Lemongrass Ginger Iced Tea
We had a signature cocktail at our wedding. It was a Lemongrass Gingertini. It was FANCY! I've always wanted to make it at home and was delighted that the base of this drink comes pretty close! If I grated fresh ginger, added vodka & rimmed a martini glass with chunky sugar, then we would have it!
So yeah this recipe is a really good base. I say base because it's SOO sweet & fragrant. It's definitely concentrated! I diluted my drink with sparkling water because I wanted bubbles and I don't really like drinking sugary drinks. If you want to drink it on its own, I suggest reducing the amount of sugar! The lemongrass gives a nice punchy pow & the ginger adds a warm spice. It's super tasty.
Feel free to add some spirits up in. Gin or vodka would totally be buds with this tea. Casey threw in some gin last night and LOVED it. It might be fun to make some ice cubes out of this tea and pop them into your water throughout the day. Wow, clever me. I'm gonna go do that now....
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Peach Rosemary Spritzers
Happy 5th of July! I am currently fostering a headache right now. It's not a result of this cocktail, I promise. It was the beer that tempted me...and then hung me out to dry. Damn you, hot weather and beer! Why are you such a great combination??! Liquor before beer and you're in the clear? Is that right? What about wine? Wine spritzer before beer and what happens? Headache the next day? Check!
OK my brain is mush. The point is...this spritzer is SUPER good. The best part is eating the syrupy rosemary peaches when you finish your glass! The rosemary does a nice job of cutting the sweetness of the drink. It's also super good without the wine too! I sampled a little bit of the drink I made my pregnant friend. Tasty business. Make some!
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Brazilian “lemonade”
We are enjoying this tasty beverage in our sunny backyard right now. Not only is it refreshing, but it's super simple to make. No juicer is necessary. All you need is a blender! This limeade... has such a pretty color, huh? Opaque and slightly green...like lime colored milk glass. It also reminds me how much I love limes! It was the sweetened condensed milk that intrigued me to try this recipe in the first place! Any excuse to open up a can of that stuff and I'm soo ready! The slight bitterness of the zesty limes and the sugar in the 'ade will compliment some gin nicely! Second round, prepare to get boozed!
Happy Friday to us!
Only 4 ingredients! Limes, water, sweetened condensed milk & sugar.
Blackberry Ginger Sours
I probably shouldn't drink & blog but I HAFTA tell you that these are SCRUMPTIOUS before I forget! Imagine me saying the word SCRUMPTIOUS with the biggest slur! I'm totally at the slurring stage. SHUT UP!! Don't make fun of me. I had a gin & tonic on Friday with my neighbor. Gin...a libation that I've hated ever since I started my career in drinking. I couldn't turn away a drink that my neighbor mixed, so I drank it and was pleasantly surprised. The best part about drinking the gin & tonic was how it took the sharp edge off my day. In the past, when I had a sip of gin, all I could taste was pine trees. Now I realize that it really depends what it's mixed with! Suddenly I like it and am not reminded of Santa and Christmas. Ho ho ho.
I decided to make us some fancy drinks with gin today! Blackberry Ginger Sours! They aren't super super sweet. They aren't super sour. They are a perfect balance of adultness with a little bit of fun. Half way through my first drink, I started to feel wonderfully buzzed. It was like I had a nice fuzzy blanket all around me. Yes, I am talking about my buzz. It was glorious. What a nice way to get to my happy place! Oh and wow! I forgot how yummy blackberries are. I can't remember the last time I had one. When I was a kid? I am so glad they are on my radar again.
Ok that's enough. I don't think I'm making sense here. Bottom line=You should make this.
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Pineapple Mango Carrot Ginger Juice
That's a mouthful, huh? I've had this mango and pineapple sitting in my kitchen staring me in the face all week. Today was their peak day of ripeness so I rolled up my sleeves and cut them up and juiced. With a few carrots and ginger added to the mix, we have ourselves a little tasty afternoon beverage! It's definitely thirst quenching on a hot day. With a little kick from the ginger, it's sweet & spicy! Me likey.
In my juicing research, I've seen a few sources discuss how great it is to freeze pineapple & mango pulp. When you juice a mango, you don't get tons of juice-- but you do get a nice mango sludge! Go on, take a taste! After juicing, I put the pineapple mango pulp into an ice cube tray to freeze. I think it will be fun to throw a few cubes into a smoothie or maybe add a few in some sparkly water later on in the day. Perhaps I'll bypass the freezing process next time around and stir some directly into my yogurt!
Cucumber Watermelon Lime Juice
Refreshing!! The key to this juice is the lime you squeeze in at the end. Watermelon and cucumber produce the mellowest of juices so it's essential to have something tart in the mix. It really helps bring out the sweetness of the watermelon and depth to the cucumber juice. It's the rug that ties the room together!!
This juice doesn't resemble the synthetic cucumber-watermelon flavor you might get from a frou-frou lotion or a piece of super sweet bubble gum. It's the real deal. Light, pure, mellow and totally refreshing when you add a little bit of sparkly water. It's something you might find in a ritzy spa. Imagine yourself wearing a cozy bathrobe while sipping on this. Got a mud mask? Put it on! My neighbor and I added a nice amount of rum in our juices last night! Went down like water!
This is going in the summer juicing rotation for sure!
Here is what's in it!
Juicing 101
I started 2010 with a resolution to juice more and have been pretty good at keeping my resolution thus far! I finally got my act together and compiled a little juicing tutorial for you. You asked for it and here it is!
This is my juicer. It's an Omega 1000 Centrifical Force Juice Extractor
Which means it's extra tough at getting fruits and vegetables to surrender every last bit of juice they have left in them. It is said to extract 20-30% more juice than most juice extractors. I totally believe it. It's a totally solid machine. It's beyond legit.
It's got a few parts. Here they all are! They easily fit together. It's no big deal.
Beet Carrot Apple Juice
This one's pretty simple and I think I've made it before, but today I added a Granny Smith apple to the mix and it perked it up quite a bit! The combo of beet and carrot juice is shockingly sweet; so the addition of a tart green apple mellowed it out a bit. I drank some while doing some gardening in the backyard today. I added a handful of ice cubes and my thirst was instantly quenched. You should see how bright red my tongue is right now. Fun fun!
Here's all the ingredients! Everything is so crispy and crunchy!
