nonalcoholic

The balanced and decidedly tropical flavors of this friendly green smoothie are just the ticket to a relaxed state of mind.

Tropical Paradise Green Smoothie Recipe

coconut water

baby spinach leaves

banana,

peach, pitted

cilantro leaves

lime,

Combine coconut water or pineapple juice with spinach, banana, peach, cilantro, and lime in a blender and process until perfectly smooth. Serve immediately.

A classic simple lemonade with balanced sweetness and acidity.

Classic Lemonade Recipe

juice lemons

sugar

salt

water

Combine lemon juice and sugar and whisk or blend until sugar is completely dissolved. Add salt and water and stir to combine. Pour into a pitcher with ice. Serve in ice-filled glasses.

This refreshing mocktail will help you cut calories from alcohol and sugar without feeling deprived.  It’s perfect for spring and summer parties.

Low Sugar Strawberry Lemon Spritzer Recipe

strawberries,

lemon juice

club soda

mint (optional)

Low Sugar Strawberry Lemon Spritzer

Fresh raspberries and mint are blended with cubes of frozen kefir plus a little honey for balance in this frosty, fresh smoothie.

Raspberry, Mint, and Kefir Smoothie Recipe

For the Kefir Ice Cubes:

plain whole-milk kefir (see note)

For the Smoothie:

(1 cup) fresh raspberries

mint leaves

honey

plain whole-milk kefir

Kefir ice cubes

raspberries,

For the Kefir Ice Cubes: Divide kefir between 4 slots of an ice cube tray, using about 2 tablespoons for each cube. Freeze overnight, remove from the tray, and store in a zipper-lock bag in the freezer.

For the Smoothie: In a blender, blend raspberries until a rough puree forms. Add mint leaves, honey, liquid kefir, and kefir ice cubes and blend until completely smooth. Garnish with additional raspberries, if desired, and serve immediately. 

Fizzy, tart, with just a hint of ginger spice.

Fizzy Ginger Lemonade Recipe

ginger,

(1 pint) club soda

Combine ginger, lemon juice, sugar, salt, and water in a blender. Blend on high speed for 1 minute. Strain through a fine mesh strainer into a pitcher. Add club soda and ice and stir to combine. Serve immediately in ice-filled glasses. 

This fresh lemonade gets the maximum flavor out of just two ingredients (three if you count water).

Ultra-Flavorful Fresh Lemonade Recipe

(1.3kg) lemons (10 to 14 medium lemons)

sugar (2 cups; 400 grams)

water (3 cups; 700 milliliters)

Bring lemons to room temperature, then roll firmly against the counter to soften their rinds. Halve and juice; pour juice into a sealable container and refrigerate. Cut rinds into 1-inch chunks. Toss with sugar in a large nonreactive mixing bowl, cover tightly with plastic, and let stand at room temperature, stirring once every 45 minutes or so, until sugar has completely dissolved, about 3 hours. (You can let the mixture stand up to 12 hours, if desired.)

Add water and 8 ounces (1 cup) of reserved lemon juice (see note). Stir well, then strain through a nonreactive fine-mesh strainer or piece of cheesecloth into a glass or ceramic container. At this point, the concentrated lemonade can be refrigerated for up to 1 week.

When ready to serve, pour lemonade over ice and adjust to taste with additional water or lemon juice, depending on personal preference; bear in mind, though, that the lemonade will be diluted as the ice melts. (You will likely have some fresh lemon juice left over, which can be reserved for another use, though exactly how much you have will depend on how much you added to adjust the lemonade.)

The beloved snack of mangoes with lime and chili powder, reimagined as a sunny drink.

Mango-Lime Spritzer

large ripe mango, peeled,

mint, leaves picked, coarsely chopped

kosher salt

Tbsp. (or more) honey

Tbsp. (or more) fresh lime juice

Tajín, sparkling water, and lime wedges (for serving)

Inspired by my favorite springtime snack—ripe mangoes with lime, chili powder, and salt—this refreshing nonalcoholic beverage is equal parts tangy and sweet. Rimming a glass with Tajín makes this drink extra-festive, but you can also simply sprinkle some over the top to get that tart, spicy kick. If you can’t get your hands on Tajín, a simple mix of 2 parts chile powder to 1 part kosher salt will do the trick. —Zaynab Issa
For an iftar-worthy spread, pair this recipe with Afghan Pasta, Kalimati, and Saffron Milk Cake, and read about how Zaynab hosts iftar here.

