Stylish water intake

Once in a while my old problem of drinking too little reemerges. I need to constantly pay attention to get enough fluids into me throughout the day. Once every now and then I get a headache attack at night right before going to bed and it happens usually because I forgot to drink a lot.

Italians drink lots of water during meals and I got used to this custom. This helps to hydrate my body but the water with the meals alone is not enough. 

That's why I like to come up with healthy drinks that taste better than plain water and that make me crave fluids even more. Today I made a non-alcoholic Hugo - not so low-calorie but definitely one of my favourites.

Don't know what Hugo is? Hugo has been a popular drink for the past decade around here. It originated in Northern Italy and is the popular summer drink here as well as in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. It's base is a prosecco and the special taste comes from the elderberry flower syrup and the mint leaves. Here is the original (alcoholic) Hugo recipe for a great summer drink:

3 ice cubes

2-3 tbs of elderflower flower syrup (the more you use the sweeter the tase)

100 ml of Prosecco 

50 ml of sparkling mineral water

1 tbl of squeezed lime juice

4-5 mint leaves

for a hint of colour throw in a raspberry or a small strawberry

And this is my non-alcoholic Hugo version, basically just leave out the prosecco and add more water:

3 ice cubes

2-3 tbs of elderflower flower syrup (the more you use the sweeter the tase)

250 ml of sparkling mineral water

1 tbl of squeezed lime juice

4-5 mint leaves

for a hint of colour throw in a raspberry or a small strawberry

For a healthier Hugo version use less syrup. This drink does obviously not substitute plain water, as the non-alcoholic Hugo is sugary due to the syrup. I like to sometimes just add some lime and a hint of the syrup to my water just to make water more fun! By the way, I buy the elderberry flower syrup at my local Ikea! Cheers!