Apple Cinnamon Iced Water

My hubby saw this on Facebook & suggested we try it. It's refreshing & we love cinnamon. I don't prescribe to use it as a detox or "Metabolism Boosting Drink" but a lovely alternative to plain water.

Longer the apples & cinnamon seep, the deeper the flavor.

<3 Lishie

The Original Day Spa Apple Cinnamon Water Recipe:

• 1 Apple thinly sliced, I like Fuji but pick your favorite 

• 1 Cinnamon Stick

Drop apple slices in the bottom of the pitcher (save a few to drop in your glass later) & then the cinnamon stick, cover with ice water. Place in the fridge for 1 hour before serving.
LASTS FOR 24 HOURS IN THE FRIDGE.

Root Beer Floats

It's summer. Take a deep breath & enjoy the easy things in life, like root beer floats. So refreshing, tasty, summery & easy.

Cute note- I've recently joined a Mommy & Me Yoga class with my 4 year old... What did he learn the first session? Star Catcher &... DEEP breaths... OR raspberry noises he thinks are deep breaths. It is very cute, very funny & not very calming ;)

ENJOY. RELAX. Have a root beer float.
<3 Lishie

2 Scoops Vanilla Ice Cream + 
root beer (foamy goodness) = 
a Root Beer Float

Nostalgia

Party's "Tang Station"

Bare with me, this post is about nostalgia… as may very well be the next post too. See, when I jump into event planning, I jot down everything my mind can think of on the theme. So for Gabriel’s 3^rd birthday- Astronaut Training/Space Party… My mind jotted down “Tang”. Do you associate Tang with Space Shuttle Missions? Do you know what Tang is? Tang is an orange flavored drink mix. But, beyond that, Tang has history. It’s a misconception that the drink was invented for NASA, but NASA (according to Wiki) used it on John Glenn's Mercury flight, & subsequent Gemini missions. I always remember Tang as an “astronaut” drink. And the space program is so cool to me. So naturally, I created a “Tang Station” for the Astronaut Training. 

Homemade Tang

Boy was I surprised at what a HIT it was!!! Two gallons were made & two gallons were drunk! We had plenty of leftover “Rocket Fuel” (soda- Coke & Diet Coke, Sprite, as well as apple juice boxes) but not.a.drop.of… Tang!!! So my hubby added it to our weekly shopping list. We’re still being told that the party caused people to buy Tang. It smelled so good making it… & it tastes like nostalgia. Have you had Tang?

<3 Lishie

*More fun facts (according to Wiki): The creator of Tang, William A. Mitchell, also invented Pop Rocks, Cool Whip, a form of instant-set Jell-O, & other convenience foods.

Salted Caramel Hot Cocoa

So today was the Tenth Anniversary of 9/11... I remember every moment of that day... It's still so vivid. I choose to remember in a quiet reflection with my family because the sadness is so real & frightening. The angst & anxiety are very much heightened this year. I needed something comforting at the end of the day... 


I love the combination of Salt & caramel & chocolate so much (watch for another DeLish original cookie bar soon of this combo!)
I also love the Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate at Starbucks. I attempted to replicate it at home. I used a basic hot cocoa recipe then added some caramel ice cream topper & sea salt. YUMmmmm...


Salted Caramel Hot Cocoa
(makes 1 Mug-full)

• 2 TBSp Sugar
• 1 TBSp Cocoa
• 1/4 tsp Vanilla
• 1 cup Milk
• 2 TBSp Caramel Sauce, divided
• 1/8 tsp Sea Salt

Mix the sugar & cocoa in a bowl.  Add the vanilla & mix well. Add 1 TBSp of the caramel sauce.

Meanwhile, slowly heat the cup of milk to hot but not boiling. Pour into the dry cocoa mixture, whisking continuously. When finished, drizzle the second tablespoon of caramel over the top & sprinkle on the sea salt. 

ENJOY!

<3 Lishie

Cantaloupe Spritzer

Just in time I get a Cuisinart newsletter today. Why "just in time" you say? I had a very ripe, entire cantaloupe waiting for me on my kitchen counter & needed to eat it fast or, in this heat it would have spoiled. Well that email contained Cuisinart's recipe of the month: 


Cantaloupe Cooler
from Cuisinart
For the cantaloupe syrup

• 1 cup cantaloupe chunks (rinds removed)
• 1/2 cup sugar

For the cantaloupe cooler

• 3 tablespoons cantaloupe syrup
• 1 tablespoon fresh squeezed lime juice
• 1 mint leaf, plus another for garnish
• Freshly opened bottle of seltzer, to top off the glass

To make the cantaloupe syrup, place the chunks of fruit into the bowl of a food processor. Pulse to coarsely chop, then let machine process until it becomes a smooth puree, about 1 to 2 minutes. Pour into a saucepan and stir in the sugar. Bring to a boil and cook for 1 minute more, until all the sugar has dissolved. Skim foam from top, set aside and let cool.


Strain cooled cantaloupe syrup to remove foam and "sediment". You should be left with a 1/2 cup of syrup. Transfer to a covered container and chill it in the refrigerator (this step may be made up to one week in advance).

Fill an 8-ounce glass with ice. Add all the drink ingredients, and stir until mixed well. Top off the glass with seltzer, about 2 ounces worth. Garnish with a mint leaf, if desired.

