Tag: Sprite

mocktail

Ocean Water Cocktail & Mocktail Recipe | A Healthy 4 or 5-Ingredient Drink Made with Spira Electric Sky Natural Blue Pigment

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This Ocean Water cocktail and mocktail recipe are based on Sonic's famous beverage with the same name.And this one is naturally-colored thanks to Spira's Electric Sky pigment. It's well-balanced between tart and sweet and is healthier than the original version. Keep reading to find out how to make Sonic's famous blue coconut-flavored drink at home.

This Ocean Water cocktail and mocktail recipe are based on Sonic’s famous beverage with the same name. And this one is naturally-colored thanks to the Spira Electric Sky pigment. It’s well-balanced between tart and sweet and is healthier than the original version. Keep reading to find out how to make Sonic’s famous blue coconut-flavored drink at home.

Disclosure: This is a sponsored post. All opinions of Spira are my own. Some of the links below are affiliate links. If you buy a product via my affiliate link, I will receive a commission. This is at no additional cost to you. I only recommend products I actually like! 

If you’ve ever been to Sonic, you’ve heard of (& most likely tried) their famous Ocean Water. It’s super refreshing. A little tart, a little sweet. A perfect touch of tropical coconut. But there’s one problem I have with it. It’s blue.

When I was real young– I’m talking 5 or 6– blue-colored things didn’t bother me. I wouldn’t think twice before swiping a sour blue raspberry gel while waiting in line at Blockbuster to rent the latest Mary Kate and Ashley movie. But it didn’t take me too long to realize that the vibrant blue used in various foods and beverages is NOT natural. Raspberries aren’t blue. Neither are coconuts.

Now, I know that most red dye is not natural either. But my brain can make allowances because red foods like strawberries are pretty dang red. But blue stuff? No. I just can’t. Even blueberries and blackberries don’t make stuff that color blue.

It’s an unfortunate thing that Sonic uses blue coconut in their famous drink because I love the flavor of Ocean Water. In the past, I’ve ordered it and closed my eyes while I drank it. But eventually, I stopped that because I couldn’t abide that much artificial coloring. It’s the same reason I renounce all the tropical blue cocktail drinks.

This Ocean Water cocktail and mocktail recipe are based on Sonic's famous beverage with the same name.And this one is naturally-colored thanks to Spira's Electric Sky pigment. It's well-balanced between tart and sweet and is healthier than the original version. Keep reading to find out how to make Sonic's famous blue coconut-flavored drink at home.
Photo courtesy of Spira and Sasha Fishman

But then…. then I learned that there actually IS a naturally-derived electric blue pigment. What?! A natural blue? That I can put in foods and drinks? Turns out Spira discovered how to turn spirulina algae into a bright blue. They sent me a sample of their Electric Sky pigment and I am forever grateful. Now I’ll not only have a way to make fun blue cocktails, but I can use it to safely dye my kid’s cupcakes, play doughs, homemade bath fizzies, and anything else I want!

Y’all. Spira’s Electric Sky could replace Blue Dye #1 one day. How awesome would that be? No more fake dyes in our foods. No more synthetic dye sensitivities or allergies. This stuff could revolutionize the industry. Beyond the fact that it’s free of the fake stuff, it’s also plant-based, vegan, is sustainably-produced with no petroleum-based ingredients (🙌), and even has anti-inflammatory and antioxidant benefits. Yep. It looks cool and it’s good for you, too. Can’t get much better than that.

Seeing as how this is a cocktail blog, I figured I would make a boozy version of my old childhood go-to. This Ocean Water cocktail is sure to refresh you and remind you of warmer days. And if you want to keep things real refreshing, just leave out the booze. I actually made it without alcohol the first time and it was amazing.

Like I mentioned, this Ocean Water cocktail (or mocktail) is healthier than it’s namesake (I mean… minus the alcohol). Instead of using coconut flavoring, I used real coconut water. I did try making this with lime sparkling water instead of Sprite and it was alright– I definitely preferred the Sprite version. But you can use sparkling water if you want it to be healthier. And the star of the show, the Electric Sky pigment, kept me from having to use artificial blue dye #1 to get the original blue look.

