Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Minty Soda

I am trying to cut back on diet soda. It is my vice. I love the bubbliness. So instead I am drinking plain club soda or seltzer water or carbonated water of some variety.

Many grocery stores now carry a variety of flavored carbonated waters. Just make sure it's just water and "natural flavors" or you still might be getting some sugar/calories in each drink. For instance, when I was younger Clearly Canadian was all the rage. It was healthy because it was only water, right? Nope. It was just as bad as soda.

If you are used to drinking soda, especially regular soda, you probably won't like soda water at first. I didn't use to like it either. It tasted like alka-seltzer which reminded me of being sick. But I made myself drink it in small doses and then, before I knew it, I liked it! (Remember that our tastes can change if we keep giving ourselves chances.) Now I like it just as much if not more than soda (although I go through caffeine headaches when I drink it alone.)

To give it some flavor, you can add a little juice to yours. I like mixing mine with a little OJ or cranberry juice.


Or, you can add fresh herbs! I have a ton of mint growing in my garden and no idea what to do with all of it. So it occurred to me to put a little in my soda water bottle. Last night I chopped up a few leaves. I also chopped up a few leaves off my stevia plant for just a touch of sweetness. Then I put it all in the bottle and let it stew overnight. Today I have a minty soda. Sooooo tasty and refreshing when it's hotter than the surface of the sun outside. (You local folks know what I mean.)

Mint is the obvious choice, but I may also try infusing other herbs into my water. I think a little fresh basil might be nice. I even have one basil plant (of my 3) that is lemony. I'll give it a try and let ya know how it turns out! I might be on to a new trend here!

So put down the soda and try something new....it's even better than water!

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