Friday, July 12, 2013

Water,It Doesn`t Have To Be Boring

Happy Friday everyone!!  Last week here in Nova Scotia we had quite the heat wave.  Personally I don`t enjoy the heat and humidity, and find temperatures up around 40 degrees rather brutal.  I function much better when the weather is cooler.

So given the heat and the fact that my cooking mojo has yet to return I have some quick and easy ideas to make your water a little more flavourful.  Skip the commercial water flavouring products.  Here are some of the tasty ingredients you`ll find in them mio_group
Propylene Glycol (aka antifreeze) what is used in our food is pharmaceutical grade as opposed to industrial grade, but that being said it is still the same product just a lesser strength.  Besides food products, you can find it in mascara, hair dye, shampoo, nail polish and many more. I don`t know about you but I don`t like the idea of the same ingredient that`s in nail polish in the food I`m eating. Thank`s but I`ll pass.
You will also find artificial sweeteners, various dyes, and I like this one on the ingredient list, contains less than 2% natural flavours.

In case you haven`t heard how important it is to consume water, here are a few reasons.  Your body needs water to function properly.  It is used to regulate temperature, digest your food, and help your blood flow better (when you are chronically dehydrated your blood becomes thicker). As a result of the blood being thicker your body has to work harder to push it through your veins.  This in turn can increase your blood pressure.  It keeps your joints and connective tissues hydrated.  When they are dry and brittle they are prone to injury.

Those are just a few of the reasons why water is important, but let`s face it plain old water can be boring, so here are a few suggestions to add a little yumminess to plain old water.

Homemade Flavoured Water

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Watermelon and Rosemary
Citrus
Pineapple
Lemon Ginger
Watermelon cubes Lemon slices Pineapple cubes Fresh ginger grated
small sprig of Rosemary Lime slices Cherries fresh mint leaves
fresh mint leaves Orange slices fresh chocolate mint leaves or regular mint leaves cucumber slices
Orange slice Drizzle of pure maple syrup lemon slices

Add ingredients in the amounts you think you would like.  I crushed the mint in the containers before adding the rest of the ingredients to release the oils and bring out the flavour.  You can also crush (muddle) some of the fruit as well to release the flavours.  They are best if you let them sit for a few hours or overnight so the flavour can develop.
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Here is another natural water flavour enhancer for you  Terra Beata juices.  You can find Terra Beata farms in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia.  If you`re in the area you can stop in any time.  In addition to their juices you will find, preserves, dried fruit and frozen cranberries.  It is also the first and only cranberry U-pick in Nova Scotia.  The U-pick opens on Thanksgiving weekend so if you`re in the area stop in and get some yummy fresh cranberries for the holidays.

You can find their juice (Cranberry, Blueberry, Tart Cherry and Cran-Raspberry) on the shelves in the juice aisle at the Superstore.  One 473ml bottle can make 1 or 2 L of flavoured water.
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There you have it, just some ideas to make drinking water a little more interesting. Please share any flavour combinations you like.

Enjoy!
~Jackie

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