Tag Archives: Drink

recipe goodness :: strawberry chamomile tea

Strawberry Chamomile Tea

Strawberry Chamomile Tea

It’s strawberry season! And when life gives you strawberries, make strawberry chamomile tea, of course! We gave this tea to all our freshocracy customers for mother’s day and I fell in love. The main ingredient is Berried Treasures Farm’s tristar strawberries that were frozen to preserve through the winter. After boiling them in cheesecloth with some chamomile you get this spectacularly red and sweet all natural drink that tastes just like summer. It’s the perfect thing to give your kids or enjoy yourself on a scorching day. And while it makes for a perfectly delightful refresher on its own, top it off with some seltzer, champagne or even tequila to jazz up your glass. Go to Ikea, buy some inexpensive bottles with rubber stoppers and show off your new concoction. This also makes a fantastic party or *just because* gift to share with friends.

Makes 6 quarts {if you don’t want to stock up, cut in half}

Courtesy of Chef Rick Jakobson 

2 lbs. frozen tristar strawberries
8 chamomile tea bags
6 quarts cold water
6.5-8 oz honey
2-3 lemons
generous pinch of kosher salt

  1. Wrap frozen strawberries and chamomile tea bags in cheesecloth and tie tightly to ensure no strawberries can get loose.
  2. Place cheesecloth in a large stockpot and cover with water. Add 6.5 oz honey.
  3. Bring to a boil and let simmer until strawberries release their flavor. Once water begins to boil, use a wooden spoon to squeeze the cheesecloth against the side of the pot to release the juice of the strawberries.
  4. Turn off stove and let steep for ~10 minutes. Squeeze cheesecloth one last time to release all the juice and remove from the pot.
  5. Add juice of 2 lemons and a generous pinch of kosher salt. Stir and taste. Add more honey or lemon as desired.
  6. Let cool and pour into bottles or pitchers.
  • Variation 1: Serve with a sprig of mint, topped off with a little seltzer
  • Variation 2: Serve with champagne {one part strawberry chamomile, 2 parts champagne}
  • Variation 3: Mix with white tequila and fresh of lime {2:1:1 tequila:strawberry tea:lime}

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recipe goodness :: celebrate with stand-out spanish sangria

Sangria "Fruit Punch"

I made this recipe for an 8.ate@eight dinner party and the pitcher was emptied before I could get the ice cubes out of the tray.  Ok thirsty party people, I guess we don’t need ice. I take that to be a sign of an outstanding concoction.  And since Memorial Day is this weekend {one of my favorite holidays since it signifies the start of BBQ season} I wanted to share this stand-out sangria recipe — very easy to throw together and nice to have something done ahead of time for a party! This is one of the best sangria recipes I’ve made, if I do say so myself.

Spanish Sangria!

1/2 cup brandy
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/3 cup frozen lemonade concentrate
1/3 cup orange juice
1 (750 milliliter) bottle dry red wine
1/2 cup triple sec
1 lemon, sliced into rounds
1 orange, sliced into rounds
1 lime, sliced into rounds
1/4 cup white sugar (optional)
8 maraschino cherries
2 cups carbonated water (optional)

In a large pitcher or bowl, mix together the brandy, lemon juice, lemonade concentrate, orange juice, red wine, triple sec, and sugar. Float slices of lemon, orange and lime, and maraschino cherries in the mixture. Refrigerate overnight for best flavor. For a fizzy sangria, add club soda just before serving. Ole!

And something to go with that glass of good grouse:
Avocado & Tropical Fruit Salsa {also good as an entree side}
Creole Roasted Fresh Corn-Tomato Salsa
Fresh Lime-Margarita Marinated Watermelon{double duty bites}

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Cinco de Mayo: A Day to Celebrate Mexican Pride {and Drink}

The Fixins' for Fresh Lime Margaritas

Contrary to popular belief, Cinco de Mayo is not the celebration of Mexican independence, but rather a day to celebrate Mexican pride and heritage. What better way than with a mariachi band and margarita. If you’re going all out and planning to have a party on your rooftop, then this is a recipe you definitely want to impress your guests with. Good grapefruit is still available at the store and, in my opinion, is a necessary component to a ‘rita rockin’ the citrus blend. Please oh please don’t buy the pre-made mix. If you’re going to make our Mexican compadres proud, get out your juicer and put a little squeeze into your spirits. Don’t be afraid, this is not that spicy, but the chili adds a depth to the drink that cuts through all that citrus and makes it truly tasty. By the way, did you know margarita means daisy in spanish? Doesn’t that just sound like a delightful name for a killer cocktail?

Ancho Chili Margarita with Fresh Lime-Orange-Grapefruit Juice

Recipe:
2 0z tequila
2 oz mixed juice {lime, orange, grapefruit, agave}
ice
kosher salt and lime slice for rim

What you Need {See below for proportions}:
1 Bottle Tequila Blanco {I find the white tequila is smoother}
1 Dried Ancho Chili
Raw Agave
Limes
Oranges
Grapefruits

Fresh Squeezed Lime, Orange, Grapefruit

People experiment with the proportions of tequila to lime juice all the time, so it’s just a matter of personal taste.  Since my recipe uses fresh squeezed juice and a little raw agave for sweetness, you don’t need to add any triple sec or cointreau. And because of the fresh juice, I like to make this one with a 1:1 proportion of tequila to fruit juice. Here’s what you can expect to get from all that squeezing {approximately}.

8 limes=8 ounces
4 juice oranges=8 ounces
1 grapefruit=7 ounces

Figure out how many total drinks you plan on making. You need 2 oz of tequila and 2 oz of juice for every drink, so multiply that to know how much you need in total of both. Here’s an example to figure out how much of everything you need to make 3 drinks for 4 people. Adjust to fit your crew!

  1. 2 hours before you plan to serve the margaritas, add one dried ancho chili to the bottle of tequila. Note: the longer this soaks, the less spicy it will get as the pepper actually breaks down in the tequila. If you don’t plan on using an entire bottle, you may want to pour the tequila over the pepper in a separate container and watch it turn a cool red hue!
  2. Juice all of your limes, oranges and grapefruits into a separate container. Add 1 tsp of agave for every 8oz of total fresh fruit juice.  Mix thoroughly and chill. Keep a few lime halves to run across the top of your glasses later to make the salt stick.
  3. Ready to drink? Run a leftover lime half around the rim of a chilled glass. Pour some kosher salt on a plate and dip the rim in the salt if desired. Fill the glass with ice.
  4. You can either use a cocktail shaker or just mix equal parts tequila and fresh fruit juice in a pitcher and pour over ice in each glass.
  5. Stir, sip, enjoy, repeat.

What’s A Cinco de Mayo Party Without Salsa?!:
Avocado & Tropical Fruit Salsa
Creole Roasted Fresh Corn-Tomato Salsa

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