Our favorite little treat on top of sundaes and piña coladas, Maraschino Cherries are those sweet, bright red cherries with the stem people like to try to knot with their tongues.
Maraschino Cherries are considered vegan as they do not contain meat or dairy products. However, some brands utilize Red 40, which is tested on animals. Brands like Tillen Farms, CherryMan Cherries, Royal Harvest, Woodford Reserve, Rex, and Luxardo are all Certified Vegan and use plants to color the cherries. They also use few ingredients to keep the food natural.
As we continue through this article, you’ll find out more about what goes into producing Maraschino Cherries and how brands normalize using natural foods over processed ingredients to still provide us with delicious, flavorful, and natural foods. Let’s dig in!
Are Maraschino Cherries Bad For You?
Maraschino cherries are one of those sweet treats that may not be the best for you nutritionally. That doesn’t stop us from scooping up the stem and devouring the little red juicy cherries when we find them on top of a drink or dessert.
In lesser “healthy” brand products of Maraschino Cherries, the cherries were dunked in calcium chloride and sulfur dioxide to bleach and preserve each batch. To get a better picture of why this may not be the best idea to consume Maraschino cherries that have gone through this process, here are the details: sulfur dioxide (approved by the FDA) is also one of the top six air pollutants. Yeah, I wouldn’t want to be eating any foods that can be a pollutant, doesn’t sound too healthy.
Thankfully, there are healthy brands that have figured out a way to avoid using chemicals and processes that aren’t the best for our bodies by using plants. All of the Maraschino Cherry brands listed below, use as few ingredients as possible while using plants to color the cherries!
Nutritional Facts for Maraschino Cherries
Tillen Farms, Merry Maraschino Cherries
Ingredients for this flavor include:
- Cherries
- Water
- Sugar
- Vegetable and fruit concentrate (color)
- Natural flavor
- Gluten-free
- Vegan
Nutrition Facts (per 1 cherry, 5g):
- Calories- 10
- Total Fat- 0g
- Total Carbs- 2g
- Protein- 0g
- Sodium- 5g
Certified vegan and gluten-free, Tillen Farm’s Merry Maraschino Cherries contain no corn syrup or red dyes! Perfect for placing on top of desserts or drinks.
CherryMan Cherries, Farm to Market Maraschino Cherries
Ingredients for this flavor include:
- Cherries
- Water
- Sugar
- Vegetable juice (color)
- Citric acid
- Natural flavor
- Non-GMO
- No preservatives
- Kosher
- Fat-free
- Gluten-free
- Vegan
Nutrition Facts (per 1 cherry, 6g):
- Calories- 10
- Total Fat- 0g
- Total Carbs- 2g
- Protein- 0g
CherryMan’s Farm to Market Maraschino Cherries is made and grown in the USA! They boast no preservatives, gluten-free, vegan, kosher, fat-free, natural color and flavor, and non-GMO ingredients!
Royal Harvest, Maraschino Cherries
Ingredients for this flavor include:
- Cherries
- Water
- Cane Sugar
- Fruit and Vegetable Concentrate (color)
- Citric acid
- Natural flavor
- Non-GMO
- No high fructose corn syrup
- Kosher
- Gluten-free
- Vegan
Nutrition Facts (per 1 cherry, 5g):
- Calories- 10
- Total Fat- 0g
- Total Carbs- 2g
- Protein- 0g
With hints of vanilla and almond, Royal Harvest’s Maraschino Cherries embolden the usage of freshly harvested cherries while using clean ingredients and methods for great taste. They are gluten-free, vegan, non-GMO, kosher, and contain no high fructose corn syrup. A great, clean treat!
Woodford Reserve, Bourbon Cherries
Ingredients for this flavor include:
- Cherries
- Water
- Sugar
- Woodford Reserve Bourbon
- Fruit and Vegetable Concentrate (color)
- Citric acid
- Malic acid
- Natural flavor
Nutrition Facts (per 1 cherry, 6g):
- Calories- 10
- Total Fat- 0g
- Total Carbs- 2g
- Protein- 0g
Woodford Reserve started as the U.S.’s only soy sauce microbrewery, combined to be the only soy sauce in the world that was fermented and aged in bourbon barrels. They’ve used their out-of-the-box thinking style to handpick these cherries, in Oregon, and preserve them in a mixture of Woodford Reserve bourbon all in order to increase flavor for that extra touch for your cocktail or drink of choice.
Luxardo, The Original Maraschino Cherries
Ingredients for this flavor include:
- Cherries
- Sugar
- Marasca cherry juice
- Citric acid
- Glucose
- Natural color
- Maraschino flavor
- Gluten-free
- GMO-free
- Kosher
- Vegan
Nutrition Facts (per 1 cherry, 6g):
- Calories- 10
- Total Fat- 0g
- Total Carbs- 2g
- Protein- 0g
Established in 1821, Luxardo is still headed by the founding family and sold in over 80 countries. Using marasca cherries, a type of sour Morello cherry that has to be cultivated, Luxardo Maraschino Cherries are so rich and deep in color, they’re almost black.