This spritzer was oh so refreshing & delicious!!!! I can see myself freezing & making popsicles out of it too! It was the perfect thing in the middle of summer. YUM.

<3 Lishie

Key West Creamsicle

The Florida Orange

Do you do what I do when enveloped in a sweltering heat (or snowed in for that matter)? Daydream of good times, feeling cooler… escapes that made you happy? I have so many good trip memories.One is a trip with my siblings to Key West. It was humid & hot~ Florida weather~ meant to be that way. Instead of watching the sun set at the Mallory Square Dock, we sipped cocktails & watched it from the rooftop of the Crown Plaza Key West~La Concha. This is the wonderful frozen drink I lazily nursed that night. I brought home the memory & recreated the recipe. Not sure exactly what the bar used but I spied the Vanilla Stoli & it’s sacrilege to drink anything but fresh-squeezed Florida oranges ;) Minus the alcohol, this is also fantastic! So the children can love it too.

Key West Creamsicle

• 1 cup Orange Juice (freshly squeezed, of course!)
• 1 cup Vanilla Ice Cream (or frozen Yogurt)
• 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
• 2 oz. vanilla (or plain) Vodka
• 1 cup Ice

Blend everything together. Garnish with an Orange slice (& a Pink Flamingo drink mixer if you just happen to have one, ha!)

<3 Lish

Too hot for Earl Grey? Nope!

I love Earl Grey tea. Even in the summer, I love it but it has been extremely hot the last two days. So hot that even after a shower, 6 am is HOT. So hot that you can feel the heat underlying & undermining the air conditioner. So a cuppa tea has not been an option.


Well on my walk yesterday, I passed one of the many gourmet food trucks that have appeared in NYC recently... this one, an organic ice cream truck. Lo & behold, one of the flavor options was EARL GREY!! Yay, music to my mouth... cold, refreshing, delicious. Hmmm, I thought, I can make it at home! And make it the way I love to have it... with "milk" & honey. I also brought out the citrusy bergamot always at the heart of the Earl Grey flavoring with a splash of fresh lemon juice. 


This was the perfect cup of summer tea. And the perfect ice cream. The perfect ~ dessert. Perfection. Sigh.


Earl Grey Ice Cream

• 1 cup Earl Grey (*preparation below)
• 1-2 TBSp Honey
• 1 TBSp fresh Lemon Juice
• 1 cup Heavy Cream
• 1/3 cup Sugar

*Earl Grey prep~ I made mine in the Keurig/K-cup on the most concentrated setting. Or you can use 2-3 tea bags steeped in 8 oz. hot water for 5 minutes.


Prepare the Earl Grey tea. Mix in the honey & lemon juice. Allow tea to cool to room temperature. Meanwhile, pour the cream into the ice cream maker. Slowly add the sugar. Allow to mix for 10 minutes, then add the cooled down tea. Keep ice cream maker on for another 20 minutes (or until softly frozen, then place in the freezer.


Serve & ENJOY! Makes 2 large servings or 4 small servings.


I always find a way to make what I love most!
Inspiration's everywhere.
<3 Lishie


Also go ahead & try my Chai Ice Cream!

Homemade Strawberry Lemonade

I had a hankering today for some lemonade & not the sugary yellow stuff in the canister. Real lemon juice was what I needed. Perfect for the Sunday family BBQ in this Northeastern heat. So I grabbed some lemons... & made my strawberry lemonade:
Strawberry Lemonade

• 1 cup freshly squeezed Lemon Juice
• 1/2 cup confectioner's sugar 
• 4 cups cold water
• 1/4 cup sliced Strawberries
• Additions: Crushed ice, thinly sliced lemon & strawberry pieces
• Optional: Fresh mint or Basil Leaves

Combine the juice, sugar & water in a pitcher & stir very well. Add the strawberries & muddle them*. Stir again. Add ice, thin slices of lemon, strawberry & the mint or basil.
Serve & Enjoy!


*Muddling means to combine by crushing or mashing the ingredient into the drink. 
*The Confectioner's sugar dissolves quickly into the acidic coolness of the lemon juice.


There is nothing like the smell of lemon. It's clean & refreshing at the same time. I love the way my hands smell after juicing them!

Egg Cream

An egg cream contains no eggs & no cream :) It's a soda fountain, ice cream store drink that brings back childhood memories of visiting Brooklyn in the summers... Sitting on a stool, at the local Soda Fountain store on Flatlands Avenue sipping a frothy egg cream. The delectable drink is originally from Brooklyn & classically made with Fox's U-Bet Chocolate syrup BUT I am asking to be pardoned... I used Bosco's tonight. It's all we have & when my friend Megan E. mentioned drinking one, I had.to.have.an.Egg.Cream tonight. YUM. 


Lishie's Egg Cream 

• 3 TBSp Chocolate Syrup
• 1/2 cup ice cold Milk
• 1 cup plain Seltzer water

Squirt the syrup into the cup (I always eye the amount!) Add the milk & stir to completely mix, as if making chocolate milk. Wait till you have done this & only then open the seltzer & while stirring vigorously with one hand, add the seltzer in with the other. This will give you a beautiful, frothy drink!
I hope this gives you the feeling of old-fashioned days, soda jerks, & ice cream counters. ENJOY! 

Frothy goodness!