Macedonian Vyssino Glyko Koutaliou (Βύσσινο Γλυκό Κουταλιού)

Vyssino glyko koutaliou from Macedonia is the sour-cherry spoon sweet of early summer: whole tart cherries held in a clear ruby syrup, offered one small spoonful at a time with cold water. It isn't jam. The fruit stays whole, the syrup stays bright, and the sweetness is there to carry the sour cherry, not bury it.

The one point that decides the jar is the syrup. Cook it until it sheets from the spoon, then stop. Too loose and the cherries float in thin juice; one minute too far and the sugar starts to turn sandy. Your spoon and your eyes will tell you before any cleverness does.

I make this only when the vyssina are firm and sharp, or with good unsweetened frozen sour cherries if the season has gone. Λίγα και καλά. A few things, and good ones. Once the jars cool, the cherries settle into the syrup like red glass, and a guest can be served properly, not with a dessert plate, just one spoon and a cold glass of water.