Driving Notes

When it comes to fruits that remind me of summer, cherries almost always take the cake. They are sweet and never fail to take me back to a warm summers day, by the pool.

Today on the Drive, we got in the WNZR Time Machine and went to summer of 2018 courtesy of the fruit that we know and love as the cherry.

Here are some fun facts about this delicious superfruit…

• There are more than 1,000 varieties of cherries in the United States, but fewer than 10 are produced commercially.
• There are normally about 44 cherries to a pound.
• In an average crop year, a sweet cherry tree will produce 800 cherries.
• Despite the short fruiting season, Americans consume an average of 1.5 pounds of cherries each year.
• Washington grows an estimated 62 percent of the nation’s sweet cherries.
• Between Washington, Oregon and California, these three states produce 94 percent of America’s sweet cherries.
• Michigan grows well over half of the country’s tart cherries, which are mostly used for cooking. (Still just as delicious).
• Brian Krause set the record for cherry pit spitting at an annual contest in Eau Claire, Michigan in 2004, spitting the pit 93 feet. That same day, Krause spat a pit more than 100 feet in the freestyle competition, which allows for a running start.

Well, now that you know some fun facts about the fruit, you’re probably asking, what are cherries good for? Look no further for an answer.

• Tart cherries have very high antioxidant activity. The activity is actually better than vitamin E and comparable to commercially available antioxidant products.
• Sweet cherries contain fiber, vitamin C, carotenoids, and anthocyanin, each of which may help play a role in cancer prevention.
• Tart cherries are anti-inflammatory and may help lower your risk of gout attacks and reduce pain and inflammation associated with osteoarthritis
• Consuming tart cherry may help increase your melatonin levels and improve your sleep
• Sweet cherries have a low glycemic index of 22 — lower than apricots (57), grapes (46), peaches (42), blueberries (40) or plums (39). This makes them a better snack than many other fruits, especially for diabetics.
• Cherries are very high in potassium, which helps regulate heart rate and blood pressure and reduces the risk of hypertension.

It wouldn’t be the Afternoon Drive without sharing some recipies, now would it?
Let’s give you a whole 4 course meal with cherries, shall we?

Perhaps we start the meal with a salad? Maybe three?
Orzo Salad with Mustard Greens and Cherries. Yes please.
Goat cheese goes great with cherries. Let’s put that on a salad.
Goat Cheese, Cherries and Pistachio Salad.
One final salad…
Spinach Salad with a Fresh Cherry Vinaigrette

For an appetizer? Let’s start with some meatballs.
Tart Cherry Glazed Spicy Meatballs. 
Another appetizer? Don’t mind if I do. How about one for Game Day?
Instant Pot Tart Cherry Chicken Wings. (I’m drooling).
One more? Sure. Can’t say no to bread, right?
Here’s a Baguette stuffed with Brie and Cherries. 

Okay. Main Course. Here we go.
Cocoa Cherry Pork? SIGN ME UP.
More main courses? Okay. You asked for it.
We have to have a meal from the mayor of Flavor Town.
Guy Fieri’s Cherry Bomb Chops. (I’m drooling again).
I’ll eat anything with the word ‘sassy’ in it.
Pork Burgers with Sassy Barbecue Sauce.

OH we can’t forget the drinks.
How about a Cherry Limeade from the Pioneer Woman herself?
Another? Okay. How about a healthy alternative?
You can’t go wrong with a Frozen Fruit Smoothie showcasing cherries.

Dessert. Can’t have a meal without dessert. Right?
A Black Forrest Trifle from my girl Katie Lee.
Ever wanted to use big cooking words like ‘compote’? Here’s your chance…
Nectarine-Cherry Compote. Oh Yes.

And delicious fruits aside, we come together as a country with heavy hearts for various reasons today. We turn on the TV and can’t watch for five minutes without hearing bad news after bad news. Whatever reason your heart is heavy today, we have hope.
The devil is on the prowl. He is active in our world maybe stronger than ever right now. We as Christians are called to put on the full armor of God so that we can take our stand against the schemes of the devil. We are called to stand on the front-lines and fight as a community against this darkness. We can stand on the front-lines UNAFRAID because we know that God is standing right there by us, and He has given us the strength, the courage and the power to fight this.

We looked at the song ‘Whom Shall I Fear’ from Chris Tomlin today.
It was a song that’s been in the back of my mind since this weekend, and just some of the lyrics seem so applicable to us right now.

Though darkness fills the night
It cannot hide the light

Darkness is filling the night. It is. But it cannot hide the light.
God is the light. We are the light. We cannot be hidden.
We need to be a nation that is ON FIRE for Christ that NO DARKNESS can hide.
We can do that when we remember the next thing Chris Tomlin says…
God is crushing the enemy beneath our feet.

God goes before us. There are countless scriptures that tell us that.
God is standing behind us.

Our strength is found in the name of Jesus
For it is His name alone that can save.
He is delivering us.
He is the victory.

Here are the lyrics from the bridge that give me chills. Ah.

It’s far and away time for our country to have a “War Room” moment.
A Priscilla Shirer moment.
“YOU’VE HAD YOUR WAY LONG ENOUGH. NO MORE.”
Jesus is the Lord of our house. There is no room for the devil anymore.
We need to stand up, and shout if we need to. Telling the devil to take his lies, and his schemes, and his accusations, and to get out IN. JESUS’. NAME.

Here’s the scene, if you haven’t seen it. So incredibly powerful.

It’s time we stand up and take back what is rightfully ours in Christ. 

Thanks for listening!
-Lilly