It’s time to level-up your summer sips with this refreshing Healthy Strawberry Limeade recipe. With just a few grown-from-the-earth whole food ingredients you’re going to be blown away by this revamped summer classic. The game changer: it’s sweetened only with fruit–no sugar, agave, stevia or maple syrup in sight! And it comes in at an incredible 54 calories per cup with zero grams of added sugar.
Whether you’re nutritarian or just looking for a truly healthy low-calorie limeade, I think you’re going to love this recipe. So, let’s go…
What makes this Healthy Strawberry Limeade special?
- no sugar
- made in minutes in your blender
- fruit-sweetened
- 3 whole food ingredients + water
- low-calorie recipe: only 54 calories per cup!
- 33% vitamin C for the day
What is strawberry limeade? Is it more bitter than lemonade?
Why should lemons enjoy all the summertime glory? Meet limeade, the spunky kid-sister to the all-time classic lemonade. Now, limeade is spunky for a reason guys…
Lime is more bitter in a drink than lemon. While both limes and lemons are sour and acidic, lime juice has a naturally lower sugar content and a special acid (called succinic acid) that gives it a distinctly heightened bitter flavor profile.
Strawberry limeade is a sweet, tart, refreshing beverage that’s made with fresh lime juice, strawberries and a sweetener. In most traditional recipes the sugar content is high to compensate for the bitterness of the lime. Because we’re sweetening only with fruit the bitterness may be more pronounced for you. Especially if you’re new to whole food recipes.
CAUTION: If you’re more of a sweet than sour fan, I recommend making my Fruit-Sweetened Lemonade recipe instead.
What equipment do you need for this recipe?
- high-speed blender
- sieve
- pitcher, bowl or large jar
High-Speed Blender: I recommend using a high-speed blender such as a Vitamix or Belndtec or something comparable. This is the Vitamix I use. You want enough power to pulverize the dates down as fine as possible. However, this recipe can still work with a less powerful blender, you’ll just have larger chunks of dates that you can remove manually with the sieve.
Sieve: You’ll use a fine-mesh strainer to help remove the large bits of dates and seeds from the limeade. This is a critical step in getting as close as possible to that traditional limeade texture.
Pitcher/Bowl/Jar: I like to match the size of my sieve to the container I’m straining into. Work out the fit ahead of time so there are no surprises when you’re straining.
What ingredients do you need for this Healthy Strawberry Limeade?
- lime(s)
- strawberries
- dates
- water
Ingredient Notes:
Lime: I recommend 55 to 65 grams of peeled fresh lime. But limes come in a variety of sizes. Three very small limes will be about 60 grams peeled while one large lime will weigh about the same. You can use the whole lime (expect the skin). Seeds are okay as they will get pulverized down (and after that we’re doing a good straining). If you only have lime juice on hand, substitute with 3 Tbsp. up to 1/4 cup depending on the potency of your juice. If you’re using juice, start with less and adjust to taste.
Strawberries: I highly recommend using fresh in-season strawberries for this recipe. They will contribute to the natural sweetness and have the best depth of flavor. I have tested this recipe with frozen strawberries as well and it was good but not excellent (in my humble opinion). Both fresh or frozen works but fresh makes it taste a whole lot better!
Dates: My favorite dates to use in fruity drinks are the deglet noor variety. Deglet noor dates provide for a slightly brighter color for your limeade and they have a fruitier flavor profile that works well with this recipe. Feel free to use any dates you have on hand just note that you’ll want to reduce to 3 to 4 larger dates per limeade batch.
Water: Cold water is best especially if you’re serving the limeade immediately after preparing.
Why are dates the healthiest way to sweeten your drink?
Using whole dates to sweeten your limeade is healthier than using processed cane sugar, man-made sweeteners (like aspartame) and even natural sweeteners like maple syrup, agave or stevia. Dates are a source of natural sugar that has its fiber still intact. That means a slower absorption of sugar into your bloodstream.
Dates are rich in antioxidants and they also have copper, magnesium, manganese, potassium and vitamin B6.
How to make Healthy Strawberry Limeade:
First, peel your lime(s) and cut in half or fourths. You don’t need to remove the seeds as these will bet blitzed down in the blender.
Next, add your peeled and halved/quartered lime(s), pitted deglet noor dates, strawberries and 3 cups cold water to your high speed blender bowl.
Blend on high for 30 to 45 seconds or until you’ve reached a thick juice-like consistency. There will be some foam on top and that’s perfectly okay.
After blending, place a metal sieve on top of a pitcher, bowl or large jar. Pour the blended mixture into the sieve to collect the larger bits of date and lime (as shown above).
