Infusing water with the essence of fruits and herbs helps you drink plenty of liquids without the downside of excess calories, sugars, and artificial flavorings. It's beneficial hydration in every refreshing sip, especially for hot summer days. Here are ten infused water recipes to help get more nutrients in your diet, give you more energy, and help get rid of toxins.
Tips:
1. Use cold or room temperature water.
2. Infuse water for no more than two hours, after that put in the refrigerator.
3. Choose organic when you can. Wash and rinse herbs and produce before using.
1. Strawberry, Basil and Cucumber:
Ingredients:
3 basil leaves roughly chopped
1 strawberry sliced
3-5 slices of cucumber
Ice
Water
Directions:
Combine all the ingredients in a large glass, and let sit for at least 5 minutes before enjoying.
2. Orange-Kiwi:
Ingredients:
2 cups of water or sparkling water
2 cups of ice
1 orange, sliced
2 kiwis, peeled and sliced
Directions:
Combine all in a large mason jar or jug and drink immediately or let sit in fridge for 1-4 hours to soak in additional flavor.
3. Raspberry-Mint:
Ingredients:
2 cups of water or sparkling water
2 cups of ice
1 cup raspberries, whole
handful of mint
Directions:
Combine all in a large mason jar or jug and drink immediately or let sit in fridge for 1-4 hours to soak in additional flavor.
4. Cucumber-Lavender:
Ingredients:
1 cucumber, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon dried culinary lavender, or 2 fresh lavender sprigs
2 quarts filtered or spring water
Directions:
1. Add the cucumbers and lavender to a 64-ounce Mason jar or pitcher.
2. Add the filtered water. If using dried lavender, strain before serving.
3. Refrigerate until cold and enjoy.
5. Blueberry-Lime:
Ingredients:
2 cups of water or sparkling water
2 cups of ice
1 cup blueberries, whole
1 1/2 limes, sliced
Directions:
Combine all in a large mason jar or jug and drink immediately or let sit in fridge for 1-4 hours to soak in additional flavor.
6. Orange-Strawberry Mint:
Ingredients:
1 sliced orange
6 sliced strawberries
10 mint leaves
4 cups of water
Directions:
Place the sliced fruits and mint leaves in a glass jar, pour the water and refrigerate for 1-2 hours.
7. Grapefruit-Rosemary:
Ingredients:
1 grapefruit
1 sprig of fresh rosemary
Directions:
Cut the rind away from the grapefruit and cut the fruit into slices. Fill the Ball jar or infuser bottle with water, then lower the fruit into the water (instead of pouring water over the fruit). Use half of the grapefruit and half of the rosemary per container. Infuse for 2 hours at room temperature and up to 24 hours in your refrigerator.
8. Apple-Cinnamon:
Ingredients:
1 gala apple
1 cinnamon stick
Directions:
1/4 Gala (or red) organic apple, sliced thinly, + 1 cinnamon stick. Cover the ingredients with cold water, then put the mixture right into the fridge. Cold water and temperature is important to keep the apple slices from turning brown. Infuse for 4-24 hours (the longer, the better because apples do not infuse as readily as other fruits). Before you are ready to drink or serve the water, let it sit out at room temp for a half an hour. For this particular infusion, you’ll get loads more flavor from room temperature water than cold water.
9. Grape Pineapple:
Ingredients:
6 red grapes, cut into half
1 pineapple spear (3''-4'' long)
Directions:
Infuse in the refrigerator for 4 to 24 hours. Longer infusion times will result in a more potent flavor. Serve cold. Because grapes are not as flavorful as the pineapple, you can use as many as you would like, but 6 works well for this size of container. Be sure to use organic grapes and to cut them in half so that their juices can escape. Bonus: the grapes are still tasty after being infused and you can eat them after you are have finished drinking your water.
10. Watermelon-Mint:
Ingredients:
1 watermelon
6 sprigs of mint
Directions:
Directions
Place 4 cups 1/2 inch-cubed watermelon (about 1 1/4 pounds; lightly smashed) and 6 sprigs mint (lightly crushed) in a pitcher. For still infused water, add 2 quarts of water. For sparkling water, add 1 quart of seltzer during prep and a second quart just before serving. Refrigerate 2 to 4 hours to allow the ingredients to infuse. Stir well and strain, discarding the solids. For serving, add fresh watermelon and mint sprigs for garnish and plenty of ice. The infused water will keep refrigerated for up to 2 days.
