Cherry Mint Spritzer
When I came to Europe, one difference that took me by surprise was the water. Europeans buy water more than I remember in North America, and there are so many options to choose from. Most people buy sparkling water, which I still haven’t really gotten used to. There are three types of water: no fizz, lightly fizzy, and regularly fizzy.
I always thought that bubbly water was artificially carbonated. Some of it is, but some of it is also fizzy straight from the source. Slovakia is rich in water springs, and the water from some of them naturally contain gasses that give it the bubbly-ness.
Even though I’m not a big fan of plain sparkling water, I enjoy it mixed. In Austria it’s normal to ask at a restaurant for a juice ‘gespritz’, juice mixed with bubbly water.
I was looking for the perfect base for a cherry and mint mix, and when I saw A Girl Worth Saving’s strawberry spritzer, I knew that it would work.
This cherry mint spritzer is light, refreshing, and cooling, an enjoyable treat that is simple to make. I liked it both unsweetened and with a couple tsp of honey.
Ingredients
- 320g/ 2 cups pitted cherries
- 500ml/ 2 cups sparkling water, divided
- 7g/ 1/3 cup fresh chopped mint
- optional sweetener of choice to taste
Instructions
- Put cherries and 125ml / 1/2 cup of the sparkling water into a blender and blend until smooth. If you don't have a high speed blender you may want to strain the cherry skins at the end if it doesn't pulverize well enough.
- Add mint and process until mixed (if you add at the beginning it becomes a muddy colour).
- In a pitcher or glasses, stir together remaining sparkling water and cherry mint mixture. Enjoy!
Do you like sparkling water?
Shared at Thank Goodness It’s Monday, Fat Tuesday, Naturally Sweet Tuesday, Allergy Free Wednesday, Real Food Wednesday, Paleo AIP Roundup, Pennywise Platter Thursday, Fight Back Friday, WholeFood Blender Party
Jun 20, 2014 @ 14:52:46
Hi.
Your water story is so interesting. I haven’t traveled much, but I don’t know of any water that is naturally fizzy. Many years ago I was taken to San Miguel Allende in Mexico where there was a natural spa. The water was very warm, bubbly and mineral-scented.
Jun 20, 2014 @ 20:11:01
Interesting isn’t it? I might not believe labels, but a friend gave me some bubbly water that she had gotten from a spring herself. And it didn’t smell like rotten eggs 🙂
Jun 20, 2014 @ 17:51:05
I remember thinking (on my first trip to Germany where it seemed particularly popular) that carbonated water was so strange and that (for some reason) while it was enjoyable as a sort of luxury version of water, it didn’t suffice as a thirst quencher. I love it now but it’s hard to justify buying bubbly water when our own mountain juice is far more superior.
Jun 20, 2014 @ 20:12:18
One’s own mountain juice will always be far superior. In fact, I think fresh mountain juice is the best water in the world!
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Jun 26, 2014 @ 14:45:57
I really love naturally carbonated mineral water. I tend to buy Gehrolsteiner (sp??) because it contains a nice kick of calcium. It is speculated that our ancestors acquired a significant amount of minerals from their water.
I also have a carbonator at home and if my well water tests high in minerals and doesn’t have negative contaminants, I’ll drink a lot more of it.
I have grandparents and other relatives in Germany and when I was attempting to learn German from a foreign language program, asking for mineral wasser was amongst the first phrases to learn. My requests for milk(for my children) during meals was most often met with surprise. Unfortunately I never became proficient in German, there’s so so much I’d like to learn from my relatives. Oh well.
Thanks for the recipe
Jun 26, 2014 @ 22:24:53
The water where I’ve lived in Europe (Austria and Slovakia) is a lot harder than where I’ve lived in N. America. Lots of mineral water here has names related to magnesium, as some of the springs here are high in MG, and everybody seems short of that now. If one asks for tap water at a restaurant, they look at you like you have two heads!
All one side of my family is in Japan, and I’ve never really learned Japanese either, more’s the pity. It’s so important to me that my own children are bilingual.
Jul 03, 2014 @ 02:20:47
I love your cherry mint spritzer. It’s so refreshing now that we are in the middle of summer. Thanks for sharing. Pinned/shared.
Joanne
Jul 03, 2014 @ 07:59:15
Thanks for sharing! I it cools your summer down 🙂
Aug 11, 2014 @ 01:31:17
Love this recipe. Mint makes the spritzer the perfect addition.
Aug 11, 2014 @ 14:39:17
Thank you!
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