Use a spoon to scrape the mixture well into the sieve. The more dates you get into the drink the better.
If you can, I recommend chilling the limeade for 15 to 30 minutes before serving.
My favorite way to serve is 1 cup of limeade with 1 to 1-1/2 cups of ice depending on the size of your glasses.
If you’re feeling “extra” garnish with lime and/or strawberry slices and mint leaves.
What is the color and texture of this drink?
After straining, you can expect a consistency that is just a bit thicker than a traditional limeade or lemonade. It’s more of a juice-like texture.
The color is an orange-red with specks of light brown date bits that tend to accumulate towards the bottom of the glass.
How does this Healthy Strawberry Limeade taste?
It’s tart and tangy from the lime and (in my opinion) perfectly sweet from the fresh strawberries and dates! Now, I’m accustomed to lightly-sweetened foods because I’ve been nutritarian for over a decade now.
If you’re new to whole food living and you prefer sweeter drinks, you can sample the mixture after blending and add more dates to your liking or just be on the safe side with your time, ingredients and money by making my Fruit-Sweetened Lemonade recipe instead (it’s just as delicious and naturally a bit sweeter and less bitter/tangy).
Storage recommendations:
This Healthy Strawberry Limeade is at peak deliciousness within 4 to 10 hours of making the recipe.
I’ve tested it stored up to 7 days, but by the third day the flavor becomes more bitter. I learned that this is a natural and unique result of the lime’s oxidation process (you don’t get this as quickly with lemons). The aromatics fade but the acidity stays the same resulting in an unbalanced flavor.
Refrigerator: Keeps for up to 3 days in a glass Mason jar with tight-fitting lid. Separation will occur, just mix or shake the jar before drinking.
How much can I enjoy on the nutritarian lifestyle?
If you’re following the Aggressive Weight Loss Plan I recommend enjoying a 1-cup serving.
Each serving has about two deglet noor dates. Dr. Fuhrman recommends that you use no more than two dates to sweeten each dessert serving. This drink will count as your dessert for the day.
If you’re following the maintenance plan you could enjoy two servings.
A delicious drink deserves a delicious summer feast…
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Healthy Strawberry Limeade (low-calorie, no sugar, fruit-sweetened)
At only 54 calories per cup and zero grams added sugar, this refreshing Healthy Strawberry Limeade is made in minutes in your blender!
Ingredients
- 1 to 3 limes peeled and halved or quartered, seeds oaky ~55 grams, one large or up to 3 small limes
- 7 to 8 deglet noor dates, pitted ~53 grams
- 1 cup quartered fresh strawberries ~155 grams
- 3 cups cold water
Instructions
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Cut peeled lime(s) in half, no need to remove seeds.
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Add your peeled limes, pitted deglet noor dates, strawberries and 3 cups cold water to your high speed blender bowl.
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Blend on high for 30 to 45 seconds or until you've reached a thick juice-like consistency. There will be some foam on top and that's perfectly okay.
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Place a metal sieve on top of a pitcher, bowl or large jar--this is where you'll collect the strained limeade. Pour the blended mixture into the sieve to collect the larger bits of date, strawberries and lime. Use a spoon to scrape the mixture well into the sieve.
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If you can, I recommend chilling the limeade for 15 to 30 minutes in the refrigerator before serving. My favorite way to serve is 1 cup of limeade with 1 to 1-1/2 cups of ice depending on the size of your glasses.
Recipe Notes
Recipe Yield: 4 cups
Servings: four 1-cup servings
Storage: Keeps for up to 3 days in a glass Mason jar with tight-fitting lid. Separation will occur, just mix or shake the jar before drinking.
This Healthy Strawberry Limeade is at peak deliciousness within 4 to 10 hours of making the recipe.
I've tested it stored up to 7 days, but by the third day the flavor becomes more bitter. This is a natural and unique result of the lime's oxidation process (you don't get this as quickly with lemons). The aromatics fade but the acidity stays the same resulting in an unbalanced flavor.
Substitutions: Fresh lime and strawberry are best in this recipe but you can use lime juice or frozen strawberries in a pinch. No need to thaw the strawberries first, use 3 Tbsp. up to 1/4 cup lime juice depending on the potency--start with less and adjust to taste. Use any dates you have on hand just note that you'll want to reduce to 3 to 4 larger dates (~55 grams) per limeade batch.
Sweetness: As written the limeade is tart, fruity and slightly-sweet. You can check the taste after blending to see if you need to add more dates to your preferred sweetness level.
I’d love to know what you think if you give this recipe a try.
Your comments and recipe ratings motivate me so much to keep creating memorable and delicious recipes while helping the website get critical rankings in those all-important search engines.
