Ingredients:

  Amount  Measure       Ingredient -- Preparation Method
--------  ------------  --------------------------------
   2      pounds        sugar
   2      cups          - water -- up to 3 cups
   1      pound         sour cherries
     1/4  teaspoon      vanilla

Preparation:

Sharbat-e Albaloo To serve syrups, add a Tbsp to two to a glass, fill with cold or sparkling water and ice. Use only a porcelain or enamel pan. Boil the sugar and water together for 15 to 20 minutes. Add the sour cherries and boil again gently another 20 to 30 minutes or until the syrup thickens. Strain the liquid into a bowl through a cheesecloth, squeezing the cherries to extract all of the liquid. Add the vanilla extract. Bottle. To serve, add water and ice. Dried sour cherries may be used instead of fresh ones. They should be soaked in cold water 6 hours or longer. Will kept at room temperature as long as the bottle is sealed. Refrigerate after opening. Can be used as a topping for ice cream, mousses, bavarians or frozen desserts. MAKES: 1 bottle SOURCE: "Persian Cooking" by Nesta Ramazani