Sarah's Citrus Spritzer

I'm a Florida girl who is adjusting to the Oklahoma heat, and on days when I miss my home state (and need a refreshing drink) I turn to this incredible beverage. It's got a perfect balance of zing and sweet!

Ingredients

• 1 ½ cups white sugar
• 0.75 cup water
• 2 teaspoons lemon zest
• 2 teaspoons orange zest
• 1 tablespoon fresh basil leaves, or to taste
• 1 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 0.75 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
• 12 ounces frozen strawberries, thawed
• ice, as needed
• 2 liters seltzer water, chilled

Steps

1. Bring sugar, water, lemon zest, orange zest, and basil to a boil in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Remove from heat and allow simple syrup to cool, 15 to 30 minutes.
2. Pour lemon juice and orange juice into a high-speed blender (such as a Vitamix®). Add strawberries and simple syrup. Blend on low speed (1), then slowly increase speed to high (10) and blend until pureed, about 45 seconds.
3. For each drink, fill an old fashioned glass with ice. Pour 1/4 cup strawberry puree over top and fill with seltzer water.