Bon Appétit

Combine 1 large ripe mango, peeled, cut into pieces, 6 sprigs mint, leaves picked, coarsely chopped, and ¼ tsp. kosher salt in a large mortar and pestle or a food processor and pound (or pulse) until mostly smooth. Stir in 3 Tbsp. honey and 2 Tbsp. fresh lime juice. Taste and adjust with more honey or lime juice as needed (mixture should be very sweet and punchy; remember, it will get diluted with sparkling water).

To make 1 drink, moisten half of rim of a 10–12-oz. glass with lime juice, then dip in Tajín to coat. Spoon 3 Tbsp. mango mixture into glass, fill with ice, and top off with 6 oz. sparkling water. Garnish with a lime wedge.

Ditch the simple syrup for the easiest homemade lemonade ever. 

How To Make Lemonade from Scratch

lemons

water (6 cups)

Lemon slices,

Storage: The lemonade can be refrigerated for up to 4 days.

The Kitchn

Meghan Splawn

Step 1

Juice the lemons and strain out the pulp. Halve the lemons, then squeeze the juice from the halves —  you can do this manually with your favorite juicer or reamer. My favorite alternative method: Quarter the lemons and use the stand mixer to juice all of the lemons at once. Place the quartered lemons in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, then beat on low speed for 2 minutes. With either method, strain the juice through a fine-mesh strainer into a large measuring cup or bowl to remove the pulp before making the lemonade. You need 1 cup of strained lemon juice.

Step 2

Combine the lemon juice and sugar to make a lemonade base. Add the sugar to the strained lemon juice and whisk until the sugar is completely dissolved.

Step 3

Add the water and chill. Transfer the lemonade base to a serving pitcher. Add the water and stir to combine. Chill the lemonade for at least 1 hour before serving. 

Step 4

Serve with ice and lemon slices. Serve the lemonade over ice with lemon slices if desired. 

https://cdn.jwplayer.com/previews/RZuOJL3c

Sipping icy-cold sweet lemonade on a blazing-hot summer day is one of life's finest pleasures, which is why we think making lemonade from scratch should be the easiest drink you make this summer. After all, it is just three ingredients: lemon juice, sugar, and water. There's absolutely no reason you should be heating up the stove or breaking a sweat to squeeze lemons.

Easy Lemonade from Scratch

This cold brew concentrate recipe goes down easy, but watch out: This is high-octane stuff.

Cold-Brew Iced Coffee Concentrate

coffee beans

Milk (optional)

Cold brew goes down easy, but watch out: This is high-octane stuff. For a clear liquid, use coarsely ground coffee. (Finely ground beans make for a cloudier drink.)

Place ground coffee in a large container. Gradually add 7 cups cold water. Stir gently to be sure all grounds are moistened. Cover with a layer of cheese-cloth. Let stand at room temperature for 15 hours.

Remove cheesecloth and use it to line a fine-mesh sieve set over a large pitcher. Pour coffee through sieve into pitcher (do not stir); rinse jar and set aside. Discard cheesecloth with solids.

Line same sieve with a large coffee filter and set over reserved jar. Strain coffee through sieve into jar. (It may take up to 45 minutes for all of the coffee to drip through; do not stir or coffee may become cloudy.) Cover and chill. Coffee concentrate can be made 2 weeks ahead. Keep chilled.

Fill a glass with ice. Dilute 1 part coffee concentrate with 1 part milk, if desired, or water.

Simple syrup is good. Super Summer Fruit Syrup is better and able to transform any drink into its best post-vacation summery self.

