You have your reason for staying away from alcohol, but that doesn’t mean you have to miss out on social events and or be the odd-one-out at parties. To seamlessly fit the vibe, all you have to do is just sip on a colorful, delicious beverage in your hand. Mocktails can look good and taste delicious when done right and given a personal spin. If you like your drinks on the sweeter side, honey is a great sweetener to incorporate in a mocktail.
1. It’s Healthier
Compared to granulated sugar, honey has a range of health benefits. It’s an alternative to processed sugar that can sweeten things up just as well, if not better.
Honey is high in antioxidants, which means that it can inhibit free radicals in the body that cause cell damage. This results in health benefits like lower blood pressure, better eyesight, and the prevention of many degenerative diseases and cancers.
Honey is anti-bacterial, anti-inflammatory, and anti-LDL cholesterol. It helps reduce this “bad” cholesterol and promotes “good” HDL cholesterol. These qualities alone make it a sweetener of choice among mindful drinkers and people that prioritize a healthy diet.
2. It Has Many Versatile Flavors
Which flowers the honey bees pollinated at the time they made the honey affects the flavor significantly. The difference in color, viscosity, and taste will affect your drink differently.
Here are a few popular kinds of honey to choose from:
- Clover Honey - This is the kind of honey you find in huge jars at the grocery store. It’s a staple household ingredient. Clover honey is light in color and taste. It is only mildly floral, making it a very versatile sweetener. It can go in just about any recipe.
- Orange Blossom Honey - This is also a mildly floral honey but it has a hint of citrusy flavor to it. This light honey mixes well with other citrus flavorings and pairs well with citrus juices. Think orange, lemon, grapefruit, and limes.
- Blueberry Honey - This honey has a notably darker color than the previous kinds of honey. It has a bold flavor that is not overpowering. It tastes slightly tangy, tends to have a buttery finish, and has an aftertaste of blueberry that sits nicely on the tongue. This honey pairs well with other berries and fruits like strawberries, blackberries, and cherries.
- Buckwheat Honey - This honey is dark brown, thick, and has a more earthy flavor that almost resembles molasses. It gives a flavor profile similar to dark chocolate, vanilla, and coffee. It is best to pair this sweetener with darker flavorings.
3. It’s Easy To Work With
Obviously, honey has a very thick viscosity. You don’t want to just throw it in a shaker as it comes. Instead, you can turn it into syrup.
Tips For Making Honey Syrup
- Take equal parts honey and water and put them in a pot. Heat them until the honey melts into the water. When it cools, you can funnel it into a bottle and use it just like you would simple syrup made from sugar.
- For a sweeter syrup, use a 2:1 ratio or 3:1. Just remember that this will affect the viscosity.
- Throw it out after a few weeks or a month because introducing water to honey allows it to grow bacteria and spoil.
Sweeten Up Your Drinks With Honey - Try It In Mocktail Recipes!
Quitting or avoiding drinking does not have to mean the end of enjoying delicious concoctions on a night out. There are plenty of ways to enjoy non-alcoholic beverages and the possibilities go as far as your creativity.
To get you started, look over some recipes for a refreshing watermelon margarita, tasty cucumber gimlet, and delectable cranberry basil sangria.
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