Lemon-Ginger Shots

My family and I love these Lemon-Ginger shots. We were buying store-bought ones but they are a little expensive. I found the recipe on the Hungry Healthy Happy Blog via Facebook and I was so glad to find it! I bought the ingredients right away and my husband whipped it up using our Vitamix blender. My 14-year-old son loves these the most, I think. 

Note: I bought an 8-pack of 2-oz, wide-mouthed "juice shot bottles" on Amazon and they work well. This recipe makes a bit too much for the 8 jars, so we just store the leftover in another small jar in the fridge. 

Lemon-Ginger Shots 

adapted from Hungry Healthy Happy

100 g (3.5 oz) Fresh ginger - peeled and finely chopped

5 Lemons - juice only

250 ml (1 cups) Water
2 tablespoon Honey

1. Pour the juice of 5 Lemons into a blender jug. Add 250 ml Water, 2 tablespoon Honey and 100 g Fresh ginger. Blend until the ginger is as fine as possible. Place a nut milk bag (or muslin or cheesecloth) over a jug and empty the ginger mixture into it.

2. Squeeze the bag to extract as much juice as possible. Use a funnel to pour the juice into individual shot bottles. Store in the refrigerator. 

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Kinderpunsch (Non-alcoholic German mulled punch)

This is a holiday beverage;  a non-alcoholic substitute for the traditional mulled wine popular at German Christmas markets (and other countries, too, including Italy).  This drink is popular with children or with anyone who does not want to drink alcohol.  I meant to post this before Christmas, but better late than never.  

Kinderpunsch 

adapted from German Girl in America

2 cups apple juice

2 cups orange juice

1/2 cup cherry juice

2 cups water

8 cloves

2 star anise (I didn't have this, so I omitted)

2 cinnamon sticks

4-5 bags hibiscus tea

honey, to taste

1.  In a medium-large pot, combine all the ingredients except for the tea bags.  Bring to a boil over medium heat.  Reduce to low heat, and simmer 10 minutes.  Add the hibiscus tea bags, and let steep 7-10 minutes.  Sweeten with honey if desired.  

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Belgian Hot Chocolate

This was a great hot chocolate recipe for a snow day.  We've only had one snow day this year, and it happened on December 2.  Nobody had to go to work/school that day, and most of the fam (and the dog) enjoyed playing in the snow all day.  I took the opportunity to try this hot chocolate recipe I had bookmarked from David Lebovitz.  It was a popular choice after playing in the snow.  Happy Holidays everyone!

(Note: I used Ritter Sport bars for both kinds of chocolate.)

Belgian Hot Chocolate
adapted from David Lebovitz

1 quart (1 liter) whole milk
8 ounces (230g) bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped
4 ounces (115g) milk chocolate, chopped
large pinch of salt (start with less)
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

whipped cream, optional, for serving

1. In a medium saucepan, warm about one-third of the milk, with the chopped dark and milk chocolates, stirring until the chocolate is melted.

2. Whisk in the remaining half-and-half or milk as well as the salt and cinnamon, heating until the mixture is warmed through.

3. Use a hand-held blender, or a whisk, to mix the hot chocolate until it’s completely smooth. (Do not use a regular blender as blending hot liquid may make the lid blow off.)  The chocolate is ready to serve now, or you can let it rest a bit to thicken up.  We drank it right away and it was perfect.  Serve with whipped cream, optional.

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Butterbeer

I actually didn't make this myself- lol.  My husband and daughter made it together for our Harry Potter a few months ago during our Covid lockdown.  It was very tasty! I've never had it before.  It was very sweet too, but that's to be expected.  I waited too long to take the pics, and the whipped cream started to break down, but one can imagine it with mounds of fluffy whipped cream- lol. Note- the drink does start to separate as it sits. 

Butterbeer
adapted from Tablespoon

1 cup light or dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons water
6 tablespoons butter
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cider vinegar
3/4 cup heavy cream, divided
1/2 teaspoon rum extract
4 (12 oz) bottles cream soda

1.  In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine the brown sugar and water. Bring to a gentle boil and cook, stirring often, until the mixture reads 240°F on a candy thermometer.

2.  Stir in the butter, salt, vinegar and 1/4 of the heavy cream. Set aside to cool to room temperature.

3.  Once the mixture has cooled, stir in the rum extract.

4.  In a medium bowl, combine 2 tablespoons of the brown sugar mixture and the remaining 1/2 cup of heavy cream. Use an electric mixer to beat until just thickened, but not completely whipped, about 2 to 3 minutes.

