It’s cherry season! This is one of our favorite times of the year, especially Papa Natural because cherries are his absolute favorite fruit. In fact, every other year we go to northern Michigan and go cherry picking to stock up on their goodness.

I love all of the different varieties of cherries, from Black Beauties to Queen Anne’s, Rainer, and Tart. Some of the orchards also sell the most delicious tart cherry juice concentrate!

Tart cherry juice is a great sleep promoter!

I love drinking this juice in the summer and it’s wonderful for people who have trouble sleeping since tart cherries have a high concentration of melatonin of any other food.

Here’s a post I wrote about how tart cherry juice can help kids (and you) sleep longer.

Summertime is the right time for yummy drinks

Of course, being a nursing mama, anytime is the right time for something refreshing!

We recently shared this Iced Blackberry Mojito Green Tea recipe. I also love drinking my Liver Love brew on ice, as well as lemonade, kombucha, and I could go on.

Here’s a new summer drink recipe

Unlike most juices, this drink isn’t overly sweet or loaded with fructose.

Did you know that a cup of orange juice contains around 4-5 oranges? That’s a lot of sugar – even if it’s natural.

In contrast, a serving of this Sweet and Sour Cherry Lemonade contains the equivalent of 1 serving (or cup) of cherries, and a few tablespoons of low-sugar lemon juice. So, you can enjoy this juice without worrying about a blood sugar spike and crash later.

Sweet & Sour Cherry Lemonade Ingredients

  • 4 cups of organic cherries, cut and pitted
  • 4 lemons juiced, about 1/2 cup liquid
  • 3 cups filtered water
  • 15 drops stevia or 1 TB raw honey

Sweet & Sour Cherry Lemonade Directions

  1. Wash your cherries and remove all of the fruit from around the pit and put in bowl. Or you can use this cherry pitter.
  2. Add your 4 cups of cut up cherries to your blender.
  3. Next, juice your 4 lemons with a fine-mesh strainer. You should collect about 1/2 cup of lemon juice. Add this to your blender as well.
  4. Add your 1 TB raw honey or 15 drops of stevia. If you add honey, blend your concoction for about 5-10 seconds now. Then add your 3 cups of filtered water. If you add stevia, you don’t have to pre-blend. Just add your water and blend for about 30 seconds.
  5. Then drain your juice through your fine-mesh strainer and store in a glass container. A Mason jar works wonderfully.
  6. Serve juice over ice or with add a 1/3 cup of club soda to 2/3 juice for a bubbly treat.
  7. Makes 36 ounces of juice, about 4-6 servings.

What to do with that cherry pulp?

Don’t throw it out – you’ll break Papa Natural’s heart! He likes to eat it with yogurt and raw honey for a healthy breakfast or snack. You can also use the pulp in cookies or muffins.

How about YOU?

What are your go-to summer drinks? Share with us in the comments below!

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