Maynards Pick Your Own Farm at Wadhurst or try local cherries in Ouse Valley Foods' Morello Cherry Jam.

And if you miss out on this season's cherries, for just £35 you can even rent your own tree ready for next summer. Michael Dalloway grows 20 varieties of cherry in his orchards on the Kent-East Sussex border. Put yourself on the waiting list for 2010 and you might be enjoying a walk under the blossom of your own tree next spring. Go to www.rentacherrytree.co.uk for information about trees for 2010 and to www.foodloversbritain.com for details of National Cherry Day, CherryAid and all kinds of links to English cherry sites, recipes and information.

Chinese duck & red cherry salad

This dish makes a perfect elegant yet simple summer supper with the complementary sweet and sour flavours that make crispy duck a perennial favourite at Chinese restaurants. Serve with a glass of chilled rosé

Serves 4. Prepare: 25 mins. Cook: 20 mins

• 4 duck breasts
• 2 tbsp dark soy sauce
• 1 tbsp clear honey
• 1 tsp Chinese five spice powder
• 300g Kentish cherries, stoned

For the dressing

• 3 tbsp walnut oil
• 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1 tsp grainy mustard
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• salad leaves

1. Preheat the oven to 220C Gas 7. Mix together the honey, soy sauce and spice powder and brush over the skin side of the duck. Place on a wire rack over a roasting tin and roast for 20 minutes until the skin is golden and crisp and the flesh pink. Transfer to a board, cover and leave to stand for 10 minutes.

2. Whisk together the oil, vinegar, mustard and seasoning. Add the stoned cherries.

3. To serve, slice the duck breasts thinly. Arrange a pile of salad leaves on four serving plates, arrange the sliced duck on top or to the side and spoon over the cherries and dressing. Serve with a bowl of baby new potatoes tossed with a little butter and snipped chives.

Cook's tip: Use a really good quality walnut oil for the best flavour

Cherry frangipane tart

As a child I always loved cherry and almond cake and learnt to make it as soon as I could cook for myself. This tart marries the same flavours and is a lovely summer treat, perfect for summer parties and picnics

Serves 8. Prepare: 20 mins. Cook: 55 mins

• 250g pack ready-made shortcrust pastry made with butter or homemade pastry using 150g plain flour and 75g butter
• 250g fresh cherries, stoned
• 125g butter
• 125g caster sugar
• 3 eggs
• 125g ground almonds
• 25g flaked almonds

1. Preheat the oven to 200C Gas 6. Place a baking sheet in the oven to heat up. Roll out the pastry and use to line a 23cm (9in) loose-bottomed flan tin. Chill for 10 minutes to allow the pastry to rest then bake blind for 15 minutes (see cook's tip). Reduce the oven's temperature to 190C Gas 5.

3. Scatter the cherries over the base of the tart. Cream the butter and sugar together till pale and beat in the eggs one at a time. Fold in the ground almonds. Spoon over the cherries and spread level. Sprinkle with flaked almonds.

3. Bake for 40-45 minutes on the preheated sheet until the top is golden. Serve warm or cold with local cream or ice cream.

Cook's tip: Cook's tip: Make sure you buy ready-made pastry using butter as the difference in flavour is marked. To bake blind, line the pastry case with crumpled greaseproof paper and cover the base with dried beans or rice. Bake for 10 minutes then remove the paper and beans and return to the oven for a further five minutes to dry out.

Cherry chocolate pots

These little pots have the texture of a creme brulee – smooth and velvety but with a hit of dark chocolate. They are best made the day before then chilled overnight and served with cherries for dipping if you can't be bothered to stone them

Serves 6 - 8. Prepare: 20 mins. Cook: 30 mins, plus 5 hours for chilling

• 200g fresh cherries, stoned
• 150ml milk
• 150ml double cream
• ½ vanilla pod
• 4 egg yolks
• 50g caster sugar
• 125g dark chocolate, chopped
• extra cherries to serve

1. Preheat the oven to 150C Gas 1. Arrange the stoned cherries in the base of six or eight small ramekins. Place the milk and cream in a small pan with the vanilla pod. Heat until just boiling then remove the vanilla pod.

2. Place the egg yolks and sugar in a mixing bowl and whisk together until light and pale. Pour on the hot milk and cream, whisking as you do so. Strain onto the chopped chocolate and stir until melted. Pour into the ramekins (the cherries will float up) and place in a roasting tin. Add boiling water to come half way up the dishes and bake in the oven for 30 minutes until just set.

3. Leave to cool then chill overnight or for at least 5 hours. Serve with extra cherries to decorate and if feeling really decadent, a jug of cream.