Super Summer Fruit Syrup

lemon, zest removed in wide strips with a vegetable peeler, lemon halved

(400 g) granulated sugar

Tbsp. dried chamomile flowers

turmeric

small ripe mangoes, peeled, chopped

small ripe peaches, peeled, chopped

4" piece ginger, peeled, chopped

Champagne vinegar vinegar

vanilla extract

As someone who spent over 10 years working in some of the world’s best bars and restaurants, I don’t flinch at the thought of an elaborate multistep recipe that yields a very specific single cocktail. But for home bartenders who don’t have the same luxury of time and effort, a single high-value element like this fruity syrup can create a transformative mixer with many uses.
It starts with an infusion of chamomile tea, lemon zest, and turmeric that combines with simple syrup to gently poach mangoes, peaches, and ginger. Once puréed, the syrup gets a finishing dose of vinegar and fresh lemon juice to keep things bright and help preserve the peak-season fruit. For the smoothest drinks, strain syrup through the finest mesh sieve you have to eliminate any pulp. It’s thick so you’ll need a rubber spatula to push it through.
Keep it for up to three weeks, chilled, or two months, frozen, and use in this Summery Sour. You can also use it with any spirit from gin to whiskey, or even just with seltzer. However you use it, it is guaranteed to keep you refreshed through Labor Day. —John deBary

Bring lemon zest, sugar, chamomile, turmeric, salt, and 2 cups water, preferably filtered, to a gentle simmer in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat, cover, and let sit 30 minutes. Strain syrup through a fine-mesh sieve into a large saucepan; discard solids.

Add mangoes, peaches, and ginger to syrup. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat and cook until fruit is nearly soft, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat and let sit until fruit is very soft, about 30 minutes.

Transfer mixture to a blender; purée until smooth. Strain through fine-mesh sieve back into pan and stir in vinegar and vanilla. Squeeze in juice from lemon halves and stir again to combine.
Do ahead: Fruit syrup can be made 3 weeks ahead. Transfer to an airtight container, cover and chill, or freeze up to 2 months.

This watermelon juice recipe is just two ingredients and it’s about to be the most refreshing thing you’ll drink this summer. 

Salted Watermelon Juice

watermelon

Lime wedges (for serving; optional)

This recipe is a genius way to use up the second half of that enormous summer watermelon you’ve been snacking on. There is truly nothing more refreshing than a cold glass of salted watermelon juice. Oh wait, but what about a salted watermelon margarita? Here’s a recipe for that too. This recipe is part of the Healthyish Farmers’ Market Challenge. Get all 10 recipes here.

Purée watermelon in a blender until smooth. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a large pitcher or measuring glass, pressing on solids to extract as much juice as possible; discard solids. Mix in salt.

Pour juice into ice-filled glasses. Garnish with lime wedges if desired.

Refreshing blended coffee drink topped with sweetened whipped cream.

Better-than-Starbucks Coffee Frappé

milk

brown sugar

ice cubes (about 1 cup)

Whipped cream,

Instant espresso variation: Place 1/2 cup cold water and 1 tablespoon instant espresso powder in a measuring cup and stir until the espresso is dissolved.Plant-based milk variation: Unsweetened plant-based milk can be substituted for the dairy milk, though the resulting frappe may have a more icy and less creamy consistency.

Patty Catalano

Place 2 double shots cold espresso, or 1/2 cup cold prepared instant espresso or strong brewed coffee, 1/4 cup whole or 2% milk, 2 tablespoons packed light brown sugar, 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract, and 4 ounces (about 1 cup) ice cubes in a blender. Begin on low speed and increasing to high speed, blend until thick, smooth, and creamy, 20 to 40 seconds.

Pour into a glass and top with whipped cream if desired.

Never underestimate black peppercorns! Their heat sneaks up on you in this turmeric tonic.

Turmeric-Ginger Tonic with Chia Seeds

lime juice

black peppercorns

chia seeds

Club soda (for serving)

Thyme sprigs (for serving; optional)

Blend ginger, turmeric, honey, lime juice, black peppercorns, and 3 cups water in a blender until smooth. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a large bowl. Stir in chia seeds and let sit until seeds begin to swell, 8–10 minutes.

Divide tonic among ice-filled glasses. Top off with club soda and garnish with thyme sprigs, if desired.

Do Ahead: Tonic can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill. Stir vigorously before topping off with club soda.

Instead of vanilla extract for this Mexican hot chocolate recipe, try almond extract if you’ve got it handy, which adds even more depth of flavor.

Mexican Hot Chocolate

cinnamon sticks (preferably Ceylon)

chocolate

demerara sugar

chile de árbol

whipped cream (for serving)

Instead of vanilla extract for this Mexican hot chocolate recipe, try almond extract if you’ve got it handy, which adds even more depth of flavor. Go one step further and pair it with this churros recipe.

