Clean Eating Sparkling Limeade
The truth is, this recipe was supposed to be a clean version of sprite or 7Up. Yes, I failed miserably. But, what I ended up with instead was simply delicious!
People always tell me how hard it is to give up their soda pop, and that’s no accident. Soda is manufactured to get you hooked on it. Maybe my views are extreme, but I honestly consider soda to be a drug rather than a beverage. It’s so bad for you and it’s so hard to give up! Drinks like that are manufactured to be addicting. Terms such as “Bliss Point” (meaning the maximum amount of sugar they can put in a product and still have you enjoy it), “Sensory-Specific Satiety” or “Cravability Product Design Theory” are all part of the food manufacturing process and companies spend millions of dollars to ensure that these strategies are perfected in their products.
I’m grateful soda never really appealed to me. The only soda I could ever drink was Sprite or 7Up, and even with those I could taste all the chemicals. I didn’t grow up drinking soda either, so I thank my lucky stars I’ve never had to “give it up” the way some folks do. But I do understand the cravings for it. Cravings are something I’ve always struggled with. I get it.
So I started looking at soda recipes online. I couldn’t find much that would easily convert to clean eating in as far as dark sodas (like Coke or Pepsi) are concerned (also not an accident!). But I did find a recipe for homemade lime soda and thought I’d take a crack at converting it.
Sadly, this did not end up being a good substitute for Sprite or 7Up. Changing the sugar changed the flavor. But it sure did turn out delicious!! And the great part is, you can totally adjust the strength of it to your own tastes right in your own glass!
YOU MIGHT ALSO ENJOY:
- 3/4 cup sucanat
- 3/4 cup water
- Zest of 1 lime
- 1/2 cup fresh squeezed lime juice
- Ice, as much as you like
- Seltzer water, as much as you like
- In a small to medium pot, combine the sucanat and water. Bring it to a boil, whisking occasionally.
- Once the mixture comes to a soft boil, add in the lime zest.
- Keep at a gentle boil for about 2-3 minutes. The ideas is to infuse the sugar water with the lime zest.
- Allow to cool and transfer to a container.
- Cool completely in the refrigerator.
- Put some ice in a glass, fill about 3/4 of the way with seltzer water, then add the syrup and lime juice to taste, mixing as needed to get the right balance of flavor.