Posts Labeled ‘lemonade’

May 25th, 2011

Quench your Summer Thirst

photo by Meg Runion

 

When I opened the door to take the dog for a walk today, a wall of blazing heat hit me and I realized… summertime is upon us!

Keep your guests cool this summer with refreshing drinks like lemonade and iced tea. I love this display from Shannon and Darren’s wedding — particularly because they offered mint green tea instead of regular which added  a little pizazz.

Here are some fun recipes — some “full test,” others not — to serve this summer:

 

Stay cool out there!

June 22nd, 2010

A Twist on an Arnold Palmer

I am a big fan of Arnold Palmer… the drink, that is. (Though the golfer is pretty great, too!) Half iced-tea, half lemonade, the Arnold Palmer is refreshingly sweet — particularly during a heat wave like the one we’ve been having here in DC.

This month’s Bon Appetit features a fun “spiked” version of the drink, created by Damon Boelte, bar manager at Prime Meats in Brooklyn. The drink combines gin, jasmine tea, limoncello, lemon juice, and grapefruit juice. Delish!

The "Leland Palmer"; photo by Nigel Cox

Ingredients

1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup hot water
3 cups freshly brewed jasmine tea, cooled
3/4 cup gin
3/4 cup limoncello*
3/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup fresh grapefruit juice
1 cup chilled club soda
Ice cubes
6 lemon slices (for garnish)

Preparation

Stir honey and 1/2 cup hot water in small bowl until honey dissolves. Cool completely. Combine honey water, jasmine tea, gin, limoncello, lemon juice, and grapefruit juice in large pitcher. Add club soda and stir to blend. Fill six 1-pint mason jars or 6 tall glasses with ice cubes. Divide tea mixture among jars; top each with lemon slice.

* Limoncello, a lemon-flavored liqueur, can be found at many supermarkets, at Trader Joe’s markets, and at liquor stores.

July 28th, 2009

Lemonade: Liquid respite from the dog-days of summer.

Man, it is hot outside today! I dropped my friend Jill off in DC this morning and decided to sit outside at a coffee shop to do a little work and enjoy the city for a while. About a minute after sitting down at my shaded table I was totally and completely schvitzing. “Hmmm… Maybe working from the air-conditioned home office isn’t that bad? Should I go home?”

Seconds later:

Unlocking car.
Cruising across the Roosevelt Bridge.
Opening garage door.
Walking in house.
Ahhh!!

There’s nothing better than a climatized sanctuary offering refuge from a scorcher of a summer’s day. Except for, maybe, lemonade. On days like this, I usually find myself craving that particular citrus beverage. Something about it is so refreshing.

Here a few lemonade recipes particularly worth the effort:

Patrick O’Connell’s Classic Lemonade Recipe

I made this classic lemonade recipe when I got home today. Liquid gold, Patrick!

Champagne Lemonade

I served this champagne cocktail (mixed a large pitcher of it) for a dinner party a while back. It was a major hit.

Tyler Florence's Champagne Lemonade

Tyler Florence's Champagne Lemonade

Rosemary Lemonade

I first fell in love with rosemary lemonade at a business lunch at Vidalia years ago. They no longer include it on their menu but I was able to find this recipe which could be close. (According to Vidalia, their lemonades “are seasonal. Right now we are featuring peach lemonade and strawberry lemonade.” If they are even half as good as their rosemary-spiked sister I highly recommend checking them out!)

Stay cool (and well-hydrated!), everyone, and let me know if you have a favorite beat-the-summer-heat drink!