My Favorite Energy Drink

I'm not a big fan of energy drinks.

When I was going to school, one of the most popular cafe drinks was a Red Bull with a splash of flavor syrup. My fellow students craved caffeine in all forms. Hot, cold, fizzy, fruity, earthy, sweet. I shudder at the thought.

But every morning, I would go through my daily ritual. Fill my water bottle about 2/3 full with an amber-green liquid, then top off with fruit juice. I wouldn't leave the house without that strangely tart, refreshing concoction in hand. If I needed extra focus at work, I'd mix another batch.

It was my very own homemade energy drink! Key ingredient...

Yerba Mate

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I bought a 5 lb bag (..a really big bag!) of EcoTeas unsmoked yerba mate last year. Even though I drink this stuff quite a bit, I haven't finished the bag yet.

Brief summary: Very popular in South America (particularly Argentina, Paraguay, Chile, etc.). Made from Ilex paraguariensis which is an indigenous holly shrub. Tastes vaguely like grass or hay. People have all kinds of crazy-good things to say about it.

For me.. it helps get me in a good mood and focus early in the morning.

(I know that might be the stuff of miracles for some people. Your mileage may vary.)

There are all kinds of ways to drink it, but this is my favorite. The fruit juice helps tone down the grassy flavor of the mate. This recipe yields a drink that has a refreshing, earthy tartness to it. You can use more fruit juice or sweetener if desired.

Lindsey's "Red Drink"

(Makes about 1.5 quarts, can be scaled up or down)

1/4 cup loose, unsmoked yerba mate spooned into a large open-top paper tea bag.

Take the tea bag and place it inside a quart-sized mason jar. Hold the bag up near the rim of the jar.

Fill the jar with lukewarm water, making sure to thoroughly moisten the tea bag.

Use a standard canning lid and seal the jar so that the top of the bag is sticking out of the lid.

(You don't want the loose leaves escaping into the liquid, so sealing the open end of the bag this way helps.)

Stick it in the fridge and steep for at least 2 hours.

When finished steeping, remove the bag from the jar and carefully squeeze out excess liquid.

Pour the brewed iced yerba mate into a larger container and add about half as much fruit juice as there is yerba mate. Enjoy!

Note: You can re-steep the tea bag once again, although it will make a weaker brew. I usually make a half gallon at a time, which requires two tea bags. I use one fresh bag and one second-run bag for each batch.