Cherry Sangria Slushie

The following recipe was created in collaboration with Lauren Schulte. To see more of her bites and meals, visit her Instagram @TheBiteSizePantry. 

Its stone fruit season, so I thought “wine” not indulge in a cherry sangria slushie? Stemilt World Famous Fruit grows some of the sweetest cherries around, and they’re in peak season at Heinen’s, which makes them perfect for this sweet summer sipper!

These cherries are so ripe, removing the pits is virtually effortless. You can use a cherry pitter if you have one, but I press the flat side of the knife on each cherry and the pits pops right out. You can also just as easily slice the cherries in half and remove the pits with a small spoon.

After pitting, I soaked the cherries in red wine for a couple of hours before blending. This step adds so much flavor to the slushie, but if you’re short on time, feel free skip right to blending.

For the red wine, I asked the knowledgeable Wine Consultant at my Heinen’s location to point me in the right direction. I mentioned that I wanted to keep the price under $15, so he suggested the Valpolicella Classico from Heinen’s Pick of the Vine section. This particular wine is subtly sweet with notes of dark cherries, which is ideal for this sangria-style slushie!