In the previous (first) part of the post, we looked at four different hot drinks often consumed in the Arab world. In this post, we’re going to focus on four other drinks, but it is cold drinks المشروبات البارده (Al-mashroobaat  al-baared-ah) rather than hot drinks this time. These are: apricot juice, almond drink, Roselle drink and pomegranate drink.

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• Apricot juice قمر الدين (Amar Ed-deen)

This juice is mainly made from fresh apricots المشمش الطازج. It’s a typical drink for many Egyptians and people in the Levant region in Ramadan nights as well as on hot summer days. It’s particularly useful for treating dehydration الجفاف  and constipation الإمساك.

You can make amar ed-din by adding sugar to fresh apricot juice and boiling غلي the liquid. Then, pour اسكب  the liquid السائل  into flat pans  قوالب طهي رقيقة and leave it to dry تجف . You can buy it from the shop in the form of paste sheets رقائق من العجينه  that you can consume by adding boiling water to.

• Almond drink روزاطه (Ruzaatah)

Ruzaatah is a word of Italian origin ‘Orzata’ and it is the name Libyans and Tunisians (and  North Africans in general) use to describe a special type of almond drink شراب اللوز that is served cold in weddings الأفراح and special occasions المنابسات الخاصة .

In addition to weddings, the drink is also used in making some traditional desserts الحلويات التقليديه. Rozaatah is made from ground bitter and sweet almonds اللوز الحلو والمر. Water and sugar are then added to the mixture which is then cooked until it becomes thick  سميك – لزج .

• Carcade كركديه (Karkadeh)  

This drink is made from the decorative plan of Roselle, which is known for its lovely, bright red flowers. The drink is made by adding water (and sugar) to these dried flowers   الأزهار المجففة and boiling the liquid.

The drink has a sour حامض  fresh taste طعم and can be served hot or drink, to gain different benefits فوائد مختلفة . It’s particularly diuretic مدرّ للبول  and is also good for the heart and for high blood pressure ضغط الدم المرتفع .

• Pomegranate drink  شراب الرمان (sharaab Ar-rummaan)

Another fresh, naturally sweet drink that is particularly consumed in the Levant region is the شراب الرمان  which is similar to another popular drink called rose water  ماء الورد  (maa’ il-ward).  As is the case with the cold drinks mentioned so far, the pomegranate drink is made by mixing pomegranate seeds (after beating them ضربهم  in the electric mixer الخلاّط الكهربائي) with water and boiling the liquid. The drink is then left to cool down يبرد – يفتر  before it’s served قبل أن يُقدّم .