Rex, Maraschino Cherries
Ingredients for this flavor include:
- Cherries
- Sugar
- Glucose-fructose syrup
- Marasca juice concentrate
- Grape color extract (for coloring)
- Citric acid (regulator)
- Marasca natural flavor
- Gluten-free
- Vegan
Nutrition Facts (per 1 cherry, 6g):
- Calories- 10
- Total Fat- 0g
- Total Carbs- 2g
- Protein- 0g
Rex Maraschino Cherries utilizes scrumptious mountain cherries from Mount Somma in Napoli, Italy, to create this sweet and delicious product. Handpicked and fresh, these maraschino cherries by Rex are exactly what you need for your cocktail or dessert—maybe even both!
Vegan Alternatives to Maraschino Cherries
Supernatural, Full of Heart Sprinkles
Ingredients for this flavor include:
- Sugar
- Potato starch
- Rice flour
- Rice bran oil
- Maltodextrin
- Natural color from beet
- Turmeric and anthocyanins
- Carnauba wax
- Soy-free
- Kosher
- Gluten-free
- Vegan
Nutrition Facts (per 1 tsp, 4 grams):
- Calories- 15
- Total Fat- 0.3g
- Total Carbs- 3.2g
- Protein- 0.08g
Supernatural, you can find their store here, is a store dedicated to making products from plants. Using colors from plants and spices, while also keeping foods allergen-friendly. They have all sorts of sprinkles variations, ranging from Full of Heart Sprinkles to Ugly Xmas Sweater Sprinkles, while also providing vegans with plant-based food colors like red, green, yellow, and orange!
Baking Time Club, Magical Stardust Sprinkles Mix
Ingredients for this flavor include:
- Sugar
- Corn starch
- Potato starch
- Rice flour
- Maltodextrin
- Vegetable fat (coconut, rice bran oil)
- Spirulina extract
- Colors (E153 Vegetable carbon, E163 anthocyanins, E171 titanium dioxide)
- Anti-caking agent (potassium aluminum silicate)
- Stabilizers (gum arabic)
- Glazing agent (carnauba wax)
- Kosher
- Gluten-free
- Vegan
Baking Time Club, centered in the UK, produces sprinkles made from natural ingredients while also catering to vegan and gluten-free individuals. They have an assortment of products (think more sprinkles and even edible pearls!) and they ship to the U.S.!
Reddi-Wip, Coconut Milk Whipped Topping
Ingredients for this flavor include:
- Coconut milk (water, coconut cream)
- Sugar
- Less than 2% of:
- Mono- and diglycerides
- Pea protein
- Natural flavor
- Xanthan gum
- Carrageenan
- Nitrous oxide (propellant)
- Gluten-free
- Vegan
Nutrition Facts (per 2 tbsp, 5g):
- Calories- 10
- Total Fat- 0.5g
- Total Carbs- 2g
- Protein- 0g
Reddi-Wip has created this vegan whipped topping to save the day! Using coconut milk, this product is super sweet and super delicious, perfect to top of a sundae, piña colada, or strawberry shortcake.
Wildly Organic, Chocolate Syrup
Ingredients for this flavor include:
- Organic raw agave nectar
- Organic raw cacao powder
- Gluten-free
- Vegan
Nutrition Facts (per 2 tbsp, 29mL):
- Calories- 110
- Total Fat- 0.5g
- Total Carbs- 26g
- Protein- <1g
Wildly Organic has created this delicious Chocolate Syrup with only two ingredients! Using only raw and organic ingredients, this chocolate syrup is healthy and delicious!
Related Questions
Where to find Maraschino cherry juice?
If you’re a big fan of Maraschino cherry juice and not so much the cherries, look no further. You can find Maraschino cherry juice and/or syrup, using this link.
How to pronounce Maraschino?
Mar-a-schi-no is the pronunciation for this delicious treat. You can find the definition and more on the pronunciation (as well as audio) here.
Where to find Maraschino liquor recipes?
We’ve gone one step further and found 120 Maraschino Liqueur Drink Recipes. Click on the link and try out these delicious recipes!
Where to find a recipe for Maraschino cherry cake?
These 1950s Inspired Vegan Maraschino Cherry Coke Cupcakes are the way to go if you’re a fan of more precise serving-size portions. A wonderful birthday or celebration treat! And it’s not Pineapple Upside Down Cake without maraschino cherries! Try this Vegan Pineapple Upside-Down Cake to satisfy those cravings.
What does a Maraschino cherry tree look like?
Before writing this article, I myself had never seen or heard of a Maraschino Cherry Tree. And yes, they do, in fact, exist. And the cherries look delicious! Look here if you’re curious to see a Maraschino Cherry Tree.