Pits top!

In a small saucepan, simmer alcohol and sugar, stirring over low heat until sugar has fully dissolved. Turn off heat and let sit 15 minutes. Wash, pit, and de-stem cherries. Pack cherries into a 16-ounce Mason jar. Pour syrup over cherries, making sure they’re fully submerged. Cover with lid and ring and let cool to room temperature, then store in fridge for up to a year. Soak overnight at a minimum before eating; a few weeks or longer is optimum.

With a blender, immersion blender, or food processor, puree ¼ cup of the cubed mango along with olive oil, cilantro, lime, honey, red onion, salt, and pepper for dressing and set aside. Make a bed of arugula and layer remaining salad ingredients on top. Drizzle with dressing and serve.

* Any ratio of peaches, apricots, and/or plums will work in this recipe, but you may need to adjust cornstarch and sugar amounts. Taste to get a sense of how tart and juicy they are and use more sugar if the mixture is extra-tart and more cornstarch if it’s extra-juicy.

With your hands, lightly combine flour, 3 tablespoons brown sugar, and butter until it resembles crumbles. Using your hands, mix a tablespoon of water into dough until it begins to form and stick together. Dust a flat surface with flour. Roll out dough to 1/8-inch thick in an oval shape. Transfer to a baking sheet. (If room temperature is above 75 F, you may want to pop the dough in the fridge while you work on the next step.)

Preheat oven to 400 F. Slice peaches and/or plums into wedges lengthwise and apricots in half lengthwise. Toss in a bowl with lemon juice, the remaining 2 tablespoons brown sugar, and cornstarch. Fill center of dough with fruit, leaving a wide rim of dough uncovered around the edge. Fold sides of dough up over the fruit, leaving the center open. Brush dough with egg wash (optional) and bake 30 to 40 minutes, or until pastry is golden and fruit is bubbling and beginning to wrinkle. Let cool, slice, and serve.

In a medium bowl, mix ½ cup of the brown sugar into milk, then add the chopped dates and prunes. In a small bowl, mix flour, baking powder, and allspice, then incorporate into fruit mixture. Spread evenly into the bottom of an ungreased 9-inch square baking dish and sprinkle nuts on top.

In the now-empty medium bowl, combine remaining ½ cup brown sugar with white sugar and salt. Mix vanilla and boiling water into sugar mixture until sugar is dissolved. Pour mixture over the nuts. Bake at 350 F for 50 to 60 minutes, until bubbly and slightly jiggly. Let cool for 10 minutes before serving. Top with whipped cream, if desired. Store leftovers in the refrigerator and reheat in microwave.