It’s hot and the last thing you should be drinking is soda. It dehydrates you. And those sugary nonsoda drinks? They ramp up your blood sugar and add on pounds. What you need is good ol’ fashioned water, spruced up a bit!
We all know you can squeeze some lemon and lime into your water, but today’s recipe is so much prettier and much more fun. Admittedly, it’s a bit more work, but all the prep can be done in less than 10 minutes if you’re just doing a little bit and no more than 30 minutes if you are slicing a ton to freeze to last a month or more. Believe me, you’ll be just as enamored with these little frozen citrus wheels as I am.
Yes, we’re freezing citrus wheels, and they are so much more fun than fresh ones. Fun fact: Frozen citrus wheels float. I’m always disappointed when my lemon slices sink to the bottom of a pitcher of water, but these will float until they thaw. They also quickly release their flavor, making the infused fruit water tasty in just a couple of minutes. No need to mash or squeeze to release the flavor–just float them. Forgo the ice cubes, as the wheels make the perfect substitute since they are frozen, pretty and flavorful.
Fruit Water
You’ll need:
- Mandoline
- Parchment paper
- Plastic freezer bags
- Baking sheet that fits inside your freezer
- At least one lemon, lime, orange and grapefruit (the smaller grapefruits work better)
SB Note: Since you’re already getting the mandoline out, grab more fruit so you can have loads of these treats in your freezer.
Directions:
- Slice fruit on the mandoline. For my OXO mandoline, I choose the thickest setting. Limes are the easiest, as their peel is so thin. Grapefruit are the hardest.
- Place fruit slices on a piece of parchment paper on a baking sheet that fits in your freezer. Continue to layer on fruit, with a piece of parchment paper between each layer.
- Freeze overnight, at least 8 to 10 hours.
- It’s best to use water that has been chilled in the refrigerator, as the citrus wheels won’t thaw as quickly. And while they are frozen, they will float, and you want to encourage that as long as possible—so use cold water!
Here are the frozen lemon slices all ready to use.
Frozen lemon slices for drinks make for beautiful and delicious additions. Here you can see the frozen grapefruit, lemons, limes and oranges.
These frozen citrus wheels are so much fun and make tasty water with ease. They also float while frozen, making your drink just as beautiful as it is delicious.
Here you can see the frozen fruit floating. Not only does it add more of a chill to the water, it infuses it with citrus flavors far faster than nonfrozen citrus slices do. Instead of ice, chill your water with these frozen delights.
Here you can see we pushed the floating limes down with a big slice of frozen grapefruit wheel and lemons. Doesn’t that look fabulous? Keep these bagged in your freezer and delight your family or guests.
Since you are slicing up fruit anyway, why not slice a lot and keep them in bags in your freezer? Once they have frozen on the parchment paper, you can take the frozen citrus wheels and store them in freezer bags to reach for with ease.
I hope you enjoy these as much as we do. Cheers to health, hydration and little pretties that unexpectedly make our day!
Tools:
I use the OXO mandoline from Target. Admittedly there are better ones on the market, but for the price, $39.99, it’s really a great one. You can order it here.
