Capsaicin Free Cherry Lime Soda

Total time30 min

Prep time10 min

Cook time5 min

4.5

(14)

Sweet, tart, and brilliantly fizzy, this cherry lime soda is the kind of drink that makes you feel like you're sitting on a patio somewhere wonderful. The homemade cherry syrup is the real star — fresh or frozen cherries simmered with honey and water until they release a gorgeous deep ruby juice that tastes nothing like anything from a bottle. Bright lime juice cuts through the sweetness just enough to keep every sip refreshing and balanced. For anyone avoiding capsaicin, soda and juice drinks can occasionally hide unexpected spice-forward flavorings, so making your own from scratch means you know exactly what's in the glass. The whole thing comes together with pantry-friendly ingredients and a quick stovetop simmer, then gets topped off with chilled sparkling water poured slowly down the side of the glass to keep every bubble intact. Garnish with a lime wedge and a few fresh cherries and it looks almost too pretty to drink — almost.

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Ingredients

2 servings

For the cherry syrup

1 cup fresh or frozen sweet cherries, pitted
¼ cup water
2 tbsp honey

For serving

3 tbsp fresh lime juice (from about 2 limes)
1 ½ cups sparkling water, chilled
1 cup ice cubes
2 lime wedges (optional)
4 fresh cherries, for garnish (optional)

Instructions

1
Combine the pitted cherries, water, and honey in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally and pressing the cherries gently with a spoon, until the cherries have softened and released their juice and the liquid is a deep ruby color, about 5 minutes.
2
Pour the cherry mixture through a fine-mesh strainer set over a small bowl or measuring cup, pressing the solids firmly to extract as much syrup as possible. Discard the solids. Let the cherry syrup cool to room temperature, about 15 minutes.

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