The Fruity Ice Cube Trick You Need For Festive 4th Of July Drinks

With the Fourth of July approaching, you may have started wondering how you can turn your summer drinks and dishes into more festive versions for themselves. There's an easy way to make this happen on the drinks side: Use berry ice cubes.

Specifically, you want to make berry ice cubes using berries that match the colors of Independence Day — making blueberries and raspberries the perfect choices. You can also use strawberries, cranberries, or blackberries for some variation, but blueberries and raspberries are more than sufficient.

Making berry ice cubes couldn't be more simple. To start, get out a clean ice cube tray. Next, fill the cubes with berries — you may need to slice the berries first if they're on the larger side (or if you're using big berries like strawberries); be sure not to overfill so that the berries don't escape when you add water. You can either include a mix of berries in each cube or, for a different type of decoration, color code each cube (make some cubes with only red berries and some with only blueberries), or prepare a mix of both. Fill the cubes with water and pop them in the freezer for at least six hours.

Now that you've made the aesthetically pleasing, Fourth of July-themed berry ice cubes, it's time for the real fun: Which drinks should you pair with them? For those who enjoy just a simple glass of sparkling water on a hot summer's day, the berry ice cubes are the perfect way to bring some color to the simple drink — as well as a bit of extra, subtle flavor. However, if you want something more flavorful, the berry ice cubes are the perfect accompaniment to a glass of simple classic lemonade or, for a drink more in line with the color scheme of the berries, pink lemonade.

Meanwhile, if you're looking for a boozier summer drink, there are plenty of cocktails out there that will benefit from these patriotic-themed berry ice cubes — both aesthetically and functionally. For example, there's the grown-up jungle juice that already features plenty of berry flavors thanks to the inclusion of cranberry juice — so why not throw in the berry ice cubes? Or, there's the rhubarb blueberry basil mocktail that can easily be transformed into a cocktail with the addition of vodka or gin — the blueberry flavor and red coloring make it the perfect match for berry ice cubes.