I’m a big fan of the infusion water bottle. It’s a water bottle, usually either plastic or glass, with an inside tube-shaped basket that holds “stuff” that you put in it, to slowly infuse the water with flavor. It’s like making homemade Hint water, only better, because there’s no bottle to throw away or recycle each time. You can add fruit, a tea bag, bunches of herbs—or a combination. Even ice can be placed in the basket. It’s a great way to get yourself (or your family) to drink more water, an outlet for creativity, and a great way to simply use fruit that’s a little too soft to eat but isn’t rotten. Or a way to use the rest of that bunch of herbs that you only used partially for a recipe.

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When my daughters were growing up, they used to be very picky when it came to strawberries—either they were too hard or too soft, rarely just right for them to eat (even though they’d ask me again and again to buy them at the store), and rather than throw expensive fruit away, I at least could get some more use out of those luscious berries by either freezing them for smoothies or putting them in my infuser bottle. A handful of blueberries thrown in with them in the infuser basket, either frozen or fresh, made a nice combo.

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Other good infuser combos are lemon and mint, watermelon and basil, pear and cinnamon stick (shown in the photo), orange and kiwi…the sky’s the limit. Just remember—change out fruit within 1-2 days, and for sure add more water to it if you drink half and then store it. You don’t want the stuff you’ve placed in the infuser basket exposed to air for too long.

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I found my glass infusion bottle several years ago at a Francesca’s Boutique, on their gift table, but you can also find them online, ranging in price from around $3.99 for a BPA-free plastic one from Amazon to a $40 glass version (with a rust-proof stainless steel infuser that even allows tea leaves) at Saks Fifth Avenue.

This is a space.

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If you use an infusion bottle, let me know your favorite flavor combinations! Many infusion recipes can be found online, such as here at Taste of Home.