This Ocean Water cocktail and mocktail recipe are based on Sonic's famous beverage with the same name.And this one is naturally-colored thanks to Spira's Electric Sky pigment. It's well-balanced between tart and sweet and is healthier than the original version. Keep reading to find out how to make Sonic's famous blue coconut-flavored drink at home.

To order your own natural blue pigment, head here to Spira’s website.

Ingredients for an Ocean Water Cocktail or Mocktail

  • 1 1/2 oz white rum or vodka (optional)
  • 2 1/2 oz sweetened coconut water
  • 3 oz Sprite or lemon-lime soda
  • juice from 1/2 a lime
  • 1/8 teaspoon Spira Electric Sky (natural blue pigment)

How to Make an Ocean Water Cocktail or Mocktail

Add all ingredients to a highball glass without ice. Stir well until the Spira Electric Sky pigment is dissolved. Slowly add ice to fill the glass. Garnish with a lime twist and a paper straw.

Ocean Water Cocktail or Mocktail

A healthier version of Sonic's famous Ocean Water drink made with Spira's Electric Sky all-natural blue pigment. Make it boozy by adding alcohol or enjoy it without.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 2 mins
Course Drinks
Servings 1

Ingredients
  

  • 1½ oz white rum or vodka (optional)
  • 2½ oz coconut water, sweetened
  • 3 oz Sprite or lemon-lime soda
  • ⅛ teaspoon 1/8 teaspoon Spira Electric Sky (powdered natural blue dye)

Instructions
 

  • Add all ingredients to a highball glass without ice.
  • Stir well until the Spira Electric Sky pigment is dissolved.
  • Slowly add ice to fill the glass.
  • Garnish with a lime twist and a paper straw.
Keyword lemon-lime soda, lime, lime juice, natural blue dye, natural blue pigment, ocean water, ocean water cocktail, sparkling coconut water, Spira, Spira Electric Blue, Sprite
This Ocean Water cocktail and mocktail recipe are based on Sonic's famous beverage with the same name.And this one is naturally-colored thanks to Spira's Electric Sky pigment. It's well-balanced between tart and sweet and is healthier than the original version. Keep reading to find out how to make Sonic's famous blue coconut-flavored drink at home.

If you’re looking for another easy mocktail recipe, check out my Grapefruit Rosemary Spritzer.

vodka

Spiked Cherry Limeade | An Easy 3 Ingredient Cocktail

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This spiked cherry limeade recipe is almost too easy. If you can stir a drink, you can make this cocktail. You might even have the 3 ingredients on hand already.

This spiked cherry limeade recipe is almost too easy. If you can stir a drink, you can make this cocktail. You might even have the 3 ingredients on hand already.

Disclosure: Some of the links below are affiliate links. If you buy a product via my affiliate link, I will receive a commission. This is at no additional cost to you. I only recommend products I actually like! 

I’ve been meaning to share this cocktail recipe for months now. Since I started up this blog, actually. It’s been a go-to of mine for over a year now. It’s definitely more of a summery drink, in my opinion. So I decided I would wait until May to post it. The months ticked by sooo slowly (thanks, pandemic).

But then BOOM summer was here and I got distracted by posting classic summer drinks like Piña Coladas and Mai Tais and Jungle Birds. This spiked cherry limeade recipe faded from memory.

One day I posted a quiz on an Instagram story, asking people what they thought my most popular recipe was. It was (and still is) my Cucumber Basil Refresher but nearly evvverryone clicked “Cherry Limeade Margarita“. Huh. That got my attention. Clearly people are fans of this flavor… OH MY GOSH I NEVER POSTED THE SPIKED CHERRY LIMEADE RECIPE I’VE BEEN WAITING MONTHS TO POST! Buhh what have I been doing with my life?!

Okay, that’s a tad dramatic but really. I was shocked to realized I’d never posted this recipe. So naturally I let several more weeks pass by until I’m finally sitting down to type it out now.

This spiked cherry limeade recipe is almost too easy. If you can stir a drink, you can make this cocktail. You might even have the 3 ingredients on hand already.

It’s honestly so easy that it feels a little silly to type out. Once you see it, you’ll think “Wow, why did I never think of that?”

