Native to the Mediterranean region, the carob tree has a long history of culinary applications. Also known as locust beans, the pods of the carob tree are most commonly used in food and drink recipes. Carob juice is popular in Egypt and is a traditional drink of Ramadan, the Islamic period of fasting. It is naturally sweet and full of nutrients including iron, phosphorus, magnesium and B-vitamins. You can buy dried carob pods for making juice from herb and spice suppliers. The following recipe makes approximately 24 ounces of juice.

Place carob pods in a mortar and grind with a pestle to form a coarse powder. Make 3/4 cup of ground carob.

Combine the crushed pods with 1 cup of sugar in a saucepan. Cook on medium heat and stir continuously until the sugar and crushed pods caramelize.

Pour 6 cups of water over the caramelized sugar and crushed carob. Let the water come to a boil.

Remove the saucepan from the heat and set it aside until the liquid is cool.

Strain the juice through a mesh strainer to filter out the chunks of carob.

Taste test the juice and add more water if it is too strong.

Pour the juice into a sealable container and store in the refrigerator.