5.  To serve: divide the brown sugar mixture between 4 tall glasses (about 1/4 cup for each glass). Add 1/4 cup of cream soda to each glass, then stir to combine. Fill each glass nearly to the top with additional cream soda, then spoon the whipped topping over each.

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Orange Julius

Happy First Day of Summer, a few days ago.  Lol.  We were on vacation in Malta.  I'll hopefully post about that soon.  I also need to post about Spain, from back in April. Anyway...... I recently made Orange Juliuses for the kids for the first time ever.  Weird, I know.  My mom used to make these for us all the time as kids. The kids loved them so much, we've been having them every Sunday night with popcorn, instead of our usual frozen lemonade smoothie.  This recipe is The Kitchn's version. 

Orange Julius

adapted from The Kitchn

Makes 6 servings

2 cup milk (whole, 2%, or skim)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 12-ounce can frozen orange juice concentrate
1/2 cup sugar
3 cups ice cubes

1.   Pour the milk and vanilla in a blender and pulse until combined.  Add the frozen orange juice concentrate. Blend until fully combined with the milk. Add the sugar and ice cubes; blend until cubes are crushed and mixture has thickened. If things end up a little thick, just add a tablespoon of milk and mix once again. Pour the drink into glasses.

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Mango Lassi

We finally made Mango Lassis at home!!  We tried them once, years ago, but our mangos weren't good and the whole drink was chalky.  These are so easy to make; I don't know if we'll order them in Indian restaurants anymore!  I got this recipe from a friend and really enjoy how tasty and easy it is.  We've made this a few times- at first we used milk, as the original recipe states.  But the last time we made it, we used 16 oz. pure mango puree instead of the milk, and it was so good this way.  It's hard to get mango puree sometimes (we got this online; it was 100% mango puree), so one can use milk.  I also like using a bag of frozen mango chunks in this.  I love the texture of the finished product, we don't have to add ice cubes, and it's way easier!

Mango Lassi
from my friend J.R.
makes a lot- enough for our fam of 6

1 16-oz. bag frozen mango chunks*
500 grams (about 2 cups) plain Greek or European yogurt 
16 ounces mango puree OR 1 cup milk (may need more milk to fully blend)
dash of cardamom powder
2-4 Tablespoons sugar ONLY if using milk (may need more)

1.  Blend all ingredients together in blender until smooth.

*If using fresh mango, may need to add a few ice cubes to blender to improve texture.

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Red, White & Blue Layered Drink

Happy 4th of July!  We had a BBQ and made these layered drinks for fun.  They were a hit.  How it works: drinks with more sugar are heavier, and they stay on the bottom.  Cranberry juice is on the bottom, then blue Gatorade (not sugar-free), then diet 7-Up (or Sprite Zero).  You also need lots of ice for these.

Red, White & Blue Layered Drink
adapted from Mel's Kitchen Cafe

Cranberry Juice, chilled
Blue Gatorade (not sugar-free), chilled
Sprite Zero or Diet 7-Up, chilled
Ice

1.  Fill each glass with ice. Pour the cranberry juice into the glass, filling about 1/3 of the way. Slowly pour the blue Gatorade on top of the ice (if you pour it around the sides of the glass and it hits the cranberry juice directly without filtering over the ice, it won’t create separate layers) and let it flow down until it fills the cup another 1/3 of the way (so now the glass should be 2/3 full). Finally, slowly pour the Sprite Zero or Diet 7-Up on the ice and let it slowly flow down to create the final layer. Serve immediately.

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Peach & Cardamom Lemonade

I made this lovely lemonade soon after spotting it on Joy the Baker's blog.  It required simple ingredients and was quick to make using my nice blender.  The family enjoyed this with take-out pizza last night.

Peach & Cardamom Lemonade

adapted from Joy the Baker

3 ripe peaches, pitted and coarsely chopped (don't peel!)
1 scant cup brown sugar (not packed into the measuring cup)
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1 1/2 cups fresh lemon juice
4 cups cold water
crushed ice for serving

1.  In a blender, combine chopped peaches (skin and all), brown sugar, cardamom, and lemon juice. Blend to a smoothie-like consistency.

2.  Pour into a fine mesh strainer placed over a medium bowl and press the mixture through the fine mesh strainer leaving some of the peach skin and pulp behind. (Using a small silicone spatula and running it on the bottom of the strainer helps.)  Discard what is left in the strainer.

