Fruit-infused Water - DIY!
Summer is hitting us hard this year and the mantra for all healthy skin and hair chasers is hydrate, hydrate and hydrate. Water has hydrating abilities unrivaled by any other drink on earth and is the lowest in calories: a clear winner. Infusing fruit and veggies into water not only makes for a delicious summertime refresher and excellent alternative to artificially sweetened juices and other packaged, preserved off-the-shelf nutritionally inferior contenders, it’s got added health benefits from nutritious, healing and delicious fruits, veggies, herbs and spices.
Fruit infused water has some serious detoxing abilities. For example, Vitamin C in lemons and oranges helps to clear the digestive tract and cleanse the liver and an enzyme found in citrus aids in breaking down fat and toxins. Cucumber is great for re-hydration and has anti-inflammatory properties. Mint aids in digestion, breaks down fat and eases the stomach. Infusing all these and others in your water means you can reap all these benefits while simply hydrating.
There’s no hard and fast here, just a loose set of guidelines. Below are some suggested flavour combos along with a basic set of instructions to get you started.
About ingredients and containers
It’s best to use glass containers because your water will look gorgeous with all those beauteous goodies floating around. Plus, glass containers, unlike plastic or metal are less likely to react or release toxins into your water. It’s good if your container has a lid to avoid unwanted fragrances leaking into other foods in your fridge. It’s up to you to leave the fruit/vegetables peeled or unpeeled. It’s best to use organic always. Steer clear of produce that’s overripe or bruised and herbs that aren’t fresh and perky. Cutting your produce into smaller pieces will mean your water will infuse more quickly.
Patience!
Allow the water to sit with the fruits for at least a few hours or preferably overnight and in the fridge so that the water may infuse and the fruits and herbs remain fresh and flavourful. The longer you leave the water to infuse, the more flavourful it will be. Some fruits or herbs release their effect more quickly than others. Citrus is pretty instant while berries take a couple of hours; herbs too will take a couple of hours to infuse.
Enjoy! Again! And Again!
Pour a glass and enjoy! Once you’ve finished all the infused water, you can refill the container with water again to infuse with the same fruits, herbs and spices but the intensity of the nutrition and taste would diminish of course with each refill.
Tip: Peel citrus fruits before infusing; the peel imparts a bitter taste to the water
Instructions:
- First, simply add the fruit/vegetables in the glass container
- Take a wooden spoon potato masher to lightly mash and breakdown the fruit/vegetables.
- Next, take the herb and/or spice of choice and gently bruise the herb and/or spice (you can do this before adding to the container in a mortar and pestle). This helps release the natural extracts and oils from the herbs and spices.
- Lastly, add either sparkling water or filtered water and simply wait before enjoying!
Fruit Infused Water Flavour Ideas:
Cucumber & Mint
Watermelon & Basil
Mango & Pineapple
Watermelon, Pineapple, & Apple
Cantaloupe & Watermelon
Orange, Cucumber & Lemon
Lemon, Cucumber, Orange, Clove & Black Peppercorn
Lemon, Cucumber, Mint, & Rosemary
Apple, Cloves & Cinnamon sticks
Watermelon & Peach
Strawberry & Mint
Peach & Cantaloupe
Strawberry & Orange
