I love ginger! I love lemonade! I love limeade! And I love love love the combination of ginger and lemon or lime, sweetened to taste, a yummy and healthy way to stay hydrated during the summer.

Here’s the easy way I make it:

1. Get a big fresh ginger root and cut into slices. No peeling, no grating, just slice into 1/8 to 1/4 inch slices.
2. Fill a medium saucepan with filtered water and add the sliced ginger.
3. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 5 to 10 minutes.
4. Pour the liquid through a fine sieve into a pitcher.
5. Add 1/2 cup of fresh lime juice or lemon juice. (If squeezing yourself, first roll the fruit on the counter beneath your palm to break down cell walls and release more juice.)
6. Sweeten to taste with whatever sweetener you prefer. I’m avoiding all sweeteners except stevia, which has gotten better tasting in the past few years, but you can use coconut palm sugar, which adds a nice brown color, agave nectar, honey, or sugar.
7. Stir. Refrigerate or serve immediately over ice.

I love the pungent flavors of ginger and lime/lemon, but if this is too strong for you, just dilute with more water or ice.

You can refrigerate the ginger slices and reuse them to make another couple of batches of ginger-ade before the flavor becomes too diluted.

Both the ginger and the lemon or lime have numerous health benefits, with the main ones listed below:

• Health benefits of ginger: Eases gastrointestinal distress, motion sickness, morning sickness during pregnancy. Detoxifies the liver. Protects against cancer. Induces sweating/breaks a fever. Anti-inflammatory (especially helps with arthritis). Antiviral. Antibacterial. Antifungal. Immune boosting.
• Health benefits of lemon/lime: Eases gastrointestinal distress. Stops internal bleeding. Reduces high blood pressure. Protects against cancer. Can prevent kidney stones from forming. Induces sweating/breaks a fever. Helps prevent diabetic heart disease. Anti-inflammatory. Antiviral. Antibacterial. Antifungal. Immune boosting.

Also, you may be aware that the acid in lemon and lime juice can soften teeth enamel. You can take precautions as described here.