Sunset Magazine

I have PTSD from bottled water. It stems from a holiday grocery shopping event in 2016 with my dear sweet mother, otherwise known as Grammie Lambie. As she got older, grocery stores were a field trip, a playground, a place for her to wander. We had spent hours in the Ralphs, the cart was overflowing with food, and my brain was swimming with concerns of an extremely high ring up at the cash register. I attempted to thwart Grammie Lambie’s attempts to place bottled water into our shopping cart. Picture an 88-year-old grasping a bottle of Fiji water, shrieking, “But I’m thirsty!” in front of a packed aisle of holiday shoppers.  A certain type of person would have let her have the bottled water, it would have diffused the conflict quickly for a low, low price of $3, and it was the holidays after all.

I am not this person. You may be wondering, how the heck does this incident I’ve dubbed “Holi-thirst 2016” have anything to do with Herb-infused Spa Water?

Like many people, my sweet mom hated the metallic chlorine taste of tap water. Although it is free and environmentally better than bottled water, tap water sometimes doesn’t taste good. Chilled herb-infused water is the solution. It tastes good, is refreshing, and when served cold in a clear glass pitcher, it looks elegant. Fruits and herbs (lemon, rosemary, and mint) have purifying properties that can help your body flush out toxins and improve digestion. So that earns extra points.

Annie and I still collapse in fits of laughter when we recall the image of this sweet old lady desperately grasping her Fuji water, exclaiming, “But I’m thirsty!” in a packed house like a toddler throwing a temper tantrum. Maybe the herb-infused water would have helped?

Ingredients

6 C Chilled water 

12 Thin slices of cucumber 

4 Thin slices of lemon 

4 Sprigs of fresh mint, slightly crushed 2 Sprigs of fresh rosemary, slightly crushed

Directions

In a 2- to 2 1/2-quart pitcher, combine water, cucumber, lemon, mint, and rosemary. 

Cover and chill at least 2 hours or up to 8 hours. 

Add ice cubes just before serving.