Why are cherries only sold in bags? They should sell them in cartons, like strawberries! While I love cherries, those big bags end up sitting in the fridge for quite a while when you're the only cherry eater in the house. Whenever we have extra fruit on hand, I like to use them up in smoothies, but sweet cherries are a little bit tricky because while they're great for snacking, they just don't shine in a smoothie.
Cherries need a little oomph if you're going to put them in a smoothie. Something to add some complexity to their sweetness. Chocolate works and so do other more assertive fruits, but my favorite thing to add to cherry smoothies is fresh ginger because when it comes to adding oomph, there's nothing oomph-ier than ginger.
I like to grate the ginger before adding it to my smoothie because ginger has a tendency to be fibrous; if you throw it into your blender whole, you're likely to end up with hair-like "strings" in your smoothie. The ginger gives the smoothie a warm, spicy flavor - if you enjoy strong ginger beer, the kind that warms you from the inside out, you'll love this smoothie.
Pitting cherries can be messy, but it's one of those kitchen tasks that gives you some time to contemplate the meaning of life, robots, robots that could pit cherries for you, etc. You're forced to slow down and be in the moment because multitasking is impossible when your fingers are stained red with cherry juice. If you find yourself pitting cherries on a regular basis, it's probably best to invest in a cherry pitter (or cherry pitting robot), but a sturdy straw works in a pinch - just push it through the center of each cherry and push the pit out.
A smoothie with cherries alone won't have much body to it, so to add some creaminess, I use a frozen banana. I've added hemp seeds for a little protein, and a small amount of unsweetened vanilla quinoa milk to make everything blend easily - and because the vanilla adds another layer of flavor that works well with the cherries and ginger. You only need a small amount of liquid because the cherries will release a lot of juice when you blend them!
📖 Recipe
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsweetened non-dairy vanilla milk
- 2 cups pitted cherries
- 1 large frozen ripe banana
- 2 tablespoons hemp hearts, shelled hemp seeds
- 2-3 teaspoons grated ginger
Instructions
- Combine all of the ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.
Nutrition (estimated per serving)
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Katie (The Muffin Myth) says
Kiersten! That straw trick for cherry pitting is genius! I wish I had known that when I was testing my almond cherry muffins... so many muffin batches, so many cherries. I will definitely be doing that in the future. And this smoothie, yum! Something to shake up my smoothie routine. Thanks!
Kiersten Frase says
I was really proud of myself for coming up with it, then I googled it and apparently it's a thing. Oh well! 🙂
Liz @ The Lemon Bowl says
I love that you added ginger!!! Cherries are a big deal here in Michigan and I love your straw trick.
Kiersten Frase says
I LOVE Michigan cherries! We used to go on vacation there every summer and Michigan has the best fruit - sigh.
dishing up the dirt says
We have been trading veggies for cherries at the farmers markets recently and we have a TON of cherries stashed in the fridge. This smoothie is calling my name. Also, I hate pitting cherries without a cherry pitter and finally googled an easier method since I was getting too frustrated. Check this out! http://www.sunset.com/food-wine/fast-fresh/fast-and-fresh-pit-cherries
Kiersten Frase says
Thanks for the link - that is so easy! I guess I need to get a mallet now. 🙂
JulieD says
Love love this smoothie...ginger and cherry...I have to try this soon!!!
Kiersten Frase says
You will love it! 😀
Alissa says
I don't like that they sell cherries in big bags either...but that would be because I'm always tempted to eat the whole bag at once. They can be pretty addictive. I love that you paired the cherries with ginger for this. I'm always looking for ways to spike everything I consume with ginger. Next time I buy a bag of cherries I'll try really hard not to eat the whole thing at once, so I can give this a try 🙂
Kiersten Frase says
I'm totally on board with putting ginger in everything I eat. 🙂
Nicole @ Foodie Loves Fitness says
I love cherries and am also the only cherry eater in my house! The straw thing is brilliant, I never thought of that before. I use fresh ginger in my green juices all the time, but never have used it in a regular smoothie. I have to give this a try!
Kiersten Frase says
It's so good in smoothies! Whenever I have ginger leftover from a recipe, I use it that way. 🙂
Michelle @ Vitamin Sunshine says
Yum, cherry season! Perfect for this time of year. Great tip on pitting cherries with a straw- that's always so difficult!
Kiersten Frase says
It's definitely a pain, especially when you've got a lot of them to pit!
mjskit says
This will be tomorrow morning's breakfast! Thanks!
Kiersten Frase says
I hope you enjoy it! 🙂
Courtney says
Love this combo - I'm on a ginger kick lately too. Funny you mentioned the bags, I just bought some organic cherries and they came in a carton like strawberries.. actually a little more heavy duty!
Kiersten Frase says
I've seen them like that at the farmers market a few times, but never at the grocery store!
Christine | No Gojis No Glory says
How can you be the only cherry eater in the house, they're so darn delicious! Although I'm not a huge fan of ginger, I know of it's health benefits and I've been getting better at incorporating it into our meals. So I'll definitely be trying this...I'll just have my Sous Chef (my husband) pit the cherries 😉
Kiersten Frase says
Ginger is definitely an acquired taste, I think. 🙂
Julie says
Uh...WHY have I not been adding ginger to my cherry smoothies? That's a failure I'll need to fix immediately!
Kiersten Frase says
The only thing better than a cherry smoothie is a gingery cherry smoothie!
Joanne says
You obviously must have had a sixth sense that I am a cherry ADDICT. And a ginger addict. This is probably my ultimate smoothie.
Kiersten Frase says
You would LOVE this then! 😀
Li Eldridge says
This sounds yummy! Will have to try the straw trick 🙂
Li Eldridge says
oops...fixed my email addy
KENTUCKYLADY717 says
Can't wait to make this smoothie.....just purchased some black cherries....and the ginger sounds good in it also....
Now where do we sign up for the $500.00 Gift Card.....you said to hop over to the Marketplace ? Sorry, but what is that ? New to your blog.....
Kiersten Frase says
If you click on the link that says Giveaway, you'll get to the page, but you can find it here: http://marketplace.ohmyveggies.com/500-mightynest-giveaway/ 🙂
Patricia Caradonna says
I am going to the grocery store to buy all of the ingredients tonight after work. Thanks you!
Adriana says
OMG this is amazing! I do not believe I had not seen your blog I'm loving the tips. Sorry if any spelling is not my native language error.
I have a doubt cherry is very hard to find here in my town and when you think it's too expensive you have any tips for fruit subistituir.
Thank you
Kiersten Frase says
I would try fresh peaches! They're one of my favorite fruits to pair with ginger. 🙂