Jim Dixon wrote about food for WW for more than 20 years, but these days most of his time is spent at his olive oil-focused specialty food business Wellspent Market. Jim’s always loved to eat, and he encourages his customers to cook by sending them recipes every week through his newsletter. We’re happy to have him back creating some special dishes just for WW readers.

National Cherry Day, which falls in mid-July, will probably come and go without much notice for most. Still, after last year’s disastrous, climate change-induced crop failure (remember that April snowstorm?), the record-breaking 2023 Pacific Northwest cherry harvest should merit some celebration. And while sweet cherries are best simply eaten out of hand, sometimes you just want to cook something.

Cherry clafoutis, the eggy French approach, is one option, but we’ve got that covered in our collection of recipes at Wellspent Market. I wanted to try something different. Inspired by the version served at Luce, I pitted a bunch of cherries and put them into a migliaccio. Sometimes described as an Italian cheesecake, this ancient recipe that combines ricotta and semolina is more like a pudding in cake form. Originally made with millet, “miglio” in Italian, migliaccio is traditionally served in Naples during Carnival, the no-holds-barred celebration that ends with the sackcloth and ashes of Lent. But, as with so many foods tied to religious calendars, it’s just too good to eat only once a year.

Cherries aren’t exactly Italian, but the Greeks gave them to the Romans, who loved them, and a few thousand years later, the peninsula’s marasca cherries preserved in alcohol led to the industrial abomination we now call maraschinos. The less said about those, the better. Our own local cherry history begins in 1875 when Seth Lewelling developed the Bing cherry at his nursery business in Milwaukie. He named it after his Chinese forman, Ah Bing, who later went home to visit family and was barred from returning by the Chinese Exclusion Act. Bing cherries now comprise half of the annual harvest, predicted to hit nearly 400 million pounds this year.

Along with the dark red Bings, I used Rainiers for my migliaccio. These particularly sweet, blush-colored cherries were the result of a happy accident. Adriana Janovich, writing in the Washington State Magazine a few years ago, describes how a United States Department of Agriculture breeder named Harold Fogle stumbled upon what’s become the most popular cherry ever. The late Fogle worked at Washington State University’s research station in Prosser, and in the early ‘50s, was trying to extend the cherry season by crossbreeding Bings with another dark sweet cherry called Van. But a recessive gene led to a distinctive color, and he dubbed the new cultivar Rainier after that big mountain.

We grow almost three-quarters of the nation’s cherries here in the Pacific Northwest, mostly around the Wenatchee and Yakima valleys and at the far end of the Columbia River Gorge, both places where irrigation water is relatively abundant. The delicate stone fruits require careful handling, and while Native Americans, Japanese, and poor white migrant workers were most often exploited during the earlier cherry harvests, the xenophobia during World War II that led to the Bracero Program brought pickers from Mexico and Central America to the orchards. While we’ve still got work ahead before we’re a true multiracial democracy, the influx of non-white workers has made the region much more diverse. Something to chew on while you enjoy your migliaccio.

One important note: Resist temptation to dive right in and let the migliaccio cool completely before trying to cut a slice. You can eat it while warm, but it’s best enjoyed when it reaches the pudding end of the spectrum.

Migliaccio with Cherries

3 cups water

1 cup milk

1 1/2 cups semolina

4 eggs

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/2 teaspoon kosher-style sea salt

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 cup ricotta

2 cups fresh Bing and Rainier cherries (or any sweet cherries), pitted*

*I use a chopstick to remove the pits. Use your fingers to hold the cherry down firmly on a plate (to hold the juice; it stains everything), then insert the small end of the chopstick into the stem end, and push gently. Some of the cherries will break, but that’s fine.

Grease a 10-inch skillet (or use a 10-inch springform pan, but grease it, too). Heat the oven to 375 degrees.

In a saucepan, heat the water and milk together until nearly boiling, then remove from heat and stir in the semolina. Mix well until there are no more lumps. Set aside and let cool for a few minutes.

In a large bowl, beat the eggs and sugar together, then mix in salt, olive oil and ricotta. Blend well, then add the cherries.

Add the semolina mix to the bowl and stir to combine. Transfer to the prepared skillet and bake for 55 to 60 minutes, or until the top is just beginning to brown and a tester comes out clean. Let cool before serving.