I have fond memories of cherry picking with my parents and preparing kilos of the fruit when we got home. My mother was very fond of making jams and clafoutis but these little rolls were my absolute favourite. I remember being very impatient and eating them as soon as they came out of the oven.

Individual cherry rolls served with rum Chantilly

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

To prepare the pastry:

  • 240g white flour
  • 2 tbsps. white caster sugar (+ one extra for sprinkling)
  • 200g cubed butter
  • 4 tbsps. iced water
  • A pinch of sea salt

To prepare the filling:

  • 280g fresh pitted cherries
  • 4 tbsp. Demerara sugar
  • 85ml water
  • ½ the juice of a lemon
  • 1 tsp. corn flour
  • ½ a scraped vanilla pod

Rum Chantilly:

  • 1 tbsp. dark rum
  • 2 tbsps. icing sugar
  • 150ml whipping cream

Egg wash:

  • 2 egg yolk
  • 1 tbsp. milk

Method:

Pre-prepare the cherry filling the night before:

  1. Place the cherries in a saucepan with the sugar, water, scraped vanilla pod and lemon juice.
  2. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook for 10 minutes; stirring from time to time.
  3. After the time has elapsed, whisk the corn flour with a drizzle of water and add the mixture to the saucepan. Bring to a simmer for a further minute.
  4. Once the cherries are soft and coated in a syrup like texture remove from the heat and leave to cool down overnight.

To prepare the pastry:

Preheat your oven to 195 degrees C

  1. Place all the ingredients in a food processor except the iced water. Pulse the processor until the mixture resembles fine sand.
  2. Add the water to the dry mix until the dough rolls itself into a ball.
  3. Place in cling film and refrigerate for 1 hour.
  4. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface until you achieve a large rectangle of 2 to 3 mm thin.
  5. Slice large rectangles of 10cm long. Gently brush all over with the egg wash and sprinkle a little sugar evenly over each strip.
  6. Finally, place the cherries all over the sheet of pastry and roll tightly as you would a Swiss roll. Then slice 2 to 2.5cm individual rolls and turn them on their side to reveal the oozing cherries.
  7. Place them on a baking tray previously lined with a greaseproof paper and egg wash on the outside of each little roll.
  8. Bake for 15 minutes; when crispy and caramelised remove from the oven, and leave to cool.

To prepare the rum Chantilly:

  1. Whisk the cream and icing sugar in the bowl with an electric mixer. When it starts to thicken add the rum and any remaining cherries or syrup.
  2. As soon as you achieve a soft peek, stop whisking and devour.

Wines to drink with cherry rolls served with rum chantilly

Muscat de Rivesaltes, Mas Amiel 2012

This bright and tantalising dessert wine combines the aroma of white peach notes with ripe lemon and lime zest. There is a subtle note of sea salt, balancing the delicate sweetness.

RRP: £10.99 from Waitrose

Banyuls Cuvée Parcé Frères, Domaine de la Rectoire 2012

Using the Grenache grape that the Banyuls-sur-Mer region has become renowned for, this lovely rich wine has a fresh sweetness that is full of caramel and candied fruit notes, providing a lighter and interesting alternative to port.

RRP: 50cl – £19.95 from Oxford Wine Company

Brioche and Butter Pudding

(Image credit: Credit Unknown)

Brioche and butter pudding – recipe by Michel Roux Jr

Cannelé

(Image credit: Credit Unknown)

Canelé – recipe by Michel Roux Jr

Apple puff pastry with Christmas spices

(Image credit: Credit Unknown)

Apple puff pastry with Christmas spices – recipe by Michel Roux Jr.

Gateau de Savoie

Gateau de Savoie, Michel Roux Jnr.
(Image credit: Credit Unknown)

Gateau de Savoie, chestnut purée and Chantilly cream – recipe by Michel Roux Jr.

Traditional rice pudding

(Image credit: Credit Unknown)

Traditional rice pudding with poached peaches – recipe by Michel Roux Jr

Re-assess rice pudding with this recipe from Michel Roux Jr...

Michel Roux Jr
Michel Roux Jr
Columnist
Michel Roux Jr was born in 1960 in Pembury, Kent, where his father Albert Roux worked as a private chef for the Cazalet family. His earliest food memories are the smells of the Fairlawne kitchen – pastry, sugar caramelizing and stews – where he played under the table while his father and mother Monique prepared the meals. After deciding to follow in his father’s footsteps, he left school at 16 for the first of several challenging apprenticeships at Maître Patissier, Hellegouarche in Paris from 1976 to 1979. He was then Commis de Cuisine at Alain Chapel’s signature restaurant at Mionay near Lyon, Michel’s biggest influence. His military service was spent in the kitchens at the Elysée Palace at the time of Presidents Giscard d’Estaing and François Mitterrand. He also spent time at Boucherie Lamartine and Charcuterie Mothu in Paris, and the Gavers Restaurant in London. After a stint at the Mandarin Hotel in Hong Kong he returned to London and worked at La Tante Claire before joining the family business. He took over running Le Gavroche in 1991, gradually changing the style of cooking to his own – classic French with a lighter, modern twist. Michel opened Roux at Parliament Square in May 2010 with Restaurant Associates, part of the Compass Group UK and Ireland. And in November 2010, he opened Roux at The Landau at London’s prestigious luxury hotel, The Langham. Michel was a judge and presenter on the BBC’s popular prime time show, MasterChef: The Professionals, and presented all series of ‘Great British Food Revival.’  Michel fronted BBC2’s ‘Food and Drink,’ in 2014 and presented a documentary on Escoffier, whose revolutionary approach to fine cuisine has inspired Michel and many others. In the same year, Michel went on a journey to create the perfect chocolate for the Le Gavroche Kitchen.  Filmed by the BBC, in Paris he discovered chocolatiers, Cacao Barry and their Or Noir Lab. In 2013, Michel launched his most recent cookbook, ‘The French Kitchen’.  Focusing on traditional French home cooking, this is the fifth solo cookery book from Michel. He is involved with the Roux Experience courses at the ‘Cactus Kitchens’ cookery school, with the Executive producer of Saturday Kitchen, Amanda Ross. Cactus Kitchens offers people the opportunity to learn to cook within small intimate groups from some of the UK’s finest chefs, on site above the Saturday Kitchen studios. Michel has fronted a brand new four-part Channel 4 series, ‘The Diner’, exploring the hurdles faced by people with disabilities and mental health issues when finding employment. Michel also recently presented a new program on his first ever project with the Disney Channel.  ‘First Class Chefs’ which launched in June 2015, is a show where kids aged 9-11 compete to showcase their restaurant skills.