Fresh CHERRY BOOZESICLES, Alcoholic Cherry Popsicles

Cherries and popsicles, two of my favorite things from childhood. I've grown up, however and these days I like my cherry frozen ice pops with a little kick thrown in. And by kick I mean booze, of course.
If you don't want to go to the trouble of pitting two pounds of fresh cherries, you can simply buy a bag of frozen cherries which are already pitted. They taste nearly as good and they're a lot less work, but I happened to have a gift of two pounds of fresh cherries from a friend I needed to use. I now have cherry stained fingers - but with all the paint stains from my art you can't really tell.
Yes, you can make these non-alcoholic. Simply remove the rum and replace the sparkling wine with sparkling water or juice. Go ahead, ruin my day.
FRESH CHERRY BOOZESICLES Adults only! Makes four 6 ounce boozesicles.
INGREDIENTS 2 C. Fresh, Pitted Cherries 1/4 C. Dark Rum 1/2 C. Sparkling Wine 3 Tbsp. Lime Juice 4 Tbsp. Orgeat Syrup 2 Dashes Chocolate Bitters
Tools: Blender, Popsicle Molds
DIRECTIONS Puree the cherries, rum, lime juice and sugar in the blender until smooth. Add the sparkling wine, blend again briefly and let sit a few minutes to settle the carbonation. Pour into popsicle molds and freeze until firm.
OR YOU CAN DO IT UNFROZEN AS ACHERRY POPSICLE MARTINI:
National Cherry Popsicle Day is August 26th.
PLEASE DRINK RESPONSIBLY