Lemons, Berries, and Summer Sun

Hey there!  It's been awhile.  A couple of months awhile.  As it usually goes, the time away wasn't planned or intentional.  But it happened, and it does happen every once in a blue moon.  Let me show you why I took a break and found my hands full.

Yep...I became a kitten mamma.  I brought in two feral litters that were born around the building I live in.  Originally, there were seven.  Unfortunately, I lost two...so I still have five kittens who are growing, eating huge amounts of food, and learning how to get into everything (and driving the older cats crazy!).  It's been a learning experience for sure and as soon as they are up to date on vaccinations, and have been spayed/neutered, four of them will be finding new homes.  Yes, I have a favourite who is staying with me.  He's a scrappy little piece of fluff who I always found curled up by my neck every morning the first couple of weeks I had them inside.  Meet Sonic.  (As in the Hedgehog)

Since I managed to skip most of Spring on here...let's jump right into Summer, shall we?  Being Independence Day, it's the perfect excuse (not like I need one) to bring out the lemonade.  From my last produce co-op exchange, I brought home a huge amount of lemons since it seemed that everyone with trees had a bounty to cull from.  And what's better to make from lemons than lemonade, except maybe lemon curd?  An even nicer touch to lemonade is how it can easily go from a refreshing Summer drink to adult beverage with a little alcohol.

I took it a step further by adding blueberries, because I am a sucker for any lemonade with berries added.  So when life hands you lemons and blueberries...make lemonade.

Have a happy and safe Independence Day!  And keep your pets safe when the fireworks go off tonight!

Blueberry Lemonade

Adapted from a recipe on Allrecipes.com

Makes about half a gallon

1 1/2 cups sugar

8 cups water

1 1/2 cups lemon juice

1 5 oz clamshell blueberries

In a medium saucepan, add one cup water with the sugar.  Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally until the sugar dissolves.  Remove from heat and allow to cool.  In a small saucepan, add the washed blueberries and a scant 1/4 cup water.  Bring to a low boil, breaking berries with the back of a spoon until you have a thick fruit syrup.  

In a container large enough, add the blueberry syrup, lemon juice, simple syrup, and the remaining water.  Chill and serve over ice.  

To make an adult beverage--add a shot of vodka to a 12 oz glass of lemonade.  And maybe a spritz of tonic or club soda.  

Cheers!

Hiding in the Shrubs

Up until a couple of years ago, the only definition I knew for 'shrub' was something along the lines of 'a woody plant smaller than a tree.'  Thanks, Dictionary.com.  A shrub was something green, generally round, and bordered your property line or was planted in neat rows down the length of your driveway.  Then I discovered a whole new definition:  '...a sweetened vinegar-based syrup, a drinking vinegar...often infused with fruit juice, herbs, and spices for use in mixed drinks.'  My first reaction?  'Hell, yes, count me in!'

So it was the October 2012 issue of Sunset magazine where I first discovered this mysterious shrub.  Considering how I've rarely used vinegar for more than salad dressings or for pickling, I was very interested in trying it.  The Sunset recipe is for a cranberry shrub and since it was perfect for Fall, I jumped right into making it.  Happily, it's easy-peasy to make and it truly is a great mixer for cocktails.  I also love drinking them as a soda, where one part shrub to 2 parts sparkling water or club soda on ice is a treat.

1've used the Sunset magazine recipe as my base for the shrubs since that first time.  Over the past couple of years, there has been cranberry, raspberry, Italian prune plum, and the latest incarnation...gala apple.  A little swap of apple cider vinegar for the red wine vinegar, the addition of an overripe Bartlett pear, and this mix is so, so, so perfect for Fall.  I also took it upon myself to make a little Fall cocktail that's perfect for sharing.


Gala Apple Shrub
Adapted from the Sunset recipe
Makes about 2 1/2 cups

3-4 Gala apples, cut into small pieces 
1 pear, cut into small pieces
1 cup sugar 
3/4 cup apple cider vinegar
2 cups water

In a medium saucepan, add all the ingredients and bring to a low boil over medium heat.  Stir occasionally and with the back of the spoon, smash the fruit as much as you can.  Let simmer for about 10-15 minutes, making sure all the sugar has dissolved.  Place a fine mesh sieve or a medium size bowl and pour the shrub into the bowl.  Let the shrub drain and press the fruit to get as much liquid from them as you can.  Allow to cool, then store in a bottle in the fridge.  Lasts at least 2 weeks.

