Herb Lemonade, aka "Almdudler"

When I was a kid, I hated all kinds of soda. But everything orangy, especially. I can actually remember the only two times I had Fanta: The first time at a summer party in Kindergarten and the second time as a sixteen-year-old-anti-alcoholic, at a birthday party where the only non-alcoholic drink they had was Fanta.
What can I say. Fanta was not my thing.
As were all kinds of sweet things, kids are normally crazy about. A free lollipop from the nice bakery lady? Ehm. No thank you. I’d rather take the piece of Fleischwurst at the butcher’s. Maybe I was a little strange when I was younger. Who knows. But, there was one lemonade that conquered my heart the time I had my first sip: “Almdudler”. Oh yeah.
You could probably compare it to root bear. It is slightly sweet with a strong herb flavor that kind of reminds me of liquid Ricola candy. And it is so sparkly!
“Almdudler” was the kind of soda I wanted! No artificial orange or lemon flavours! If it has to be artificial, let’s at least have fake herbs. Ok, I am sorry. But there is a method behind my confusion. Trust me.
See, if there hadn’t been this Almdudler thing, I would never have thought of making a herb flavoured lemonade on my own. I mean, don’t you do that all the time?

This lemonade really made my weekend. It is so simple to make, yet so delicious.
Can we say that it is also healthy? Yes, we  can, because the only added sugar we have are 2 Tablespoons of natural sweetener. Could be worse, I think.
Additionally, the herb flavor is “real”, means you throw in a good amount of freshly picked herbs, and let the juice absorb the falvours. Easy-peasy.

Go ahead and make you some crazy delicious “Almdudler” and pretend you are a cool kid. Wait, actually you totally are. I’m not sure about the side effects, though. If you should start yodeling, call your doctor, please. I've warned you.


Herb Lemonade (aka “Almdudler”)

500 ml (2 cups) unsweetened apple juice
2 Tbsp liquid honey, Agave syrupe or maple syrupe
6 Tbsp lemon juice (juice of one lemon)
3 large sprigs of rosemary
4 sprigs of  thyme
4 sprigs of basil
4 sprigs of mint

500 ml sparkling water

Pick your herbs.

In a pot bring apple juice and honey to a boil. Remove from heat, add herbs and lemon juice, cover pot with a lid and let juice sit for 30 minutes.



Then drain the juice with a colander to remove the herbs. Fill lemonade into a bottle and let cool completely before placing in the fridge.
The lemonade should be served cold with half sparkling water/ half lemonade, ice cubes and lemon slices.
Perfect for a summer barbecue or picnic at the park.
        

Enjoy!