Fresh Goji Berry Juice

Imagine a yoga class in a glass. That’s fresh goji berry juice.

Plump dried goji berries are brought back to life in a flavorful and juicy liquid, then blended until smooth. Tart goji berry and sweet orange citrus combine before straining it into a clean, vitamin-packed juice. Then, we add another dimension of flavor with fresh squeezed orange juice. Once you’ve made your own fresh goji berry juice, you may never want to buy it again! In fact, it might make you rethink that lemonade stand idea.

This goji berry juice is a delicious drink that kids will enjoy just as much as the adults. Fresh goji berry juice is a versatile ingredient alongside other fresh juices and mixed into cocktails. For instance, fresh goji berry juice can be cooked down with sugar into a flavorful syrup to be used in soda water, cocktails and smoothies. It makes delicious ice cubes to upgrade your everyday water bottle full-ups, or blend them in your favorite frozen drinks and smoothies.

FRESH GOJI BERRY JUICE RECIPE

• Prep time: 10 minutes active, 8 hours inactive
• Servings: 4
• Good for: kid friendly, gluten-free, vegan, juice
• Difficulty: medium

First, dried goji berries spend a night in the fridge soaking up a light simple syrup, fresh citrus juice and zest. The ingredients meld in a sealed container before being blended and strained into a sealed pitcher. Serve it in a tall glass with an ethical straw as a post-savasana refreshment.

INGREDIENTS:

• 4 cups water, divided
• ¾ cups granulated sugar
• 1 cup dried goji berries
• 1 cup fresh squeezed orange juice (about 1-2 fresh oranges, any variety)
• 2 one-inch curls of orange zest

EQUIPMENT:

• Sealed 4-quart bowl or container.
• High powered blender
• Measuring cup
• Citrus juicer or dish
• Nut milk bag
• Sealed pitcher

RECIPE: 

Prepare the goji berry mixture:

• Begin by making a simple syrup. Boil one cup of water. While the water boils, use a paring knife to cut two large curls of zest from the orange. Set zest aside and place the orange in the refrigerator. When the water boils, pour it into the 4 quart bowl with the granulated sugar. Stir to combine until all sugar has completely dissolved. 
• Add the remaining water to the simple syrup. Stir to cool and combine. Add the goji berries and zest to the bowl then seal the container. Store it in the refrigerator overnight, up to 12 hours.

Prepare the goji berry juice: 

• Begin by juicing the orange that you zested earlier, and set the juice aside.
• Pour the cold mixture of soaked goji berries and liquid into a high powered blender. Blend on high until smooth.
• Prepare the pitcher by fitting it with a nut milk bag over the rim. The bag will contain the goji berry pulp and zest to produce a clean yet viscous juice. Pour the blended mixture into the pitcher, squeezing the pulp for as much liquid as possible. Use the pulp in another recipe, or pop it in the compost.
• Add the fresh orange juice to the pitcher of sweetened goji berry juice and stir to combine. Keep the fresh goji berry juice refrigerated in a sealed pitcher for up to three days.

Once you’ve made this goji berry juice recipe, you can begin to adjust the levels of sweetness and flavor. Sugar can be increased or decreased based on your preferred sweetness. You can remove the sugar altogether if you prefer a more raw fruit flavor. 

Try sweet cara cara oranges or earthy blood oranges for a bitter sweet juice. Just about any orange citrus will taste great in this juice. If you prefer a clean goji berry flavor, leave out the juice and zest, and replace it with one more cup of water. Be sure to tell us how your juice came out in our Fruitstand group on Facebook (pics or it didn’t happen)!