Thursday, April 11, 2013
Fresh Cherry Mojitos
Recipe from Fields of Cake.
Fresh Cherry Mojitos
4-5 dark, sweet cherries, pitted
5-10 fresh mint leaves (to taste)
1/4 cup cherry syrup (see previous post)
juice of 1/2 a lime (about a 1/4 cup)-you could sub in lemon
crushed ice
1-2 shots good quality rum
seltzer to top off (I use my SodaStream, I LOVE it!)
Instructions
In 16 ounce glass, or jar, muddle (squoosh) cherries and mint to release juices.
Pour cherry syrup and citrus juice over the muddly goodness.
Add rum and stir.
Add crushed ice half way.
Pour a little seltzer and stir to mix it all together.
Top off with seltzer. Gently stir.
Enjoy the nirvana that is Fresh Cherry Mojitos
Wednesday, April 10, 2013
Strawberry Basil Sangria
Recipe from Mother Nature Network.
Strawberry Basil Sangria
Ingredients
1/2 pound fresh strawberries
1 apple
1 ounce fresh whole basil leaves
1 bottle Cline Cellar Cool Climate Chardonnay
1/2 cup organic sugar
1 cup club soda
1 cup white grape juice
Cooking directions
Trim and thinly slice the strawberries.
Slice and dice the apple into very small bits.
Score the basil leaves with a fork. I did this instead of cutting the leaves into strips as I did not want my guests choking on basil while trying to enjoy this drink. Just rub the basil leaves gently with a fork in order to release their flavor in the sangria.
Layer the fruit, sugar and basil in a large pitcher and let sit for about 10 minutes. This is just to let the sugar absorb the juices from the basil and the fruit. You'll see it turn a bit red.
Add the club soda first and then the remaining liquids. Stir well and serve.
Labels:
Basil,
Recipes,
Sangria,
Strawberry
Tuesday, April 9, 2013
Lavender Lemonade
Recipe from Sunday Supper
Lavender Lemonade
* 2 cups sugar
* 5 sprigs lavender (stems and buds), plus additional for garnish
* 2 cups fresh lemon juice (from about 10 lemons)
* 1/2 cup fresh lime juice (from about 4 limes)
Directions:
In a large saucepan, bring one gallon of water and the sugar to a boil. Remove from heat; add 7 lavender sprigs and lemon and lime juices. Cool to room temperature, strain, and chill. Serve on ice, with additional lavender for garnish.
Sunday, April 7, 2013
Cake Batter & Sprinkles Fudge
Recipe via I'm Topsy Turvy
Cake Batter & Sprinkles Fudge
2 C + 2 Tbsp cake mix
2 C powdered sugar
1/2 C (1 stick) butter, cut into 4 pieces
1/4 C milk
2/3 C white chocolate chips
1/2 C sprinkles
Mix together the cake mix and powdered sugar in a large bowl. Add milk and butter (do not stir them in) and microwave for 2 minutes. It’s cool cause the butter starts to “cook” with the batter, my kids loved looking at it. Mixing everything together RIGHT away. The batter will be VERY thick. Fold in white chocolate + sprinkles. Stir gently. You do not want the sprinkles BLEED.
Spoon into an 8×8 inch pan (lined with parchment paper), Cool in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour (overnight is better). Cut into squares and enjoy
Labels:
butter,
chocolate chips,
milk,
Recipes,
sugar
Saturday, April 6, 2013
Tilapia Tacos
Recipe via The Bitchin' Kitchen
Ingredients:
1/4 cup non-fat Greek yogurt (or reduced-fat sour cream)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 jalapeno pepper, chopped (remove the seeds if you don't want a lot of spice)
1 cup thinly sliced white onion (about three-quarters of a large onion)
1 1/2 teaspoons paprika
1 1/2 teaspoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon dried oregano
3/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
4-6 Tilapia fillets (if they're small, buy 6, if they're larger buy 4)
Non-stick cooking spray
8 small corn tortillas
Thinly sliced avocado
Directions:
Preheat the broiler to high, and spray a large baking dish (you may need 2 dishes to fit all the fish) with non-stick cooking spray.
Rinse the Tilapia, and thoroughly dry with paper towels. Set aside.
Combine the yogurt, cilantro, lime juice, and jalapeno in a mini-food processor. Pulse until smooth. Combine the yogurt sauce and sliced onions in a small bowl, toss to combine, and refrigerate until ready to use.
In a small bowl, stir together paprika, brown sugar, oregano, garlic powder, salt, cumin, and cayenne. Sprinkle the seasoning over the Tilapia, pressing to adhere. Place the Tilapia in the prepared baking dish, and broil until cooked through, 6-9 minutes.
While the Tilapia is cooking, heat the tortillas according to the package directions. To serve, divide onion mixture, Tilapia, and avocado evenly among the warmed tortillas. Serve immediately.
Labels:
cilantro lime,
onion,
Recipes,
tilapia,
yogurt
Thursday, April 4, 2013
Chilli and black bean blue swimmer crabs
Recipe via The Food Dept.
• 750g ripe tomatoes
• ½ cup vegetable oil
• 8 purple shallots, finely sliced
• 4 large cloves garlic, crushed
• 5cm piece ginger, peeled and grated
• 3 small red chillies, sliced
• 1 tablespoon salted black beans, rinsed
• 4 uncooked, blue swimmer crabs
• 2 tablespoons Chilli jam
• 2 tablespoons shaved palm sugar
• 2 tablespoons fish sauce
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• ½ cup good quality fish or crab stock
• 4 shallots, thinly sliced on the diagonal, to garnish
• 1 cup coriander sprigs, to garnish
1. Preheat the oven to 200˚C (400˚F). Place the tomatoes on an oven tray and prick the skins. Roast for 20 minutes until the skins blister. Remove from the oven and when cool enough to handle, peel the skins and roughly chop, set aside.
2. Heat the oil in a wok over a high heat and sauté the shallots, garlic, ginger, chillies and black beans until shallots are transparent. Remove from the heat and set aside the wok.
3. To prepare the crabs, rinse them under cold water. Turn the crabs upside down and lift the flap, pulling away from the crab body to remove the outer shell. Cut the crab in half and remove the gills, cut into quarters and rinse the crab under cold water and pat dry with paper towel. Clean and rinse the removed crab shell and cook with the crab pieces for decoration.
4. Return the wok to a high heat and add the crab pieces to the wok with the shallots, garlic, ginger and black beans, toss well. Cover the wok and cook for 5–7 minutes, tossing occasionally, until the crab shells have begun to turn bright orange.
5. Add the tomatoes, Chilli jam, palm sugar, fish sauce, tomato paste and fish stock. Bring to a simmer and cook the crab for another 5–10 minutes or until the crab is cooked through. If you would like the sauce thicker, remove the crab pieces from the wok, cover with foil and keep warm, simmer the sauce until it has thickened then return the crab to the wok, toss through the sauce.
6. Sprinkle with shallots and coriander. Serve immediately with rice or warmed roti.
Labels:
black beans,
blue swimmer crab,
garlic,
Recipes,
red chilies,
shallots,
tomato