Bring milk and cinnamon to a simmer in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, whisking occasionally and making sure milk doesn’t boil, until cinnamon is floral and fragrant, about 10 minutes. Whisk in chocolate, sugar, vanilla, salt, and ¼ tsp. ground chile and cook, whisking frequently, until mixture is smooth and creamy and chocolate is melted, about 5 minutes.

Divide hot chocolate among mugs. Top with whipped cream and dust with cocoa powder.

We like this Shirley Temple recipe with just ginger ale, but some versions use lemon-lime soda. No matter what, don't forget the cherry!

Shirley Temple

grenadine

Ginger ale

maraschino cherry

We like this Shirley Temple recipe with just ginger ale, but some versions use lemon-lime soda, or a combination of ginger ale and lemon-lime soda. No matter what, don't forget the cherry!

Place grenadine in a Collins glass, fill with ice, and add ginger ale to fill glass. Garnish with a maraschino cherry.

Top this concentrate with hot water to make a steamy, cold-busting elixir, or pour it over ice with sparkling water for a sweet-spicy refresher. 

Spicy Lemon-Ginger Tonic, Two Ways

lemon zest

lemon juice (from 5–6 lemons)

cayenne pepper

Seltzer (optional; for serving)

Lemon

Lemon, ginger, and honey are a time-tested trifecta. Here they make up the base of a flavor-packed concentrate that you’ll find yourself making all year round. Top a few tablespoons with hot water to make a steamy, cold-busting elixir during winter months, and pour it over ice with sparkling water for a sweet-spicy refresher in spring and summer.

Bring 10 oz. ginger, peeled, coarsely chopped, 5 wide strips lemon zest, 1 cup fresh lemon juice (from 5–6 lemons), ¼ cup honey, pinch of cayenne pepper, pinch of kosher salt, and ½ cup water to a boil in a small saucepan. Reduce heat and simmer until mixture is darkened in color and reduced by about one third, 30–40 minutes.

Strain tonic through a fine-mesh sieve into a small bowl or measuring glass, pressing on solids to release as much liquid as possible; discard solids (you should have ½–⅔ cup tonic).

To serve hot, pour 2 Tbsp. tonic into each mug. Top with hot water as desired and garnish with lemon wheels or twists.

To serve cold, pour 2 Tbsp. tonic into each ice-filled glass. Top with seltzer as desired and garnish with lemon wheels or twists.
Do ahead: Tonic can be made 1 week ahead. Cover and chill.

A cozy, perfectly nutty, slightly sweet Salvadoran beverage.

Cashew Chilate

raw cashews

whole allspice

cinnamon sticks, divided

½ tsp. Diamond Crystal or ¼ tsp. Morton kosher salt

Flaky sea salt

While this cozy, warming beverage is totally awesome consumed on its own, it just so happens to be the perfect nutty, slightly sweet, somewhat untraditional accompaniment for a savory Salvadoran dessert like Quesadilla.

Preheat oven to 325°. Toast cashews on a rimmed baking sheet, tossing halfway through, until golden brown, 12–14 minutes.

Meanwhile, toast allspice and 2 cinnamon sticks in a medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring often, until fragrant, about 3 minutes. Add cashews, milk, sugar, and kosher salt and reduce heat to low. Cook, stirring occasionally, until cashews soften and flavors infuse (do not let milk boil), 20–25 minutes. Let cool slightly.

Transfer mixture to a blender and purée on high speed until very smooth and the consistency of heavy cream. Wipe out saucepan. Strain chilate through a fine-mesh sieve back into saucepan. Reheat chilate over medium-low, stirring occasionally, until hot.

Ladle chilate into mugs and finely grated remaining cinnamon stick over; sprinkle with sea salt.

Do ahead: Chilate can be made 1 week ahead. Let cool. Transfer to an airtight container; cover and chill. Reheat over medium-low heat before serving.

Avocado gives this refreshing drink the creamy, sippable texture of a milkshake but without a drop of dairy.

Avocado Water

avocado,

Tbsp. sugar

Scoop avocado flesh into a blender and add lime juice, sugar, salt, ½ cup ice cubes, and 2 cups cold water. Purée until smooth; blend in another splash of water if mixture is too thick. Pour into glasses, filled with ice if desired.

