Here is my favorite summertime drink. Most probably this is a combination of something old, something new, something borrowed and something — well, not blue but pale yellow. All told, it’s simple and wonderfully refreshing in a hot summer day — or night. The weather has been pretty warm for a couple of weeks, so I have had a good reason to gulp down these and fine-tune and test the recipe.
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| Nutrition Information | In Total (recipe makes 1 serving) |
| Protein | 0.1 g |
| Fat | 0.0 g |
| Net carbs | 1.3 g |
| kcal | 25 kcal |
Tips for making the spritzer
Preparing the drink couldn’t be easier. Just mix the wine, lime juice and stevia and fill the glass with club soda and stir gently. That’s it!
One note though, I recommend to use freshly squeezed juice from organic lime. It’s just worth the effort, I guess you believe me. Bottled lime juice should be used only in case of emergency.
My experiments with the spritzer
Now, when I think, last summer I read the blog from Dr. Michael R. Eades where he described a drink called Tinto de Verano which he drank in Spain. Also Wikipedia seems to have an article about this drink. The drink consists mainly of red wine and club soda. That sounded interesting and I tried it, but substituted red wine for dry white wine and added a few drops of stevia to sweeten the drink a bit since I like everything sweet. Well, in that sense my variation could be called Blanco de Verano which actually does exist.
Later I also added some lime juice for more refreshing note and a nicely fruity flavor. I tried lemon juice too, but personally I prefer lime flavor, it’s somehow more elegant.
Tips for variation
For a non-alcoholic variation of this spritzer you can simply omit the wine, or substitute it for one of the following:
- 1 tablespoon 100% cranberry juice. You might want to add some more stevia as both lime juice and cranberry juice are very tart. Vanilla stevia is a nice complement to cranberry, or if you would like to get really wild, try toffee stevia. Kids will love that!
- 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice. Again, you might want to add some more stevia as both lime juice and lemon juice are very tart
- 2 tablespoons cherry juice. Wonderful taste, but more carbs
- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed orange juice. Again, the carb count is a bit higher with orange juice. This makes a perfect substitute for soda!
For alcoholic spritzer you can:
- Replace the white wine with dry sparkling wine, or champagne for a real indulgence
- Replace the white wine with red wine.
As I mentioned in last week’s post, I love to have some crackers with this drink.
What is your favorite summertime drink? Is it self-made or commercial? Please feel free to share the recipe!
An Alcohol-Free Variation: Cranberry Toffee Spritzer
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