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!
Cherry Sangria Slushie
Servings: 2
Ingredients
- 1 (750 ml.) bottle Valpolicella Classico red wine
- 1/2 cup triple sec or orange liqueur
- 1/2 cup chambord or blackberry liqueur
- 2 cup Stemilt cherries, pits removed
- 1 cup Heinen’s frozen dark cherries
- 2 cups ice
- Mint, for garnish
Instructions
- Mix ¾ of the bottle of wine with the liqueur and pour into ice trays. Freeze for 2 hours.
- Pit the cherries and marinate them in the remaining wine for 2 hours.
- After freezing, add the wine cubes to blender with the marinated fresh cherries and frozen cherries.
- Pulse for a few seconds to break everything apart, then blend on high speed until smooth, about 45 seconds.
- Add the ice and blend again until smooth, or pulse for a chunky texture.
- Pour into chilled wine glasses and garnish with extra fruit and mint, if desired.
- Serve immediately.