Those are actually the same words that I said when my friend shared this recipe with me. It’s a brilliantly simple idea:

cherry limeade drink mix + liquor + Sprite = spiked cherry limeade

You can use this formula to make any manner of fruity boozy beverage– just change up your drink mix. Cherry limeade is an obvious winner, but I’ve done this with a cucumber melon drink mix, a watermelon drink mix, and several others. The options are almost limitless.

I like using the True Lime brand of drink mixes (you can find their black cherry limeade one here) because they don’t use artificial flavors, colors, or sweeteners and their ingredients are also non-GMO. But I definitely have the Walmart brand ones in my pantry, too.

This spiked cherry limeade recipe is almost too easy. If you can stir a drink, you can make this cocktail. You might even have the 3 ingredients on hand already.

As for the liquor to use, take your pick of your favorite clear booze. Vodka is always a good choice because it melds nicely with all flavors. Tequila is great, too, especially if you’re gonna use a citrus-flavored drink mix. Rum’s a pretty safe bet. Gin can get tricky because some gins have a strong juniper taste that might not blend smoothly with some drink mix flavors. But you do you.

You can also use sparkling water in place of the Sprite if you’re looking to cut down on sugar and calories. I’ve found that Spindrift has the strongest lime flavor out of all the lime sparkling waters. It’s my fav and would be amazing in a spiked cherry limeade.

So. Go check your pantry for a drink mix. Pair it with your favorite clear liquor. Pour in something bubbly. Now you’ve got yourself an easy 3 ingredient boozy bev.

If you’re looking for another super easy (I’m talkin’ TWO ingredients) cocktail, check out my Blood Orange Tequila Fizz. I also have a whole post with 17 cocktail recipes that call for 4 ingredients or less. It’s one of my most popular blog posts, and for good reason. 17 cocktail recipes that truly anyone can whip up.

This spiked cherry limeade recipe is almost too easy. If you can stir a drink, you can make this cocktail. You might even have the 3 ingredients on hand already.

Ingredients for a Spiked Cherry Limeade

  • 1 packet of cherry limeade drink mix powder (I love this one)
  • 1 1/2 – 2 oz preferred clear liquor (I usually opt for vodka)
  • 4+ oz Sprite

How to Make a Spiked Cherry Limeade

Add ice to a highball or Collins glass. Pour in the drink mix powder, your preferred liquor, and Sprite. Stir until the drink mix is dissolved. Garnish with a lime wheel and a fun paper straw.

Spiked Cherry Limeade

A 3 ingredient recipe that's simple, refreshing, and easy to modify.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 2 mins
Course Drinks
Servings 1

Ingredients
  

  • 1 packet cherry limeade drink mix powder
  • 1½-2 oz preferred clear liquor (I like vodka & tequila with this)
  • 4+ oz Sprite*

Instructions
 

  • Add ice to a highball or Collins glass.
  • Pour in half the drink mix powder, your preferred liquor, and Sprite.
  • Stir until the drink mix is dissolved.
  • Garnish with a lime wheel and a fun paper straw.

Notes

*You can use unsweetened lime sparkling water if you’re wanting to save calories and watch your sugar intake.
Keyword cherry limeade, gin, rum, Sprite, tequila, vodka
This spiked cherry limeade recipe is almost too easy. If you can stir a drink, you can make this cocktail. You might even have the 3 ingredients on hand already.

vodka

Dirty Shirley | The Boozy Version of a Childhood Favorite

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The Dirty Shirley is the boozy version of the Shirley Temple, a childhood favorite of many. To make a Dirty Shirley, you'll only need 4 ingredients: vodka, Sprite, grenadine syrup, and a maraschino cherry.

I bet you’ve heard of the infamous mocktail called the Shirley Temple. It’s an iconic drink and rightfully so. But today I’m talking about the grown-up version: the Dirty Shirley.

Disclosure: Some of the links below are affiliate links. If you buy a product via my affiliate link, I will receive a commission. This is at no additional cost to you. I only recommend products I actually like! 

The Shirley Temple is *the* quintessential mocktail in my opinion. This famous nonalcoholic drink has maintained its popularity from its creation in the 1930s. There are several stories about who created this drink and where it was created, but all versions are clear about who it was created for: Shirley Temple.

