08/30/2025
Part of the problem people often have with drinking water and staying hydrated is, quite simply, that chugging water throughout the day seems boring. But thatās how they get you ā with artificial beverages that excite your taste buds, but harm you in the long run. Making your own vitamin and electrolyte packed fruit water gives you some delicious flavor and nutritional qualities while also being super-hydrating!
These easy-to-make natural waters are made with just water, fruit (organic please!), ice and herbs. They are full of nutrition, healthful qualities, delicious flavor and look fantastic as you can see! Imagine the reaction you are going to get from your guests! These drinks could also be amazingly perfect if you are detoxing or simply if you are seeking something that is refreshing and delicious without containing any artificial sugars or other chemical additives.
Another great benefit of this refreshing āDIYā fruit water, in addition to the amazing nutritional content: You are completely eliminating the use of evil plastic bottles and other disposable packaging.
Plastic bottles are reported to leach toxic chemicals such as BPA (and possibly phthalates, which you really donāt need) into their contents. Also, plastic garbage is spreading far and wide across the worldā¦ slowly breaking down and entering the food chain. [1] This is horrendous and needs to stop! I think itās time to start thinking seriously about banning plastic and using natural alternatives. āDetoxā and āplasticā donāt really sit very well togetherā¦
Use (and re-use!) high quality food-grade glass containers. They donāt leach anything into your food, donāt contribute to the hideous mountain of discarded plastic.
Supplies Needed:
fruit -- whatever kind you like (except no bananas); make sure it's good and ripe for maximum sweetness and flavor. I like to use all kinds of citrus and berries. I also found pineapple and watermelon to work well for flavoring water. If you don't want to buy whole ones, many grocery stores sell small containers of pre-cut fruit.
herbs -- these are optional, but many herbs are a surprising complement to fruit flavors; almost any herb will work depending on your personal preference
jars or pitchers -- I use 2 quart mason jars primarily, but any 2 quart pitcher will do.
fruit infusion pitcher (optional). I recently purchased one of these--it's another option if you think you'll be making infused waters regularly; a very easy, tidy way to strain fruit from water.
muddler or wooden spoon for mashing fruit and herbs
water -- I use filtered water.
Here are my top 5 naturally flavored vitamin packed flavored detox water recipes:
1. All Citrus Flavored Water (adds refreshing tartness to water) -- slice 1 orange, 1 lime, 1 lemon into rounds, then cut the rounds in half. Add to jar, press and twist with a muddler or the handle of a wooden spoon. Press enough to release some of the juices, but don't pulverize the fruit into pieces. Fill the jar with ice. Pour in water to the top. Stir it with the handle of a wooden spoon or a chopstick. Put a lid on it, put it in the fridge, and chill. You can drink it right away, but the flavor intensifies if it's made an hour or two ahead. It's even better the next day. 24 hours later straight from the fridge, the ice still hasn't melted completely in mine. The ice at the top serves as a sieve so that you can pour the flavored water without getting fruit bits in your glass.
2. Raspberry Lime Flavored Water (beautiful color and mildly tart) -- Quarter 2 limes; with your hands, squeeze the juice into the jar, then throw in the squeezed lime quarters. Add raspberries. Press and twist with a muddler to release some of the juices (don't pulverize the fruit). Fill the jar with ice, then add water to the top. Stir, cover, and refrigerate.
3. Pineapple Mint Flavored Water (a hint of minty sweetness). Add a sprig of mint to the jar--you can throw in the whole sprig; or, remove the leaves from the sprig, if you prefer to have the mint swimming around and distributing in the jar. Muddle the mint--the goal is to bruise the leaves and release their flavor--don't pulverize them into bits. Add pineapple pieces, press and twist with the muddler to release juices. Add ice to the top and then water. Stir, cover, and refrigerate.
4. Blackberry Sage Flavored Water (subtle, refreshing flavor). Add sage leaves to jar and bruise with a muddler. Add blackberries; press and twist with muddler to release their juices. Fill jar with ice cubes, add water to the top, stir, cover and refrigerate.
5. Watermelon Rosemary Flavored Water (lovely flavor combo). Add a sprig of rosemary to jar and muddle gently (rosemary releases a strong flavor without much muddling). Add watermelon cubes; twist and press gently to release juices. Fill jar with ice cubes, add water to the top, stir, cover and refrigerate.
It's hard to pick a favorite, because they all have a different, distinctive flavor. The all citrus and raspberry lime are both quite tart (and refreshing!), the watermelon rosemary and pineapple mint are the sweetest, and the blackberry sage has the mildest flavor (that may be because my out-of-season blackberries weren't very flavorful). I enjoyed all of these and love having a variety in my fridge. You can get creative and use this same simple method for combining all kinds of fruits and herbs.
How long will they keep? Put a lid on them, put them in fridge, and they will keep for up to 3 days. It only takes a few minutes to make several varieties to keep on hand.
Happy Whole Health Everyone š