While it is not uncommon to find ginger blended into limeades, lemonades, and fresh sugarcane juice in India, it also pairs nicely with tamarind. Serve cold and give it a good stir before drinking.

This recipe is made with tamarind pulp, which contains large seeds that you will need to remove. Avoid the temptation to use concentrates. They’re more convenient because they don’t have seeds, but they don’t taste nearly as fresh.

Ginger and Tamarind Refresher

(600 ml) water

2½ oz (70 g) sour tamarind pulp

oz (225 g) fresh ginger,

(200 g) sugar

club soda or 4 cups (960 ml) chilled water

Epicurious

Bring 1½ cups (360 ml) of the water to a boil. Put the tamarind pulp in a heat-proof nonreactive bowl, and cover with the boiling water. Cover and let sit for about 1 hour, until the pulp has become soft and mushy. Using a small potato masher or clean hands, massage and squeeze the block to soften the pulp. Strain through a fine-mesh strainer suspended over a medium bowl, pressing the pulp through the strainer with a large spoon. Discard the seeds and other solids left behind. Refrigerate the tamarind extract in an airtight container in the refrigerator until ready to use, for up to 4 days.

Rinse the ginger and gently scrub to remove any traces of dirt. If the ginger is young, with a thin skin, leave the skin on. Otherwise, peel. Cut into thin slices. In a medium saucepan, combine the ginger, sugar, and remaining 1 cup (240 ml) water. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and immediately remove the saucepan from the heat. Cover and steep for 10 minutes. Strain the ginger simple syrup through a fine-mesh strainer and discard the ginger.

In a large pitcher, mix the tamarind extract and the ginger simple syrup together. Fill eight tall glasses with ice. Pour 4 oz (120 ml) of the tamarind-ginger syrup into each glass, top with 4 oz (120 ml) of the club soda or chilled water, and stir. Store any remaining tamarind-ginger syrup in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

This rejuvenating drink combines the mild heat of young ginger and the sourness of tamarind. It’s wonderful during the warmer months. Young ginger requires no peeling before use because its outer skin is so thin. I recommend using South Asian tamarind, which is a lot more sour than the Mexican variety. Look for it in Asian and Indian markets.

A simple  lime cordial and a touch of salt make this non-alcoholic cocktail just as special as any boozy option. Make this cucumber spritz for happy hour.

Cucumber Spritz

limes

(300 grams) sugar

Tbsp. (20 grams) salt

cucumbers,

(90 ml) Lime Cordial

lime lime

Sparkling water

We opened a little bar called Pisellino across the street from Via Carota in 2019. It’s an homage to drinking all things Italian, inspired by our favorite cafés in Florence and Milan. We think that a fresh-squeezed juice and your latte macchiato should feel just as special as an evening cocktail. When we make this non-alcoholic beverage, the Bevanda al Cetriolo or Cucumber Spritz, we make a simple lime cordial for a dash of good old-fashioned bartending.
This recipe was excerpted from 'Via Carota' by Jody Williams and Rita Sodi with Anna Kovel. Buy the full book on Amazon.

Top 25 nonalcoholic recipes from across the web

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Top Tags

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Spicy Lemon-Ginger Tonic, Two Ways

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Ginger and Tamarind Refresher

Cucumber Spritz

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Top 25 nonalcoholic recipes from across the web

The most viewed nonalcoholic recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engineic_arrow_forward_48px

Top Tags

Tropical Paradise Green Smoothie Re...

Classic Lemonade Recipe

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Raspberry, Mint, and Kefir Smoothie...

Fizzy Ginger Lemonade Recipe

Ultra-Flavorful Fresh Lemonade Reci...

Mango-Lime Spritzer

How To Make Lemonade from Scratch

Cold-Brew Iced Coffee Concentrate

Super Summer Fruit Syrup

Salted Watermelon Juice

Better-than-Starbucks Coffee Frappé

Turmeric-Ginger Tonic with Chia See...

Mexican Hot Chocolate

Shirley Temple

Spicy Lemon-Ginger Tonic, Two Ways

Cashew Chilate

Avocado Water

Ginger and Tamarind Refresher

Cucumber Spritz

Strawberry Limeade

Sparkling Preserved Lemonade

How to Make a Cappuccino

Acai-Peanut Protein Shake

Date Shake with Toasted Nuts (Majoo...

The most viewed nonalcoholic recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engine