While we don’t know which bartender in which restaurant created it originally, we do know that someone somewhere made Shirley Temple her own special drink while she was eating dinner out with her parents. Some say that Shirley was whining a bit because her parents got to enjoy special drinks like Old Fashioneds and some leave that anecdote out. Personally I envision Shirley politely raising her little hand and asking the waiter for her own special concoction. Fill in the unrecorded details as you want.

Just as the exact history of the Shirley Temple drink is a bit fuddled, the exact recipe is unclear, too. Some recipes use lemon-lime soda while others use ginger ale. There’s even a recipe out there that uses orange juice. However, there are two non-negotiable ingredients: grenadine and a maraschino cherry.

But what is grenadine? It’s a bar ingredient easily recognized by many thanks to its bright-red hue, and yet few people I’ve talked to know what it is. The common assumption is that it’s a cherry-flavored syrup. This is probably due in large part to its connection with the Shirley Temple which is always garnished with a cherry. It’s an understandable assumption. But grenadine is a pomegranate-flavored syrup. Yep. Google it.

I LOVED ordering Shirley Temples as a kid. I remember them being a really special treat when we would go out to eat. And while I would still definitely slam a Shirley Temple now, a Dirty Shirley is more my style.

The Dirty Shirley is the boozy version of the Shirley Temple, a childhood favorite of many. To make a Dirty Shirley, you'll only need 4 ingredients: vodka, Sprite, grenadine syrup, and a maraschino cherry.

When you make your Dirty Shirley, you can make it with your liquor of choice, but I opt for vodka. Vodka’s got a really clean, bright taste that blends in nicely. If you’re not wanting to taste the alcohol in a drink, use vodka.

A quick note about grenadine brands. The most commonly-known and widely-available brand is Rose’s. It’s what I first bought. But over the years, I’ve become exposed to more brands and I’ve also raised my standards a bit. Rose’s will do if that’s what you have. BUT if you haven’t invested in any grenadine yet, you should get Barsmith’s grenadine or Liber & Co’s grenadine. Both of them use real pomegranate juice, pure cane sugar (not corn syrup), and only use natural coloring. Barsmith’s ingredients are even non-GMO.

Barsmith is the brand in my fridge now and its definitely more tart and less red than Rose’s. I really like it. When I run out, I’m gonna give Liber & Co a try. I’ve heard great things about their other syrups so I’m sure their grenadine is great, too.

Feel free to experiment with this classic Dirty Shirley recipe. Add some lime juice or orange juice for a fun twist. I cut the grenadine amount in half and subbed in some of my cherry pit simple syrup. It was reeally good. You can also try making it with lemon-lime La Croix or Spindrift if you’re trying to watch your calories and sugar intake

If you make a Dirty Shirley, be sure to tag on me on Instagram –> @girlandtonic_

The Dirty Shirley is the boozy version of the Shirley Temple, a childhood favorite of many. To make a Dirty Shirley, you'll only need 4 ingredients: vodka, Sprite, grenadine syrup, and a maraschino cherry.

Ingredients for a Dirty Shirley

  • 1 1/2 oz vodka
  • 3/4 oz grenadine
  • 8 oz (1 cup) lemon-lime soda or ginger ale
  • cherry, to garnish

How to Make a Dirty Shirley

Add ice to a Collins glass or another tall glass. Pour in the vodka, the soda, and the grenadine. Stir to combine. Garnish with a cherry. I used a fresh cherry, but the traditional recipe calls for a maraschino cherry.

Learn how to make a Dirty Shirley with 3 ingredients.

Dirty Shirley

A boozy version of the Shirley Temple.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 1 min
Course Drinks
Servings 1

Ingredients
  

  • 1½ oz vodka (can sub white rum or gin)
  • ¾ oz grenadine
  • 8 oz lemon-lime soda or ginger ale
  • 1 cherry, to garnish

Instructions
 

  • Add ice to a Collins glass or tall glass.
  • Pour in the vodka, the soda, and the grenadine.
  • Stir to combine.
  • Garnish with a cherry.

Notes

Traditional recipes call for Sprite or ginger ale. Pick whichever you prefer.
For the garnish, I used a fresh cherry, but the traditional recipe calls for a maraschino cherry.
Keyword ginger ale, grenadine, Sprite, vodka