That Blood Orange Cheesecake Tart wasn’t enough blood orange for me! I decided to grab another bag and try a beverage recipe. This Sparkling Blood Orange Mocktail with Turmeric is full of things I like in addition to blood orange, like anti-inflammatory ginger and turmeric. And since I’m not drinking much alcohol lately, this recipe was a must-try!
A refreshing sparkling blood orange mocktail recipe packed with healthy nutrients. Each sip infuses turmeric, ginger, fresh squeezed juice, mint, and rosemary.
The Ingredients
So I’ve already mentioned most of the ingredients. I had ground ginger and turmeric on hand since I cook with them a lot.
Although I have been finding blood oranges steadily at my usual grocery store since January, I didn’t have quite enough leftover from the tart I mentioned earlier. I picked up another bag along with fresh rosemary, fresh mint, and some cans of seltzer water.
I had honey and simple syrup on hand, so I was set in case I wanted to add an optional sweetener. Besides ice, I was all set!
The Process
I busted out the ice cube trays to make “real” ice cubes for this recipe. My refrigerator makes pyramid-shaped cubes, but they’re small and melt fast. Ice trays aren’t as big of a pain as they were when I grew up, so I don’t mind using them for special drinks like this.
Once I had my ice done and glasses in hand, it was time to make my mocktail. Well, mocktails since this is a recipe for two drinks.
First up was juicing a few blood oranges. It took five to make one cup of juice, and I used my electric citrus juicer since it’s fast. I got picky and decided to strain the juice with a fine mesh strainer to remove the pulp. Next, I whisked in the powdered spices.
From there it’s all done in the glasses. I powered the blood orange spice mixture into two rocks glasses filled with ice and topped it with seltzer water.
Tip: Bruising mint leaves helps to release their flavor. There are several techniques to do this like crushing them in your hands, on a hard surface, or with a muddler.
The recipe mention this, but I smashed the mint leaves in my hands to release their oils before dropping them into the drinks. Next was a sprig of rosemary and it was time to give my freshly made mocktails a taste.
The flavor was a bit tart and bitter, so I added honey to one of the mocktails. It didn’t mix easily mix into the cold drink, so it didn’t add much sweetness. I tried simple syrup in the other drink, and it did better in both sweetness and mixability. Still, there was a residual bitterness from the spices, and I didn’t notice the mint at all.
Timing
This recipe lists a total time of 10 minutes, and I was right on that. Mixing in optional sweeteners added a minute or two to each drink since I tried one with honey and one with simple syrup.
