Cornelian cherries taste sweet, but also quite astringent when picked and eaten fresh from trees or hedges. The fruits are really ripe and edible only when they themselves fall off the branch. They taste more pleasant and the stone core detaches more easily from the flesh.

Today, cornell cherries are mainly used to make a brandy, cornel cherry water (Dirndlbrand), as well as an excellent jam (pure or mixed with other fruits). In the past, the fruits were used in many different ways. They were candied or made into compote, juice and lemonade. The drink “Scherbet” or “Hoschaf” may contain cornell cherry juice. The seeds were roasted to replace coffee, the branches with their yellow flowers were dipped in dough in spring and baked in fat (“Kuechlestruß”). The dried leaves were mixed with herbal tea. Fresh and dried fruits can also be added to spicy dishes, similar to barberries and cranberries. Pickled in salt, cornel cherries even substitute olives.

• Edible Fruits Seeds
• Also edible Leaves
• Type of Fruit Drupe or stone fruit
• Culinary Group Stone fruits
• Also used as Wild fruits Coffee substitutes
• Taste (Fruit) sweet adstringent
• Trivial Names Kornelkirsche, Kornelle, Korlesbeere, Krakebeere, Kurbeerbaum, Gelber Hartriegel, Herlitze, Dirlitze, Dürlitze, Hirlnuss, Hornstrauch, Hornkirsche, Dirndling, Dirndlstrauch, Tierlibaum, Ruhrkirsche, Beinholz, Cornelian cherry, European cornel, Cornelian cherry dogwood, Cornouiller mâle, Cornouiller sauvage, Cornier, Fuselier
• Size (single fruit) 2 cm
• Taxonomy Cornaceae (Dogwood family) Cornus mas
• Origin Europe, Mediterraneum (Map)
• Locality (Flowers) Park in Frankfurt 2017
• Lacality (Fruits) Palmengarten Frankfurt (FRP) 2017