Cool Lemonade

                                                           

Ah! It’s been two weeks again. I think the heat has gotten to me. We have had some very hot days and then it’s been busy with back to work as well. It’s important to be drinking lots of water in such heat but it is also nice to have a cool sweet drink every once in awhile as well. I’ve been loving Gerolsteiner. It’s not a sweet drink but a sparkling mineral water that has lots of magnesium in it for my sore and aching body at the end of the day. Plain, it’s kind of boring and like any bubbly water but if you add it to some juice it’s very refreshing on a hot Summer day. Try some of the combinations that I did and relax with the feet up.

I love lemonade on a hot day but it can be a little too sweet so I like to dilute it with the Gerolsteiner. If I don’t make my own I like the Simply Lemonade. I like to add different things to it. Try lemon, lime, or orange slices, sliced strawberries, and frozen or fresh mixed berries.  

I also love the Simple Raspberry Lemonade and adding Gerolsteiner to that is a delicious combination.

Try out this fresh lemonade recipe if you prefer to make your own. Adjust the sweetness accordingly.

                                                         

1 cup of freshly squeezed lemon juice

8-10 cups of water

½ cups of sugar

In a large pot, combine the water and sugar. Stir and heat until the sugar just melts.

Remove from the heat and add the lemon juice.

Mix well and then chill.

You can serve this with lemon, lime, or orange slices as a garnish.

Salsa

The kitchen is almost done and I am getting back into the swing of things and creating lots in the kitchen. I’ve been making cookies and bread and today I made some fresh chunky salsa. It’s been so warm out and this is the perfect cool snack with some salty tortilla chips. You can also top it on fish, chicken, and steaks or put it in tacos, wraps, and tortillas.

It’s very simple and quick to make.

You will need...

8 firm tomatoes on the vine

1 cup of cilantro, chopped

The juice of 2 limes

2 jalapeno peppers

1 small or 1/2 large red onion

Salt and pepper to taste

Chop up the tomatoes into small bite sized pieces. You can put some of the juice and seeds in but keep it to a minimum. You can save the juice and seeds to put into a tomato sauce.

Add the finely chopped cilantro.

Next chop the onion into small bites.

Now add in the juice from the limes.

Finally, chop up the jalapeno into tiny pieces add in a bit of salt and pepper and the stir it all up.

It’s best eaten when chilled in the fridge for a bit but you can eat it right away if you choose to.

Mint'd Mojito - Mojito "Recipes"

Sadly, we are getting close to the end of our fun Summer theme. We do have three more posts so that’s exciting. Today our shade is called “Mint’d Mojito” by Fenty and they call it a metallic mint blue.

We’ve decided to break down the Mojito so we’ve found a few interesting recipes featuring the mint and the lime. If you don’t already know, a mojito has both lime and mint flavours in it along with some alcohol. I’ve never had one myself but it always looks so refreshing and bright.

Here’s a recipe for one...

You need 2 ounce of light rum, 2 tsp. of sugar, 6-8 fresh mint leaves, a splash of club soda, and 1 lime cut in half.

Place the sugar, mint leaves, and splash of club soda into a highball glass. Muddle well to dissolve the sugar and to release the flavour of the mint.

Squeeze the juice from both halves of the lime into the glass and drop one half in.

Add the rum and stir well.

Top with club soda and garnish with fresh mint.

If you are in the mood for a different take/approach to a mojito then check these recipes (that we thought represented the lime and mint quite well) out and give them a try.

Here are a couple savoury recipes...

Moroccan Chicken

1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken, cut into bite size cubes

2 cloves garlic

1 inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and roughly chopped

2 tsp. dried chile de arbol, seeds removed (1/2 - 1 tsp. cayenne pepper)

2 Tbsp. fresh cilantro

2 Tbsp. fresh parsley

1 Tsbp. smoked paprika

1/2 tsp. cumin

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. pepper

1/2 cup olive oil

1 small to medium lemons grated & juiced

1 ounce jar marinated artichoke quarters

1 bunch asparagus, cut into quarters

Vinaigrette:

1 lemon, juiced & zest

1/2 a lime, juiced

1/4 cup olive oil

1 Tbsp. fresh parsley, chopped

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. honey

Goat Cheese Yogurt:

1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt

2 Tbsp. fresh mint, chopped

1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

1/2 lemon, juiced

salt and pepper, to taste
2-3 ounces goat cheese, crumbled

Place the chicken in a gallon size ziplock bag or medium size bowl.

