This cherry smoothie is made with juice, yogurt, frozen dark cherries and banana, all blended together into a creamy and delicious drink. A kid friendly smoothie that’s perfectly sweet and only takes 5 minutes to make.
I love frozen cherries, sometimes I even just eat them straight from the bag as a snack! Frozen cherries really shine in this simple yet satisfying smoothie recipe.
Summer is my favorite time of you because I get to spend so much time with my children making memories. One of those memories is getting them in the kitchen to make smoothies like this cherry smoothie! There’s nothing better than a cold sweet treat on a hot summer day to help you relax and cool off.
HOW DO YOU MAKE A CHERRY SMOOTHIE?
This cherry smoothie is full of dark sweet cherries, banana, juice, and yogurt for the perfect summer day drink. All you have to do is gather your ingredients and toss them into the blender. Blend the ingredients until they’re nice and smooth and you have your sweet cherry smoothie.
I use frozen cherries for this recipe because they’re readily available and make the smoothie nice and cold. You can absolutely use fresh pitted cherries, but be sure to add a handful of ice into the mix to maintain that frosty texture.
Be sure you’re using frozen dark sweet cherries, not the tart variety. I mean, if you like a little tart to your smoothie, by all means, add in some tart cherries but I enjoy mine sweet. I use vanilla Greek yogurt but cherry Greek yogurt works great as well.
If you can get your hands on some cherry juice or cran-cherry juice, I would suggest using that. However, if you can’t find that juice, apple juice or white grape juice works just as well. If you want to add in something extra to boost the nutritional value of these smoothies, there are plenty of options.
Some added ingredients that would be great are
- Spinach
- Protein Powder
- Chia Seeds
- Flax Seeds
- Kale
WHAT ARE THE HEALTH BENEFITS OF CHERRIES?
Cherries have quite the list of health benefits. They not only help with arthritis but they also help with most inflammatory conditions. They help you sleep better and improve your memory. Further, they help lower the risk of heart disease and colon cancer, and can assist in lowering the blood pressure of those suffering with diabetes.
ARE CHERRIES FATTENING?
Cherries actually help in losing weight. They’re a low calorie food with about only 100 calories appearing in one cup of cherries. They’re a high fiber food as well which can make you feel full longer. In other words, eat more cherries, they’re one of my favorite fruits!
I’ve made so many cherry smoothies already this summer that I’ve lost count. I’m sure I will be making plenty more since there are many weeks of hot weather left. My kids can’t wait for our next smoothie making session!
MORE SMOOTHIE RECIPES YOU’LL LOVE
Cherry Smoothie
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups juice cherry juice, cran-cherry juice, apple juice or white grape juice
- 1 banana cut in half
- 1 1/2 cups frozen dark sweet cherries
- 3/4 cup vanilla Greek yogurt
- fresh cherries and mint sprigs for garnish optional
Instructions
- Place the juice, banana, cherries and yogurt in a blender.
- Blend until completely smooth.
- Pour into 2 glasses and serve, topped with fresh cherries and mint sprigs if desired.
Hi there, I was wondering about the calorie count and serving size. Are these 8 oz servings? Is this recipe for one serving or two. When I count up an estimated calorie count for one serving, it comes up to about half of the 271. (I’m using the cran-cherry juice, so that helps keep the calories low as opposed to the apple juice.)
Thank you,
Stephanie
It should be about 8 ounces, and the recipe makes two servings.
This tasted great. And my children loved it! Unfortunately it didn’t come out looking thick like in the picture but was very thin and watery? Not sure why?
Were your cherries frozen?
I just remembered that I have some frozen cherries in the freezer so I started looking for a smoothie suggestion. Yours was the first I looked at and I have all the ingredients that you used. I’m about to give it a go.
I’m curious though Ms. Welch, do you have a suggestion of a brand of grape juice? 😉
This smoothie is so amazing!
We have a cherry tree so I’m always on the hunt for new ideas. I made this smoothie recipe of yours and it was delicious! Thanks
This smoothie is amazing! I substituted pomegranate juice and it levels up this smoothie. I also used half plain Greek yogurt and half honey vanilla Greek yogurt. The consistency is a bit watery – I wondered about that with the amount of liquid suggested in the recipe. Next time I’ll add 1 cup instead of a cup and a half. Overall sooooo delicious!
Would it taste good without the banana? I don’t like banana flavored things.
I think it should be fine!
Can I used unsweetened cashew milk instead of yogurt? Should lower calorie count. Thank you
Yes that’s fine!
amazing
Can milk be substituted for the juice. My toddler needs to increase his milk intake.
Yes that’s fine!
The smoothies are awesome thank you
Nice simple smoothie Sara. Definitely kid friendly. Love the pictures, the red is so rich looking with this smoothie.
This looks amazing! Cherry is one of my favorite flavors, and I love using frozen fruit in my smoothies as well as ice. It gives them some extra thickness along with keeping it cold longer. And I love the idea of adding juice instead of water or milk. Thank you!
Is there anything I can substitute for the banana? I’m seriously allergic to them but I love cherries and want to try this
You can just omit the banana or add a little more yogurt in!
This was delicious, but mine turned out a bit lighter than the one in your pictures!