Pomegranate & Lemon Spritzer

At six o'clock on the dot, an unsure little voice came out from the dimly lit corridor.  "I'm awake.  I can't sleep anymore."  I looked outside through the window and saw that it was still pitch dark.   It is Sunday morning.   We were hoping to gain an hour of two of more sleep today.  We cajoled Riccardo to go back to bed but he was insistent.  He was awake and he refused to go back to bed.  How come he never wakes up this early when it's a school day?  He watched TV at the other end of the house while he waited for his Papi to prepare his breakfast.  I noticed that my husband closed the door of the kids' room so that Sofia remains unbothered.   If she wakes up too,  any hope of prolonging our sleep will be gone. 

I heard a faint crying then it became insistent.  Unbelievable.  Child number 2 is also awake at 6 o'clock on a Sunday morning.  What luck.  It's going to a long day today.

I had been thinking of making this spritzer for some time but I kept on getting sidetracked by other recipes.   Besides, it's not so easy to find pomegranates in the shops.   When I finally found some, I didn't have a reason anymore not to do it. 

When Riccardo drank it for the first time, he gulped down about half a liter in one sitting.  He almost didn't leave enough for the rest of us.   He was captivated by it.   We loved it too.  No one drinks soda pops anymore when I make this.  It's spritzy like a soda but 100 times healthier. 

After the calamansi juice with mint, this second drink gave the soda pops at home a stiffer competition.  That makes me really happy.  What parent doesn't want to take away all the Cokes & Pepsis from their kids' clutches?  I recently made 4 liters of this spritzer and they disappeared so fast.  The bottle of soda?  Still full in the fridge. 

This drink is such a runaway success that we decided that we should have our own supply of pomegranates.  We are now on the lookout for a pomegranate tree (or maybe trees) to plant in our garden. I can't wait to see them dangling from the branches.  Patience my dear.

I squeezed the last pomegranates today and made some potato chips.  My hours of work in the kitchen were consumed in a matter of minutes.   I didn't mind it because it was such a lovely sight to see both kids enjoying the food & drink that I prepared for them. 

Pomegranate & Lemon Spritzer

Ingredients:

• 3 big pomegranates
• 1 liter sparkling water
• 1/2 cup sugar
• a lot of ice
• 2 lemons + 1/2 for decoration
• mint leaves (optional)

1. Melt sugar with a little bit of sparkling water in a cup or glass.  
2. Put water in a pitcher.  Squeeze lemons & pomegranates through a sieve. 
3. Add the melted sugar mixture, mint, chopped pieces of lemon & ice. 

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