Sparkling Goodness

Cucumber-lemon water

I'm a sucker for fancy waters, juices and the like.  Give me Izze.  Better yet, San Pellegrino.  And then there is Orangina!  My tastebuds never get bored when there is something interesting at hand to sample.    The only limiting factor to taste enjoyment is my budget.  As I perused the water aisle during a recent visit to Whole Foods my eyes landed on a bottle of cucumber water, and I salivated.  Almost unconsciously my hand reached out for the bottle, and nearly made contact, when a little voice inside me said, "WAIT! Why not try making that yourself before you buy an 8-oz. bottle?"  I reluctantly lowered my arm and kept walking...to the produce department where I picked out a nice cucumber.  That evening I sliced half a cucumber and half a lemon, because it was in my produce bin hoping to be used, and dumped them in the bottom of a 2-qt. pitcher.  I filled it with water, covered it and put it in the refrigerator overnight.  The result was an incredibly refreshing glass of water!!  When all my delicious cucumber-lemon water was gone, I refilled the pitcher with fresh water.  The second batch was not quite as vibrant as the first, but still very tasty.

Ginger ale with mint

Since I was on a beverage roll, I moved on to a more ambitious experiment: ginger ale.  I simmered some water, sliced fresh ginger and honey until a bubbly syrup formed in the pan.  I poured the syrup into my trusty pitcher, added some fizzy club soda and fresh mint, and then put it in the refrigerator overnight.  I'll have to admit I was a bit unsure how it would turn out, but I was pleasantly surprised to taste it.  Since I let the fizzy soda sit in the refrigerator overnight it lost some of its fizz, but aside from that the taste was very crisp and refreshing.