Cloudy Pink Old Fashioned Lemonade

 This little beauty of a recipe was copied down into a little note pad in grey lead pencil when I was about 8 years old. It comes out of a 1950's kid's cookbook, and was by far my favourite thing to make in the kitchen at that age. It's so simple and so tasty, and a great way to keep the kids both occupied and cool in the summer holidays. It's the best home made lemonade recipe I have come across--it pleases kids and adults alike. It's old fashioned goodness--cloudy, sweet and lemony, without gassy bubbles. These days lemonade is rarely without fizziness, and I have had a few people recommend, after a glass of this refreshing drink, that I should add bubbles to it. I personally like it the way it is--it reminds me of how it would have been way back when that cookbook was written--chilling in Granny's fridge in a tea-towel covered jug. You could add sparking water to the concentrated lemonade in place of the cold water if desired however, to modernise it if preferred. Prepare yourself for a refreshing crowd pleaser! This is a frequently requested recipe.

CLOUDY PINK OLD FASHIONED LEMONADE

1 cup sugar
3 lemons, juiced (1/2 cup)
4 cups cold water
drop or two of red or pink food colouring

Put the sugar and 1 cup of water into a large saucepan and place over medium heat. Boil for five minutes. Then add remaining water and remove from heat. Add the lemon juice and stir through the water. Leave to cool and serve with ice.

Serves 4

Spiced Mango Lassi

Life's been a little lumpy in the last month and a bit. I'm talking surgery, bloody messes, hospitals, screaming babies. On the up side, I got to see the 20 week ultrasound of my latest little angel, and it's a beauty. Fat and rounded and big for it's estimated age, with a straight little nose and sweetly sucking his or her tiny thumb.
So that wasn't so lumpy. Neither was the Spiced Mango Lassi I made, that went down a treat. Smooth, creamy, cold and refreshing, you could serve this tropical Lassi as a dessert, a afternoon snack or a meal. It's super easy to make as well, and only requires a few minutes of your time, some delicious ingredients and a food blender.

SPICED MANGO LASSI (A Lick The Spoon Original)

1 large mango, peeled and seeded
1 1/2 cups plain Greek yogurt
1 tsp honey
1 flat tsp ground cinnamon
pinch salt

Combine all ingredients in a food blender. Process until smooth.
Pour into glasses and serve with a sprinkling of cinnamon on top and a mint leaf garnish if desired.
Serves 2 (as a snack or meal) or 4 (as a dessert.)

Refreshing Chilled Berry Water

What could be more refreshing and thirst quenching than water? I have a feeling that lemonade somehow tops water for me--I mean that home made, chilled and super summery liquid gold that goes down so easily on hot summer days, and not the fizzy stuff (ugh!).
But the other day I discovered something perhaps equally as satisfying with no added sugar and prettied up with natural colours and flavours.
It's an elegant option for afternoon teas with the girls out on the deck or for summer dinner parties where water is in hot demand. I'm always on the look out for a fancy non-alcoholic drink to serve to my guests, and this really brought wows to the table when I served it.
Over time, the fruit encrusted ice blocks melted and issued the most beautiful pink colour through the lightly-berry flavoured water, and looked ever so pretty, and the wows started up again.
I served this lemon infused, chilled still raspberry water at a brunch we held for a friend of mine, along with bacon and egg quiches, croissants, blueberry and apple danishes and plenty of tea. You can add any type of fruit you like to the ice tray, and even garnish the jug with slices of lemon or lime to add some contrasting colour and that really fresh zing.

REFRESHING CHILLED BERRY WATER

1 large ice tray (we used a tray with half sphere shaped holes)
1/3 cup frozen or fresh berries of your choice (we used raspberries)
1 lemon, juiced
Water to fill the ice tray
Water to fill the jug (preferably chilled)

Place the berries at the bottom of each of the ice tray hollows. Squirt a little lemon juice into each. Top up the tray with water until the hollows are almost full. (The berries will float) Transfer to the freezer and freeze for at least 2 hours. When solid, press from the ice tray into a jug of ice cold water. Garnish with lime, lemon or mint if desired. Serve as is, or sit the full jug for 10-15 minutes for the colour from the berries and the berry flavour and refreshing lemon juice to issue through the water. Serve.

Raspberry Mango Yogurt Slide

Some have claimed to have put on pounds looking at this blog.
It's hazardous.
It's wicked.
It's to be had in moderation. For sure.
There's no harm in looking, in dreaming and drooling.
I say don't touch what you can't afford, but it's hard sometimes, especially when somethings dripping with chocolatey goodness and it's been one of those days!
Trust me. I know what it's like. I get to that stage several times during the day, where a quick sugar fix is super tempting, just to pick my energy up, even if only momentarily.
But considering I'm about to gain about 15-20kg in the next five months, I don't really need any help with extra delights adding to the grand total. (Just so you know, I'm expecting a wee one, and my last two pregnancies have resulted in whopping, healthy babies).
So where do I now turn? In the discovery of this chilled yogurt and fruit blend, that both satisfies my sweet tooth, while remaining nutritious and delicious. It's also a super refreshing snack to have on these hot summer days...I personally don't know anything quite as refreshing.
I make my own yogurt with an easi-yo flask. Just so you know, it's totally amazing with no added sugar, unless you want it--so you know what's going into it. Yogurt is really healthy for you and contains lots of live bacteria cultures, calcium, aids in nutrient absorption, aids in weight loss, helps prevent infections, and is said to reduce the severity of PMS. Worth a try, right?
Combined with my one of my favourite berries, the raspberry, and my favourite tropical fruit, the mango, this is a to-die for blend that you laze back and scoop from the glass. It's not quite a smoothie, it's not quite frozen yogurt, but it's a gorgeous in between.

