Cherries are bright and sweet, full of good stuff for your little one and a breeze to puree if you are just starting on your homemade baby food journey!
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Why you should make this puree now!
This cherry puree is pure fun! Your baby will love the taste of the sweet cherries and you can feel good feeding it to them. It's also a super versatile homemade baby food. It can be paired with many other flavors from other fruits to veggies, yogurt and even pureed chicken.
The best part is that you'll want to dig in too! Cherry puree is great drizzled into a cocktail, mocktail or cooked down into a delicious syrup or glaze. Or just spoon a bit into your favorite smoothie or over a big bowl of ice cream at the end of a tough day...you deserve it!
Ingredients
Frozen vs. Fresh: Normally fresh produce is the way to go when making homemade baby food, but not so much with cherries. The frozen cherries are already pitted and de-stemmed making this recipe quick and easy. Just let them defrost a bit on the counter before using. If you do choose to use fresh cherries, make sure you have a cherry pitter. Trust me, it is a kitchen gadget that comes in really handy.
Simple step by step instructions
One of the best thing about this cherry puree (other than the taste), is how simple it is.
First, grab a bag of frozen cherries. Trader Joes frozen cherries are my go to, but any brand will work fine. Let the bag sit on the counter for 10 -30 minutes. The longer they are out the easier they are to blend.
Then, toss the slightly defrosted cherries into a high speed blender (I love my Vitamix) and blend until smooth.
If not using the cherry puree immediately, you can store it in the fridge for up to 5 days. Alternatively, pour the puree into a silicone ice cube tray and freeze. Once frozen, pop them out of the tray and store in zip top freezer storage bags for up to 3 months. For more info on storage baby food check out the Ultimate Guide for Making Your Own Baby Food.
Frequently Asked Questions
According to Health.com cherries are not only one of the healthiest fruits, they also rank as one of the most health protective foods overall. One cup, or about 21 cherries, contains less than 100 calories and 15% of your daily vitamin C needs.
One of my favorite facts about cherries though is that they are one of the only foods that naturally contain melatonin (a hormone that helps control sleep-wake cycles). While, I'm not a sleep specialist or doctor of any type, anything that can help with sleep is a win in my book 😴.
Cherries are typically in season from mid-May to end of July depending on where you live. In the midwest (where I am) the season is June and July. However, cherries can be expensive and a pain to pit and stem, so as I mentioned before, frozen cherries are the key to making this simple puree quickly and all year round.
What does cherry puree pair well with?
- Cooked oatmeal: either use fresh puree or a frozen cube mixed in for a fruity twist on oatmeal.
- Spinach: pair with a spinach cube for a super healthy combination
- Yogurt: either mix the puree with yogurt and freeze in cubes, or drizzle puree over the yogurt for a naturally sweetened treat.
- Roasted Broccoli: for a pop of color with roasted pureed broccoli add in some cherry puree, the kiddos love it.
- Applesauce: for a great sweet treat for little ones, a cube of cherry on top of applesauce ups the nutrients and looks great too.
Cherry puree doesn't just have to be for babies. Here are a few great ways the adults can enjoy it too!
- Swap a frozen cube of cherry puree for the blueberry puree in these overnight oats.
- Drizzle into champagne or use in your favorite cocktail.
- Heat it in a pan and cook it down a bit to use as a syrup over ice cream or swirled into cheesecakes or other baked goods.
*Just a little note that this puree is thinner than most when defrosted. If you using it from a frozen cube, let defrost at room temp, there is no need to microwave it. I suggest serving it with other purees that have some texture or depth to them.
One More Tip
Cherries have bright and vibrant color that can stain EVERYTHING! Fresh or frozen, these gorgeous fruits know how to leave their mark. So how do you get cherry juice stains out? OxiClean can take care of it! And this isn't sponsored (but should be since I use it all the time).
I just love the stuff and it has not failed me yet when it comes to treating stains from all the purees and life in our house. Seriously, try it, here's a link for Target and for Amazon go get it now 😊. You need this stuff in your life!
Looking for other great puree recipes? Try these:
When you try this recipe and love it 😍 let me know by leaving a comment below or 5 ⭐ rating!
Cherry Puree
Equipment
Ingredients
- 16 oz cherries use one bag frozen or 16oz pitted if fresh
Instructions
- If using frozen cherries, take bag out of freezer 10-30 minutes before you start.
- Toss the defrosted cherries into a high speed blender
- Blend until smooth.
- Freeze into cubes or store in a jar in the fridge. This puree can stay in the fridge for 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Notes
Nutrition
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