In a food processor add the garlic, ginger, dried chile de arbol (or cayenne), cilantro, parsley, smoked paprika, cumin, salt and pepper. Process 1-2 minutes or until everything is finely chopped.

Stream in 1/2 cup olive oil. Stir in the lemon zest and juice.

Pour the marinade over the chicken and toss well. Place in the fridge for at least 2 hours or overnight.

To make the vinaigrette... add the lemon zest and juice to a small sauce pot. Bring mixture to a simmer and simmer, about 1 minute or until the zest absorbs the juice. WATCH CLOSELY, you do not want the zest to get burnt to the pan.

Spoon the zest out of the pot and into a small bowl. Add the olive oil, parsley, salt, honey and lime juice. Whisk to combine. Set aside.

To make the minted goat cheese yogurt mix together the Greek yogurt, chopped mint, crushed red pepper flakes, lemon juice and a pinch of salt and pepper. Stir in the crumbled goat cheese. Place in the fridge until ready to use.

Preheat the grill or a grill pan to medium-high heat and lightly oil the grates. Thread the chicken, asparagus and artichokes onto metal skewers (or wood skewers that have been soaked in water). I alternated with asparagus+ artichokes and then chicken, repeat. Place the chicken on the grill until the chicken is golden and no longer pink in the centre, about 5 minutes each side. You may also cook the chicken in a skillet if needed. Serve the chicken with the the lemon herb vinaigrette and the minted goat cheese yogurt.

Lime Shrimp Avocado Quinoa Salad

Ingredients:

1 cup quinoa

¼ cup olive oil

2 Tbsp. honey

2 limes, juiced

½ tsp. chili powder

½ tsp. kosher salt

½ tsp. black pepper

1 shallot, finely diced

1½ cups sweet corn, frozen and thawed or fresh

1 can black beans

1 avocado, thinly sliced

1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved

½ lb frozen shrimp, defrosted

¼ cup parsley, chopped

Instructions:

Cook your quinoa following directions on the package. Fluff the quinoa with a fork after it’s done cooking and set aside to cool.

Whisk the olive oil, honey, lime juice, chili powder, salt and pepper. Finely dice the shallot and mix in with the dressing. Set aside.

Prepare all the vegetables for the salad.

Spoon the cooled quinoa into 4 bowls and divide up the vegetables placing them on top of the quinoa. Next, add your shrimp to the bowls. Drizzle the dressing over the salad and sprinkle chopped parsley over top.

For something sweet...

Mint Butter Cream Icing

4 cups of Powdered Sugar

1 cup Butter

1 Tbsp. Milk

1/2 tsp. Peppermint Extract

Yellow and blue food colouring

Add powdered sugar to mixing bowl.

Add softened sticks of butter

Add 1 Tbsp. of milk.

Beat on low until powdered sugar is incorporated. Then move mixer up to medium-high speed.

Scrape sides and bottom of bowl often. When completely mixed the frosting may appear dry.

Add more milk, a little bit at a time until frosting is the proper consistency.

Add Peppermint Extract.

Mint Chocolate Popsicles

2 2/3 cups full fat coconut milk

3/4 cup packed fresh mint leaves

3/4 cup sugar

1/8 tsp. salt

peppermint extract (optional, and to taste)

food colouring (optional)

3 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped

Combine coconut milk and fresh mint leaves in a saucepan over medium heat. Heat for 5 minutes, until bubbles appear around the edge of the pan. Remove from heat and let steep 20 minutes. Strain infused coconut milk through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl, pressing on the mint with the back of a spoon. Whisk in sugar, salt, peppermint extract, and food colour (2 drops green, 1 drop blue) until smooth. Let mixture cool to room temperature, then cover and chill for 6 hours in the refrigerator.

Stir chopped chocolate into mixture and fill popsicle molds, leaving a 1/2-inch of space at the top of each mold. Freeze for about an hour, then insert popsicle sticks and freeze overnight. To unmold, let popsicles stand at room temperature for 5 minutes. Carefully remove from molds and serve.

