Cherry limeade is one of those all American drinks that is so refreshing and full of flavor and a great way to cool down during those hot summer days. Also, cherries and limes are in abundance during the summer and this drink is a great way to make use of them.
This cherry limeade recipe is definitely a great one to add to your recipe list for ways to use cherries in the summer. It is also a great refreshing drink the rest of the year as well. It can also be made in the winter if you use frozen thawed cherries!
To make this cherry limeade you will need only a few ingredients. The first thing you will need to make is my cherry simple syrup which you make first so it has time to cool down before you add it to the drink mixture. This simple syrup is really easy to make and you will have some leftover for cocktails (that recipe is coming soon!)
The ingredients you need for this cherry limeade are:
- Limes (fresh squeezed is best)
- Cherry simple syrup (this is a simple mixture of cherries, sugar and water)
- Water
This recipe calls for fresh limes that are squeezed and strained, about a cups worth. For me, this is usually about 1 small bag of limes at the store but it can vary based on the size of the lime that you buy. If you are not into squeezing your own limes, fresh lime juice can also be used.
I love having a pitcher of this on hand in the summer as a special drink for the family or for when I am having friends over. Since this drink is a fresh juice drink, you will want it give it a nice stir before serving as the juice will settle a bit.
If you are nervous about making simple syrup for this cherry limeade, let me show you how easy it is!
This cherry simple syrup can be made with fresh or frozen cherries. Just make sure you buy sweet cherries not the tart cherries.
The first step is to add the cherries, sugar and water to a medium saucepan and let it simmer for 15 minutes. For this recipe I used frozen cherries because they were available.
Once the cherries, sugar and water have simmered in the saucepan for a little bit, you want to pour it all through a strainer. Here you want to press out any of the remaining cherry juice through the strainer with the back of a large spoon.
Now just let the strained cherry simple syrup which will be very warm, cool down to room temperature. Once it is cooled you can refrigerate it and use it in this cherry limeade recipe or in any other recipe that needs a simple syrup!
To serve:
- Just serve this cherry limeade in a large pitcher alongside glasses full of ice for everyone to pour their own drink.
- Add a lime garnish (optional)
This cherry limeade recipe is so simple and so delicious! It is perfect anytime of year wether it is winter or summer and so refreshing.
If you love this, you will also love these reader favorite drink recipes!
Cherry Limeade
Ingredients
- 1 cup Cherry Simple syrup see recipe above or below in instructions
- 1 cup fresh lime juice pulp strained out. One cup of limes is usually about 1 small bag of limes from the store.
- 2 cups water or more to taste if you prefer a less sweet juice
Instructions
- Make your Cherry simple syrup and allow to cool fully. This can be done the day before.
- Next, juice your limes to make 1 cup of lime juice
- Strain out any pulp from the lime juice through a fine mesh strainer over a bowl.
- Pour your lime juice into a large pitcher.
- Now add 1 cup of your cooled cherry simple syrup. Reserve any extra for cocktails!
- Add your 2 cups of water
- Mix well.
- Grab some large glasses and fill with ice
- Pour your fresh cherry limeade over ice and enjoy.
[…] This recipe was actually born from me trying to make use of a very large bag of cherries I picked up. First I made a cherry simple syrup with the cherries. From there I made a cherry limeade. […]