3.  Pour the strained peach and lemon mixture into a pitcher. Add 4 cups of water and stir. Taste and adjust accordingly.  (I added a few extra tablespoons of lemon fresh lemon juice.)  Pour over crushed or cubed ice and enjoy!

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Strawberry Banana Oat Smoothie

I made this smoothie recently when one of my kids was home sick.  He needed a healthy snack.  Of course, he barely ate anything since he never eats in the first place.  But at least I enjoyed my portion! I like using oats in smoothies, but I need to blend them up better next time.

Strawberry Banana Oat Smoothie
adapted from Cooking Classy

1 cup unsweetened almond milk or 1% milk
1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
2 cups (9 oz) frozen strawberries
1 1/2 frozen bananas
1/2 cup quick oats or old fashioned oats
1/2 Tbsp honey
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1.  Add all ingredients to a blender, cover and blend until smooth. Serve immediately.

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Italian-Style Hot Chocolate

I love getting hot chocolate here at a pastry shop or cafe.  It's super thick, like melted chocolate, and tastes amazing.  Some cafes use a mix, so I love finding places that make it from scratch.  One can buy the mix here, and I always have that on hand so we can whip it up at home, and it's pretty good, but I wanted to try to make some "real" stuff.  (You always use milk to make Italian hot chocolate mix, never water, like mixes in the US.  Preferably whole milk!)  (Btw- it's been cool and rainy here lately so this hot chocolate hit the spot yesterday, even though it's June!)

This is made with good-quality dark chocolate (I used Ritter Sport, which is German... lol!), milk, sugar, and cornstarch.  The recipe called for cinnamon, but I've never tasted that in local hot chocolate, so I left it out.  There's not much sugar, but it was still a little too sweet, so I'd reduce it next time and play around with the amounts.

Italian-Style Hot Chocolate

adapted from 12 Tomatoes

Serves 2; easily cut in half to serve 1

4 oz. dark chocolate, shaved (I used 50% cacao Rittersport)
1 1/2 cups milk
1 tablespoon sugar (try a little less at first)
3/4 tablespoon cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon sea salt
whipped cream, optional

1.  Place shaved chocolate in a small saucepan over low heat and add 2 tablespoons milk and vanilla extract.  Use a wooden spoon to stir chocolate as it begins to melt.  Slowly add remaining milk and continuing stirring until completely smooth.

2.  Add in sugar, cornstarch, and sea salt, and stir until everything is dissolved and combined.  Use a whisk to keep it smooth.  As it heats up, it will start to thicken.  It needs to thicken enough to coat the back of a metal spoon.  You can bring to a low simmer if needed- mine thickened without simmering. It's supposed to be thick and smooth.  

3.  Pour into 2 mugs (top with whipped cream if desired) and serve immediately.

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Pumpkin White Hot Chocolate

At a cooking class last winter, the class made Pumpkin Cappuccino, but since I don't drink coffee, Lucas gave me some of the mixture before he added the espresso, and it was just sweetened, warm milk with pumpkin spice and pumpkin/squash puree.  I had the idea back then to make a white hot chocolate based on that, and I finally did last weekend.  Obviously, my whipped cream wasn't working and the cinnamon garnish got WAY out of hand (I had to scrape it off and toss it after the photo shoot.... I had only made one cup of this, lol).  But I hope you can still get the idea.  Imagine a perfect swirl of whipped cream and a tiny sprinkling of cinnamon.  If I ever get better pics I'll update.

Pumpkin Spice White Hot Chocolate
adapted from Cooking with Lucas
makes one serving

1 cup milk
3/4- 1 ounce white chocolate
pumpkin spice
cinnamon
1 tablespoon pumpkin or butternut squash*
whipped cream

*1. For the squash, I buy pre-cut, skinned, raw pumpkin or squash at the Italian stores.  They probably have something similar in the States.  I then simmer a few chunks in a bit of water until tender and then drain.  One could probably use canned pumpkin puree or even squash baby food for this recipe, but I haven't tried it.  I did have to strain the cooked pumpkin/milk mixture because I couldn't get the pumpkin dissolved fine enough to not be chunky.

2.  Heat the milk and white chocolate gently over low heat, whisking frequently.  Add a sprinkle of the spices.  When the chocolate is melted, removed from heat and add the pumpkin.  Using an immersion blender, blend everything together (carefully) until very smooth.  You may wish to strain it over a small strainer into a mug for a smoother drink.  Top with whipped cream and an extra sprinkle of cinnamon, if desired.

