Top Five Mocktail & Smoothie Recipes for Kids

We’re well on the way to summer and with that comes lots of opportunity to enjoy some delicious British fruits. Strawberries, blackberries, cherries and gooseberries are just some of the fruit that we can now enjoy in this season, you may have even have grown some fruit in your own garden to enjoy.  

Below we’ve put together our top five mocktails & smoothies for your kids to drink (even the parents might enjoy!) over the summer using the best of British fruits, including some facts about each key fruit that’s used. Don’t forget to use your paper straws!

The classic strawberry is grown year round with the help of countries overseas, however the British strawberry is grown between April and October, so we’re now in full strawberry season. When ripe, strawberries are bright red, juicy and very sweet, and they contain lots of vitamin C. Did you know that the little hard pieces on the outside of strawberry, which look like seeds, are in fact a type of dry fruit? They’re called Achene and contain their own seeds.  

This Watermelon and Strawberry slushie is a lovely refreshing drink to enjoy in the summer, and is super simple to make with only three ingredients. Watch out for the brain freeze! 

The British blackberry season begins in June and by mid-August, hedges and supermarkets will be full to the brim of yummy blackberries. For the freshest fruit pick them yourselves when ripe (they will be a deep purplish black), just remember to wash them before eating. They are full of healthy antioxidants, such as Vitamin C, and around 10 blackberries account for one of your five a day. Did you know British folklore says that you shouldn’t pick blackberries after the 10^th October? It’s said that the devil cursed the fruit on this date when he was thrown out of heaven, which made them non-edible.

This Blackberry Lemon Mocktail is a refreshing and tangy drink to enjoy in the sunshine.  

British raspberries are delicious, plump, juicy and packed with flavour. They can be tart at the start of the season, however come July to early September they will sweeten and be the perfect accompaniment to a dessert or drink. Raspberries contain more vitamin C than oranges, are super high in fibre and are low in calories. Did you know that there over 200 species of raspberries? There’s even a golden version of the raspberry which have a sweeter, milder flavour than the red ones.   

This Raspberry lemonade slushie is a vibrant drink including plenty of delicious red raspberries. 

British cherries are very juicy and rich in taste; no wonder they’re considered to be amongst the best cherries in the world. They are available from June through to early September, so now is a great time to enjoy them. Did you know, it is said that cherries can help you sleep at night? They contain melatonin which helps regulate your sleep cycle and eating a handful before bed may help you sleep.

This Chocolate Cherry Smoothie is the perfect combination of ingredients and even more delicious as drink, which the whole family will enjoy. 

Now we know that pineapple isn’t a British fruit, however we wanted to include a classic mocktail so we chose the Pina Colada. The pineapple is indigenous to South America, with the majority of pineapples coming from Costa Rica and Brazil. Did you know a pineapple grows in the ground? The green spiky part of the pineapple fruit is planted in the ground and after approximately 24 months a pineapple is grown.

The tropical Pina Colada Mocktail is super tasty and a refreshing summer drink to enjoy, it’s also easy to make.