Very Cherry Popsicles

Bright, tart, and refreshing — made with real frozen cherries and Bull City Flavors Cherry and Lime concentrates for bold, amplified fruit flavor in every bite. Sugar-free friendly and easy to scale.

Makes 8 popsicles

•          2 cups frozen dark sweet cherries, thawed

•          1 cup water

•          ½ cup granulated sugar (or sweetener of choice)

•          ¼ cup fresh lime juice (about 4 limes)

•          ¾ tsp BCF Cherry concentrate

•          ½ tsp Lime concentrate (for testing purposes, we used Lime Tahity Cold Pressed – FA)

•          Pinch of salt

1.       Make the simple syrup. Combine water and sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir until the sugar is fully dissolved, about 2–3 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.

2.       Blend the cherries. Add the thawed cherries and any juice from thawing to a blender. Blend until smooth, then strain through a fine mesh strainer if you prefer a smoother popsicle. Leave unstrained for a more rustic texture with flecks of fruit.

3.       Mix the base. Combine the cherry puree, cooled simple syrup, lime juice, salt, BCF Cherry concentrate, and BCF Lime concentrate. Stir well. Taste and adjust — a little more cherry concentrate deepens the fruit flavor, more lime juice adds tartness.

4.       Fill the molds. Pour the mixture evenly into popsicle molds, leaving about ¼ inch of space at the top to allow for expansion. Insert sticks.

5.       Freeze. Freeze for at least 5–6 hours, or overnight for best results. Fruit-based popsicles benefit from a longer freeze than simple syrup pops.

6.       Unmold and serve. To release, run warm water over the outside of the mold for 10–15 seconds. Gently pull the popsicle free and serve immediately.

 

Why frozen cherries?  Frozen cherries are picked and frozen at peak ripeness, so they deliver consistent flavor year-round. The BCF Cherry concentrate amplifies that natural fruit flavor — the two work together rather than one replacing the other.

 

Smooth vs. rustic:  Straining the blended cherries gives you a clean, jewel-toned popsicle. Skipping the strainer leaves small fruit flecks throughout for a more homemade look and feel.

 

Sugar-free version:  Replace the granulated sugar with an equal amount of monk fruit sweetener or your preferred sugar-free alternative. The BCF concentrates contain no sugar, so the rest of the recipe is naturally sugar-free.

 

Layered look:  For a two-toned pop, reserve a portion of the base before adding the cherry puree, stir in extra lime juice and a drop of BCF Lime concentrate, and layer the two in the mold — freezing each layer about 1 hour before adding the next.

 

Find flavor concentrates at bullcityflavors.com