For the mango version (which is equally as divine) visit here.

RASPBERRY MANGO YOGURT SLIDE (A Lick the Spoon Original)

1/2 cup frozen raspberries
1/2 cup frozen mango
3/4 cup plain or vanilla yogurt

Combine the fruit and yogurt in a food blender. Blend until all the fruit has been pureed and well incorporated into the yogurt. Pour into a glass and enjoy.

Serves 1

Banana Caramel Blueberry Smoothie

When my husband and I come back from the markets, I get into a chopping frenzy. It's much cheaper to buy in bulk, and since Lent started, we have been making smoothies more frequent as meals. So the fruit has been rolling into the house in large quantities. I find that it's all a little difficult to use before it goes bad, so I chop up most of the bananas, strawberries and what ever other fruit we have, and freeze them in zip lock plastic sandwich bags. These are amazing for whipping up smoothies, and you don't have to add any ice because its already super chilled. I made a naughty addiction to this one with a dollop of caramel sauce, but its just as lovely without, and healthier! Enjoy!

BANANA CARAMEL BLUEBERRY SMOOTHIE

2 bananas, chopped and frozen
1/4 cup blueberries, frozen
1/4 cup caramel sauce (like the type used on ice cream)
1 1/2 cups milk

Add all ingredients to the blender and pulse. Add milk as desired for thickness of your choice. Serve in tall glasses and drink immediately.

Serves 2

SRC Mocha Frappuchino

Just about anyone who has ever visited my page will know that I'm not the world's healthiest cook. That is, I love my sweets and I'm not afraid to eat them. When you have the metabolism I have, this isn't a problem. Just wait until it catches up with me in a few years!
Mind you, its not like I live off the stuff, most of what I post here goes to various mouths that are not my own...it's how I like it...I cook for others. I enjoy seeing the joy in others who are eating what I have made. Its thrilling.
When I joined The Secret Recipe Club I never expected I would find it such a challenge. The Secret Recipe Club is a group that designates a food blog to its members every month. As a member, you choose one recipe from you assigned blog, cook it and blog about it. I have such a hard time choosing what to make!  This month I was assigned a great cooking blog Amy's Cooking Adventures. She's a sweet mum of two gorgeous boys from North Dakota, and she has a great list of recipes to choose from. She likes to "sneak in extra vegies" and that's something I admire her for. Still, I found myself opting for the less healthy side of her blog with this delicious Mocha Chip Frappuchino. I even ended up adding more sweet things to it and making it unhealthier. But don't worry, I'm sure there's a warm day coming up where you deserve to indulge! They're perfect for the warmer months and are so inviting when you've had a busy weekend morning out in the hot sun. Slurp it down and enjoy this baby! It rocks.
And don't forget to check out the original recipe at Amy's Cooking Adventures!

MOCHA FRAPPUCHINO (adapted from Amy's Cooking Adventures)

1 1/2 cups milk
1 cup vanilla ice cream
2 cups ice
1/4 cup chocolate topping
2 heaped tbsp. chocolate powder or milo
1 heaped tbsp. instant coffee granules
1/4 cup hot water
2 tbsp. mini chocolate chips
1/2 cup vanilla ice cream, extra
sprinkling of extra milo to decorate

Combine the coffee granules with the hot water and stir until dissolved. Refrigerate until cooled.
Place the coffee, milk, ice, milo, ice cream and chocolate topping to the blender and process until the ice has broken down.
Serve in tall glasses, topping with the extra ice cream and extra milo, and a sprinkling of mini chocolate chips or shavings.

SERVES 2

If He Doesnt Cook, Train Him

Too often have I heard women talking about how much they hate cooking. Imagine having to cook everyday without fail for 30 years of your life. Often when you have to do something without much choice, often part of the joy is taken out of it. It becomes a tedious, boring task.Then you fall into a cooking rut and find it difficult to feel any joy in providing the food three times a day (or more if you have toddlers-they ask for foo every 20 minutes).

I think if at all possible, a woman should find a life partner who can cook. What man isn't interested in food? I can't name even one. They make some of the finest cooks. If they're only interested in the eating and not the creating, it's time to get them into the kitchen! What if they don't want to be involved? You could urge them in the right direction by getting their input with things like meal planning for the week. Buy a few foodie magazines and get them drooling. They might just be inspired to get cooking.And if not, get them to light up the BBQ every so often, I'm pretty sure most men think it's their duty to cook the meat on the BBQ.

I think I get so much pleasure out of being in the kitchen because I don't have to be, I want to be. My husband has an interest in food and is happy to make the dinner if I am too tired or just don't feel like it. He recently created an amazing curry which I will put up on the blog soon. In the meantime, here's another creation of his to get you all through this warm summer. Happy New Year!

CITRUS MULE

350ml Gingerbeer mixer 

2L lemonade

1/5 cup lemon juice

250lm coconut liqueur

150lm white rum

Combine all ingredients together in a large jug. Serve chilled with lemon wedges.

NOTES: Gingerbeer Mixer can be found in your local Coles or Woolworth stores. It is a cordial/syrup made by Buderim Ginger. Alternately, use Gingerbeer and less lemonade.