My family loves homemade soda drinks. They are simple to make and healthier than commercial drinks. You only need concentrated syrup made from fresh fruit and sparkling or seltzer water for the fizz component. I’ll use a paper drinking straw for serving when I have them available. I think it adds a bit of fun and nostalgia to the drink.
My supply is starting to run low on rhubarb and strawberries and I am not a fruit pie person. I decided to make syrup. The final soda drink came out tasty and refreshing. I had a few containers to give away plus I froze one for future use. The rest was enjoyed by the family. My recipe makes about 4 cups of syrup, which is plenty for many drinks.
I’ll share other soda recipes in the future. You can easily make up your own version with fruit you have available. Just replace the strawberries and rhubarb portion with most fruit or berries. Enjoy!
It's easy to make syrup for homemade soda. Here's my version using rhubarb and strawberries for a refreshing spring time drink. You can freeze extra syrup in freezer safe containers for later use.
- 1 pound fresh rhubarb cut into 1 inch chunks about 4 cups
- 1 pound strawberries, cut about 3 cups
- 7 cups water
- 1 large orange, juiced
- 1 teaspoon orange zest
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
-
Add rhubarb, strawberries, water, orange juice from 1 large orange and orange zest to cooking pot. Bring to boil. Reduce heat to simmer and cover pot. Simmer for 1/2 hour, stirring occasionally.
-
Strain juice into clean pot. Discard the fruit pulp or use for smoothies or toppings for ice-cream and oatmeal.
-
Add sugar to your juice and bring to a low boil until syrup has reduced and thickened. About 45 minutes. Stir frequently. I prefer a thick, concentrated syrup and therefore will boil until it's reduced about half. Remove syrup from heat and add lemon juice. Cool.
-
After syrup has cooled, store in fridge. I freeze some syrup for future use by storing in 1 cup freezer safe containers.
-
To make your sodas, simply had 1/4 cup or more to a tall glass and fill the remainder of your glass with your favorite sparkling water, club soda or seltzer water. For a lighter tasting soda, add less syrup. For a heavy fruit flavored soda, add more syrup. Sometimes I experiment with flavored sparkling water and the results are always fun and tasty.