Note:  You don't need to peel the apples or pear.  

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Apple & Rye
Serves 2 (and maybe a wee bit more)

1 fl. oz ginger simple syrup
4 fl. oz gala apple shrub
2 fl. oz rye whiskey
tonic water
ice
apple slices, thin, for garnish

Throw all the ingredients into a cocktail shaker with ice.  Shake vigorously to mix.  In two old fashioned glasses, add ice cubes and a thin slice of apple.  Pour in cocktail three-quarters of the way and top with tonic water.  Toast.  

Note:  If you don't have the ginger simple syrup, I recommend making some.  It will last for awhile and you'll be able to use it in many drinks.  If you don't want ginger, make a plain simple syrup and muddle a thin slice of ginger in your glass and discard before adding ice and the cocktail.  To make the ginger simple syrup, in a saucepan, add one cup water and one cup sugar.  Bring to a boil over medium heat and stir frequently to allow sugar to dissolve.  Add 3 or 4 3-inch pieces of ginger. Allow mixture to come to a simmer.  Remove from heat.  Let mixture steep for half an hour or so.  Discard ginger and store syrup in the fridge.  

Morning Glow

In the early hours of Sunday morning, we turned our clocks back from Daylight Savings Time to Standard Time.  I've never thought much about how it affected me.  I lamented about losing that precious hour back in March and while I initially kind of missed the early darkness, having the long days grew on me.

For the last couple of months, I was having the worst time waking up in the mornings.  I always have my alarm clocks (a clock on my dresser and my old Blackberry) set for 6:00 a.m, even on the weekends.  The intention:  waking up to enjoy the quiet of the morning, maybe going out to a farmers market on the weekend, or the gym.  Even if I never made it out the front door, I could leisurely enjoy a cup of coffee, the morning news, and spend time with happily fed cats.  But day after day, I would hit that 'snooze' button...and hit it...and hit it.  Six a.m. turned into 7, turned into 7:45, turned into 8:30.  I'm always a little peeved with myself after sleeping in, feeling like I've already wasted too much of the day.

Well...four days in and I am up and out of bed by 7:00.  My internal clock is in tune with the start of The Today Show every morning.  Yes...I still hit the snooze button, but for two, not two dozen times.  I have even found myself waking up before the alarm goes off and before any cat comes to tell me it's time for breakfast.

My bedroom has north-facing windows, but I get a flicker of rising sun (from a bounce of light off the neighbour's window) in the morning.  Maybe it's the time of year, but there is a warm golden glow that slips through the curtains in the morning.  It's the kind of light that makes me want something warm and comfort food-ish for breakfast instead of a bowl of cereal or toast.  Since we're only a couple of weeks away from Thanksgiving, I almost feel obliged to make something with pumpkin.  I'm going to run with it.  Pumpkin is finally growing on me, though I find it a little bland.  Is this normal?  Is it really everything else in a pumpkin pie that makes people mad-crazy for it?  There's still half a can left, so rest assured, I'll be making more pumpkin-centric foods over the next couple of days.

I went with a dish that I've been coming across pretty frequently on blogs and Pinterest.  Baked oatmeal.  No fancy ingredients.  Spices that you probably already have in your pantry.  Not a lot of time needed to bake.  The kind of dish that tastes indulgent and feels like you spent more time on it than you actually did.  This isn't the kind of dish you need to wait until the weekend to make.  It is for all these reasons and because baked oatmeal is just so good, that you need to make this.

 Baked Oatmeal with Pumpkin and Maple Creme Fraiche
Adapted from a recipe on Egginon
Serves 2 

1 cup quick oats
1 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp five spice powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ginger
pinch of salt
1 cup milk
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup pumpkin 

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.  In a medium bowl, combine the oats, sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and five spice.  In a small bowl, combine the milk, egg, vanilla, and pumpkin and whisk until fully mixed.  Add wet ingredients to dry and mix well.  

Pour batter into a oven-proof baking dish (I used a 5x7 shallow baking dish) and bake for 25 minutes.  Serve while still quite warm.

Maple Creme Fraiche
Makes 1/4 cup

1/4 cup creme fraiche
1 Tbsp maple syrup

Gently whisk the syrup with the creme fraiche and spoon over baked oatmeal right before serving.  If you don't have creme fraiche, you can easily swap out plain or vanilla yogurt mixed with the maple syrup or drizzle maple syrup directly over the oatmeal.  The creme fraiche just tips the scales into indulgent.  

Lucky in the morning light.