Soda lovers, rejoice! Finally a soda that you can drink without guilt because you can actually pronounce all the ingredients in it! Talking about soda/problems with pronunciation reminds me of the days right after I first moved to Louisiana. Growing up in Colorado, I learned to refer to soda as “pop.” In the South, however, everything I came to know as pop is called “coke,” even if it’s not coke (e.g. pepsi, sprite, 7-up, you get the gist). The kids in my high school thought it was hysterical that I would call coke/soda pop instead and I heard no end of it. Several other words I used were mocked as well, including calling P.E. Gym (“Why not call it Bob??”), calling a book-sack a backpack, and saying that I “put things away” instead of “put them up.” Regardless, I survived though I’m pretty sure I now call everything soda and have given up use of “pop.” Anyway, here is some soda/pop/coke that is easy to make, refreshing, and guilt free! I promise that real ginger is yummier than ginger flavor. Whip a little up if you have ten minutes to spare and impress the next guests you happen to have over!

Homemade Ginger Ale

Time: 10 minutes hands on, 60 minutes total    Serves: 4-6

Ingredients

• One large fresh ginger root
• ¼ cup agave nectar
• 1 tbsp lime juice
• sparkling water (seltzer water)

Substitutions

• You can use white sugar, brown sugar, or honey instead of agave
• If you don’t have lime use lemon instead

Bring 4 cups of water to a boil. Take one large piece of ginger and cut all the skin off. You don’t have to do a perfect job, just get as much off as you can.

Then, cut the ginger into chunks and add to the water.

Let boil for about 20 minutes or until the water has a strong ginger flavor. Add the agave, starting with slightly less than ¼ a cup and adding more after tasting.

Use a slotted spoon to remove the ginger, then pour the liquid into a pitcher. Add the splash of lime. Place into the fridge to cool.

After the liquid has cooled (at least 30 min) add a few ice cubes to a glass and fill ½ to ¾ full with seltzer. Top off with the ginger syrup. Mix and enjoy!