Like the blueberry milk and strawberry milk recipe this recipe for cherry cola is also from The Sneaky Chef.
Cherry cola is made at home by combining equal parts cherry juice and sparkling water. Unlike the store-bought sodas which are flavored and colored artificially, this cherry cola is made from homemade cherry juice.
Too much consumption of any soda is definitely not good, but this homemade cherry cola is an excellent alternative for sugary sodas. At least we can consume it without the risk of caffeine overdose and sugar rush.
The basic cherry juice can be mixed with chocolate milk and kids won't even recognize it. The cherry juice gives a very nice color and flavor to the chocolate milk. My son absolutely loves it and he can't differentiate the taste at all.
Recipe
Homemade Cherry Cola Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 and ½ cups Pitted Fresh or Frozen Cherries
- 2 cups Water
- 1 tablespoon Sugar
Instructions
Procedure For Cherry Juice:
- In a medium pot bring all the ingredients to a boil.
- Turn heat to low and allow to simmer for 10 minutes.
- You could mash the cherries with the back of a spoon (or a potato masher) or do what I did. I used an immersion blender to blend the cherry mixture completely.
- Pour into a fine mesh strainer over a container or bowl, pressing the pulp with the back of a spoon until all the liquid is released. If you use an immersion blender, there is not much pulp left.
Procedure For Cherry Cola:
- Mix equal parts sparkling water/seltzer and the cherry juice. I tried this with both artificially sweetened and unsweetened seltzer and liked both. The sweetened version tastes exactly like Coke/Pepsi and the unsweetened cola tastes more like flavored club soda.
- If you have frozen cherry juice cubes use it instead of regular ice cubes in the cola.
Procedure For Cherry Chocolate Milk:
- Mix ¼ cup of cherry juice, ¾ cup of milk and ½ to 1 tablespoon of chocolate syrup until well combined.
My Notes
- Try to use organic cherries, since it is one among the "dirty dozen" - produce most contaminated with pesticide residues.
- This cherry juice can be stored in refrigerator up to 3 days or freeze ¼ cup portions in sealed plastic bags. I poured the cherry juice in ice cube trays and froze it. Once it froze I transferred the cherry juice cubes to a plastic bag. This is very easy than simply freezing the juice in a bag. Whenever I need I take a couple of cubes, defrost it and use it.
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Troy Wirth says
I believe this should be called Cherry Soda because there is no cola in this what-so-ever. And to say it tastes like cola is weird considering the recipe has no vanilla, citrus peel or cinnamon.
keerthana says
hi
I was looking for home made chocolate syrup in ur site.but i couldn't find it.please can u give me the link for that.
thanks in advance
Vaishali says
What a lovely and simple yet delicious recipe, Madhuram. I love cherries, and I love the idea of a cherry cola. Superb!
wine blog says
I need to try this cola out on my kids! Maybe better for them then real cola... Love you blog! Cheers
Cilantro says
Great Madhuram...unfortunately my daughter does not take fruits at all except for watermelons and grapes.
Soma says
My kids are going to love this! what an idea.
Since my son is only 3 I didn't give him the soda. I'm sure big kids would love it.
jayasree says
cherry cola looks very refreshing.
Yes it was.
Bharti says
What a fun recipe.
You could do th same thing with blueberry juice and strawberry juice as well. I especially like the blueberry cola.
vrinda says
Hi madhu thanx for stopping by at my blog...don't know how long it will last its not easy as i thought lets c..i made strawberry and blueberry milk never tried with cherries becoz i dont like the taste of cherries v get here,which brand did u buy?
Once I was able to get organic cherries in Giant and the other time I got the regular ones in Produce Junction. Actually it was the first time I bought cherry and actually liked it.
Sweatha says
Home made is healthier though I never made cherry juice like this.Like the idea of mixing with selzter and yes I had store bght cherry choc shake,never homemade.Love the idea of freezing in ice trays.I sometime do the same with vegetable broth.Its easier that way.
I think kids won't like the unsweetened version because it's kind of strong. The ice tray technique is really a time saver and no mess job.
mahimaa says
cool..what a nice twist to the regular cola.
Yes, without artificial coloring and flavoring.
Ashwini says
Homemade juice juice always tastes better and healthy in a way..Never tried with cherries..will try...
Sure, you would like it.
SS says
We need to start a juice stand 🙂 What is the shelf life of the concentrate ?
It's 3 days in the refrigerator or else you can freeze it. I've changed the sentence now.
Happy Cook says
Wow you made these at home. It had to be delicious.
Yes it was HC. Thanks.