Blackberry Cherry Lavender Water: Easy Recipe

Blackberry cherry lavender water is a fruit-and-flower infusion that takes 2 hours 10 minutes, including chilling, and yields about 4 cups (950 mL).

What is blackberry cherry lavender water?

Blackberry cherry lavender water combines blackberries, pitted cherries and culinary lavender with cold water. The ingredients steep in the refrigerator, giving the water a gentle fruit flavor and a light floral note without blending the fruit.

It is one of many berry infused water recipes you can make in a pitcher. This version uses enough lavender to be noticeable without overwhelming the fruit.

What ingredients and ratio do you need?

For about 4 cups (950 mL), use:

Water: 950 mL (4 cups)
Fresh blackberries: about 75 g (1/2 cup)
Fresh cherries: about 75 g (1/2 cup), pitted and halved
Dried culinary lavender buds: about 0.2 g (1/4 teaspoon, or approximately 0.005 cup)

The fruit adds up to about 150 g (1 cup) per pitcher. Measure the cherries after removing their pits. Sweet or sour cherries both work; sour cherries give the infusion a sharper flavor.

Choose lavender sold for culinary use. Do not substitute lavender essential oil or decorative lavender of unknown food safety. A small reusable tea infuser or food-safe filter bag makes the buds easier to remove.

How do you make blackberry cherry lavender water?

Active preparation: about 10 minutes. Refrigerator steep: 2–4 hours. The shortest total time is 2 hours 10 minutes.

Rinse the blackberries and cherries under running water.
Remove the cherry stems and pits, then cut the cherries in half.
Place the blackberries and cherries in a clean pitcher. Put the lavender in a tea infuser or food-safe filter bag and add it to the pitcher.
Pour in the water, cover the pitcher and refrigerate for 2–4 hours.
Taste the water after 2 hours. Remove the lavender when its flavor is noticeable; leave the fruit to steep longer if you prefer a stronger fruit flavor.
Strain into glasses or serve with the fruit, keeping the remaining water refrigerated.

For another combination using ingredients you have on hand, try the AI infused water generator.

Why do blackberry, cherry and lavender pair well?

Blackberries bring a tart, earthy berry flavor, while cherries add a rounder fruit taste. Lavender contributes a floral aroma, so a small amount is enough; too much can make the drink taste perfumed.

The combination builds on the fruitiness of blackberry infused water and the sweet or tart character of cherry infused water. The floral element is also found in lavender water, though here it plays a supporting role.

The main benefit of this drink is hydration. Blackberries and cherries contain nutrients and fiber, but you should not count the whole fruit’s nutrients as those of the strained water; much of the fiber remains in the fruit. Specific health benefits from this infusion have not been established.

Your liver and kidneys do most of your body’s detoxification, while the lungs and gut also help eliminate waste. This drink can support hydration, but it does not cleanse or detoxify the body.

How should you store blackberry cherry lavender water?

Keep the covered pitcher refrigerated while it steeps and between servings. For the best flavor, drink the water within 24 hours of making it; discard it sooner if it becomes cloudy, slimy or sour-smelling.

Straining out the fruit and lavender after steeping makes the flavor easier to control. Use a clean glass or serving utensil rather than drinking directly from the pitcher.

How can you vary blackberry cherry lavender water?

For a stronger fruit flavor, leave the fruit in the refrigerated water for the full 4-hour steep. Remove the lavender earlier if the floral flavor is already pronounced. For a milder pitcher, use fewer buds or take the infuser out sooner.

Frozen blackberries and pitted frozen cherries can replace fresh fruit in the same amounts. Add them directly to the pitcher and let them thaw as the water steeps in the refrigerator.

For a fizzy serving, steep the fruit and lavender in still water first, then top each glass with a little chilled sparkling water. This keeps the bubbles in the glass rather than losing them during the steep.