kombucha macerated berries

I love berries–from the perfection of fresh-picked strawberries in the summertime, to the surprising tartness of delicate raspberries eaten off finger-tips one my one, to the earthy, deeply flavorful way blueberries can ground a thick, sweet smoothie. Yet, like many things in life, they don’t last long. And sometimes before you know it [blink] they go from peak deliciousness to moldy wrinkly orbs in the bottom of your fruit drawer.

But there’s an easy way to bring those shriveling jewels back to life–with a bottle of kombucha! Specifically Health-ade’s Maca-Berry flavor kombucha, a superfood, superhero beverage that will resuscitate your wilted berries, transforming them into something entirely new: a vibrant, saucy berry-infused topping for yogurt, ice cream, or peanut butter toast, or eaten simply, slurped up by the spoonful. It is an easy weekend project and a great way to utilize over-ripe or flavorless berries, softening their texture and saturating them with good-for-you probiotics and a whole new level of flavor.

Make it!

• 2 cups fresh berries
• 1/2 cup dried berries (I used goji berries and dried strawberries) *
• 3 tbsp (you can eyeball it) crushed, freeze-dried berries (I used strawberry ones from Trader Joe’s!)
• 1 large vanilla bean (split in two), or 1/4–1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 bottle of Healthade Maca-Berry kombucha
• 1 large glass jar or bowl (24 oz or larger)

Make sure all fresh berries are washed, then add them to the glass jar (or bowl).

Coarsely chop the dried berries, and add them to the jar. Sprinkle on the freeze-dried berries, then add the vanilla beans or vanilla. Pour kombucha evenly over the berry mixture, just until it covers the berries–I used approximately 12 oz. of liquid. Stir gently to ensure all ingredients are evenly incorporated. It also works well to screw the lid on the jar and shake it gently.

Refrigerate the berries, shaking or stirring every few hours, until all the berries are very soft, at least 8 hours (or up to 16). Drain the berries, reserving the delicious remaining kombucha to drink later, and serve or eat any way you like it. Store leftovers in a glass container in the fridge. Eat within 3 days.

NOTES:
*Feel free to use any kind of dried fruit that you have on hand in your pantry. I bet dried cherries apricots, or dates would be equally divine.
The photo above shows the macerated berries on top of greek yogurt, sprinkled with pistachios and pumpkin seeds, but please play around with how you serve and eat these!