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Lemon-Ginger Spiced Tea

 I know it's getting to be summertime and in some places, it's already hit 90 degrees.  (Here, today!) A few weeks ago, though, our fam was hit with some spring/summer colds and sore throats, and I quite enjoyed having this when I was feeling a bit under the weather.  It really made me feel better.  It contains lemon, ginger, cinnamon, cardamom, and honey (try to use local honey).  You can add any whole spices you like, like cloves, etc.  I can't wait to make this in the winter!  (Not that I'm looking forward to winter or anything... lol.)

Lemon-Ginger Spiced Tea
by What A Dish!

1 1-inch or so piece ginger, peeled
2 cardamom pods, smashed to expose seeds (leave out if you don't have it...but check out an ethnic grocery store to buy these cheap)
1 cinnamon stick
1-2 cups water
1/2 lemon, juiced
favorite local honey, to taste

1.  If you have a teapot: Pour boiling water from the teapot over the ginger, cardamom, and cinnamon stick into a large mug.  Let steep about 5 minutes, then strain and remove spices and ginger.  Add lemon juice and honey to taste, and enjoy.

2.  In the microwave: In a large mug, place the ginger, cardamom and cinnamon stick.  Pour cold water over, as much as you want (1- 1.5 cups), and microwave 2-3 minutes, to get it nice and hot.  Let sit and steep a few extra minutes, remove the spices and ginger (by straining if desired).  Add lemon juice and honey to taste, and enjoy.

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Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate

It's been rainy, windy and chilly here lately, and this drink was the perfect thing the other day.  (Last week we had beautiful spring weather, so hopefully this rain passes soon.)  Recipe like this are popular on the internet, and I've never been to Starbucks and had theirs.  I mainly wanted to use up the last bit of store-bought caramel sauce I had in the fridge after making this pie for Pi Day.  This was so good as it was- I can't even imagine how good it'd be with homemade caramel sauce.

I only had enough caramel sauce to make one serving, and my three-year old practically stole this out of my hands and drank most of it.  He really, really enjoyed this.  Lol.

I used some of our homemade Azorean Sea Salt in this, and it added the perfect flavor.  It doesn't taste salty; rather, it brings out the flavors of chocolate in this.

Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate
idea from the Internet; this is my version

1 cup whole milk
1 oz. good quality dark chocolate (I used Ritter Sport)
1-2 tablespoons caramel sauce
1/4 teaspoon good sea salt, or to taste
1/2 vanilla bean, scraped (save pod for other use; vanilla sugar or extract)
whipped cream, optional

1.  In a small saucepan on the stove, heat everything together over low heat until everything is melted and incorporated together and hot.  (Add 1 Tbsp. of caramel sauce first, then taste and see if you need the rest.)  Serve with whipped cream, optional, and extra caramel sauce drizzled over the top.

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Blood Orange Lemonade

Lately, we've really been enjoying the blood oranges we can get from southern Italy.  Arance rosse, or Tarocco Oranges, are everywhere here right now.  I first tried them from my local Frutteria in town here.  I buy them wherever I have the chance though, because my family eats them like crazy. I usually get large ones, and my kids and husband can eat 2-3 a day (each!).  We'll definitely miss these when the season is over.  We got a huge box of them a few weekends ago and they only lasted a few days.  We used oranges from that huge box to make this Blood Orange Lemonade.  It was a hit with everyone, of course. I want to buy some Arance Rosse just "per il succo"- for juice.  At cafes everywhere right now, you can order a glass of fresh-squeezed blood orange juice.  It is so good!!  

Blood Orange Lemonade
adapted from A Cozy Kitchen

Simple Syrup:
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup water*

Lemonade:
1 cup fresh blood orange juice, 5-7 oranges
1 cup fresh lemon juice, 3-5 lemons
3 cups water
1/2 blood orange for garnish

1.  In a medium saucepan heat sugar and water for about 5 minutes until all the sugar is dissolved and it becomes a syrup consistency. Set aside to cool, about an hour.

2.  Juice blood oranges and lemons in separate measuring cups. In a pitcher, add the blood orange juice, lemon juice, water, and simple syrup. (*DO NOT add all of the simple syrup at once.  Instead, add half and then add more to taste.  I added all at once and it was too sweet.) If you don’t like pulp, just place a sieve over the pitcher and run it through that. Pour over ice and serve with blood orange slices and mint as garnish.  Keeps in the fridge for 3 days.

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