Key Lime Chex Mix

Ingredients:

9 cups Rice Chex cereal

1 1/4 cups white chocolate baking chips

1/4 cup butter

4 tsp. grated key lime peel

2 Tbsp. fresh key lime juice

2 cups icing sugar

Instructions:

Measure cereal into a large bowl, set aside. 

In a microwave safe bowl put chips, butter, peel and juice uncovered on High for 1 minute; stir.   

Microwave about 30 seconds longer or until mixture can be stirred smooth.

Pour mixture over cereal, stirring until evenly coated.

Pour into 2-gallon resealable food-storage plastic bag.

Add icing sugar. Seal bag; gently shake until well coated. Spread on waxed paper or foil to cool. Store in airtight container. 

Summer Slushie Drinks

Ok so as promised...here is our finished DIY Mod Podge tray. It’s all dry and we added on a black decorative ribbon around the edges.

Now for the drinks...

We tried one called Summer Slush. It ended up being quite sweet so I would cut back on the sugar by at least half, maybe even more. Both of the juices are sweet along with the 7 Up that we used.

For the Summer Slush you will need 46 oz. can (4 ½ cups) of pineapple juice, 12 oz. can (1 ¼ cups) of frozen orange juice , 3 cups of sugar (this made it super sweet so try cutting it down to 1 ½ cups), 46 oz. (4 ½ cups) of water.

Combine all of the ingredients together in a saucepan and boil until the sugar dissolves. Pour into a 13x9 inch pan and a loaf pan. We used some recycled containers along with a reusable container. Freeze overnight. We let it sit for a couple of days. 

When you are ready to drink, chisel some of the frozen slush out into glasses and pour 7 Up over it. You can also pour Ginger Ale, Club Soda, or even some of Vodka, Tequila, or Wine!

Some other drinks that we thought sounded interesting are...

Mango Pineapple Frozen Sangria – Combine in a blender, 1 bottle of sparkling wine (half frozen), 1 ½ cups of frozen apple juice, 1 cup of frozen mango, 1 cup of frozen pineapple, and a 1/3 cup of triple sec. Blend it until fully mixed and serve with a garnish of fresh pineapple.

Watermelon Frosty – Combine in a blender, 2 cups of frozen watermelon cubes, ½ frozen banana, juice of half a lime, ½  tbsp. of honey, 2-3 mint leaves. Blend until incorporated but still thick. Garnish with mint and lime.

Pina Colada Smoothie – Combine in a blender 1 cup of pineapple, 1 cup of frozen mango chunks, ½ banana, and 1 cup of coconut milk.  Blend until smooth.

Maybe we’ll give some a try in the warm weather ahead. Enjoy!

Key Lime Cheesecake

We've decided to do a mini cheesecake theme before we focus on Father’s Day. We’re making a recipe that I’ve had for ages and always wanted to try, key lime cheesecake. It’s a take on the key lime pie but with a cheesy twist. The pie is very light and fluffy with a Graham wafer crust, the cheesecake has the Graham wafer crust but of course a heavier filling.

Much like other cheesecakes, you start by making a Graham wafer crust. You’ll need 1 ¼ cup of Graham wafer ground up. Then add ¼ cup of melted butter. Stir and pat into a 9 inch buttered spring form pan. Then put aside. This one you don’t have to bake first.

Next take 3 packages of cream cheese along with ¾ cups of white sugar until well blended.

Add in the zest from 2 regular limes or 4-6 key limes along with the juice from the limes.

We used regular limes and I think it made the cake a bit more bittery limy than sweet limy.

Now add 3 eggs one at a time beating on low speed.

Do one final stir and then pour over the crust.

Bake at 350 degrees for 45-50 minutes or until the filling is almost set. We started at 45 minutes and opted to leave it in a couple minutes longer.

Once the cake is out of the over, run a knife around the rim to loosen and then let the cake cool completely. Then put it in the refrigerator for about 3 hours or overnight,

Top the cake or the individual slices with whipped cream.

The finished product was pretty good and refreshing. The lime was more potent than the lemon in the lemon cheese cake that we made a few weeks back; I still think that one was my favourite as it was so light and subtle. I do think that using key limes might help make it more sweet and subtle than bitter, but it all depends on how limy you like things to taste. Enjoy!