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With temperatures soaring to near triple digits, why not cool off with something better than ordinary lemonade. You can whip up a batch of this refreshing triple citrus-ade at a moments notice, and enjoy the delicious taste of your favorite citrus fruits all in one!
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup fresh orange juice (from 3 oranges), strained
1/4 cup fresh lime juice (from 3 limes), strained
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (from 3 lemons), strained
orange, lime, and lemon slices, for serving
In a heatproof bowl, combine sugar with 1/2 cup hot water and stir until sugar dissolves. Add 2 cups cold water and fruit juices. To serve, transfer to a pitcher with ice and top with citrus slices. Store in refrigerator up to 3 days!
For this and many other great summer food and drink ideas, pick up the Everyday Food Special "Summer Entertaining" issue on newstands and in stores now or order online!
Summer is in full swing and a deliciously different and healthy way of taking advantage of the best summer produce is this unique gazpacho made up of fresh watermelon, and packed with a few fresh vegetables. Traditionally, gazpacho is a Spanish cold tomato based soup containing many raw vegetables and herbs. This version is a little sweet a little savory and perfect served anytime during the hot summer weather, and the colors are just gorgeous!
Ingredients:
5 cups peeled, seeded, and roughly chopped watermelon, plus 1 cup finely chopped
1/2 cup cranberry juice
1 cup peeled, seeded, and diced cucumber
1 cup diced celery (about 2 ribs)
3/4 cup diced red bell pepper (about 1 pepper)
1/4 cup diced red onion
1/4 cup fresh mint leaves, minced
1/4 cup fresh Italian flat-leaf parsley, minced
Juice of 1 lime (about 3 tablespoons)
1-1/2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
1 tablespoon jalapeno pepper, minced
Combine the 5 cups of watermelon and the cranberry juice in the bowl of a food processor, and puree until mixture is smooth.
Pass through a fine sieve into a large container, discarding pulp. You should have 3 cups of strained liquid.
Add all the remaining ingredients to the watermelon liquid, and stir to combine. Cover with plastic wrap, and place in refrigerator until soup in well chilled, at least 1 hour.
Serve cold and enjoy. Store the rest in the refrigerator up to 1 day!
Summer is officially upon us and always looking for sweet and delicious treats to enjoy during the summer, I came upon this recipe I saw many years ago and have yet to try, until now! The name "bonbon" is French, meaning "good-good" and refers to any of several types of sweets, especially small candies enrobed in chocolate.
The first reports of bonbons come from the 17th century, when they were made at the French royal court. This particular version, is made using coconut sorbet, shredded coconut and almonds, and are perfect little treats to enjoy outside on a hot summer day!
Very simple to make, all you need are a few ingredients and these can be ready in about an hour! Get the complete recipe here: Coconut Bonbons
You'll need some Nabisco Famous Chocolate Wafer Cookies, coconut sorbet, shredded unsweetened coconut, whole almonds, some semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate and little vegetable shortening.
On a wire rack, placed onto a sheet pan, place the wafers, top side down, spaced evenly. Add some shredded coconut in the center of each wafer, top with a small scoop of sorbet, and an almond on each. Put the pan in the freezer for at least 20 minutes.
In a heat-proof bowl, set over a pan of barely simmering water, melt the chocolate and shortening until nice and smooth. Remove from heat and cool slightly.
Remove the baking pan from freezer and ladle a good amount of the melted chocolate over the bonbons, completely covering the entire bonbon. Remember to work fast as the warm chocolate will start to melt the sorbet slightly. Return the baking pan to the freezer for at least 30 minutes or overnight, if not serving right away. Enjoy!!
Always curious to try new recipes, a friend of mine shared this recipe for an interesting casserole and of course, I wanted to give it a test! Now this is generally not something I would make, given its high fat and caloric content, and use of pre-made and canned ingredients. It still peaked my interest to try it, at least once.
Although tater-tot casserole recipes are available by the dozen, online, and in community cookbooks all across America, this particular recipe utilizes Campbell's Golden Mushroom soup, which is new to me!
There are only 5 ingredients and this can be whipped in a pinch when those unexpected guests drop by!
1 lb ground beef (80/20), 1 large onion (sliced), 1 (2 lb) bag tater-tots, 2 cans of Campbell's Golden Mushroom soup and 1 lb shredded cheddar cheese.
Crumble the ground beef in a 13 x 9 baking dish, season with coarse salt & pepper
Add the sliced onion in an even single layer on top of the ground beef.
Add the entire bag of tater-tots, evenly across the top of the onions.
Now, pour both cans of soup on top of the tots, and spread evenly to the edges.
Sprinkle the shredded cheese evenly over the top.
Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for about 45 minutes to an hour, until the cheese is melted, slightly browned and its bubbling nicely!!
Serve this up, garnished with a little fresh cilantro, and enjoy!
Guaranteed to be a hit at your next pot-luck or week-night meal!
Osso Buco is an Italian specialty of veal shanks braised, usually in a white wine, and traditionally garnished with gremolata and served with a Risotto Milanese.There are 2 types of Osso Buco. A modern version served with tomatoes, carrots, celery and onions and the original version which does not include the vegetables other than onion. The recipe I'm sharing here is the original version.
The name Ossobuco or Osso Buco is Italian for "bone with a hole" (osso bone, buco hole), a reference to the marrow hole at the center of the cross-cut veal shank.
This recipe comes from the book "Lucinda's Rustic Italian Kitchen" by Lucinda Scala Quinn, and was featured on her television show "Mad Hungry".
Recently celebrating my 41st birthday, I wanted to make this as a special birthday dinner for myself.
First step I did was to make the gremolata which is a simple garnish to sprinkle on top of the finished dish.
For this, you combine 3 tablespoons of finely minced Italian Flat-leaf parsley, 1-1/2 tablespoons each of minced lemon and orange zest, (If you have a Microplane zester, this step is easily done just by "zesting" the fruit), and 3 cloves of garlic, minced. Combine this all in a small bowl and set aside.
The dish's primary ingredient, veal shank, is a common, relatively cheap and flavorful cut. Although tough, braising makes it tender. The cut traditionally used for this dish comes from the top of the thigh which has a higher proportion of meat to bone.
Now, when I decided to make this dish, I never realized how hard, almost impossible, it is to find veal shanks in my area. I live in one of the largest cities in Michigan, just outside of Detroit, and I looked for veal shanks in several butcher shops and high-end markets, I even checked out many of the large meat purveyors in Detroit's Eastern Market, including a few slaughter houses (I was sided by side with skinned cows hanging from meat hooks in giant walk-in coolers), and could not find veal shanks to save my life! I was to the point where I was about to give up on making this dish, but I didn't. It took me a couple more days, but finally located veal shanks at a large produce market, less than 10 minutes from my house, go figure.
You'll need 6 shanks for this recipe. First lay them out and season them on both sides with coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Next, lightly coat them, in a fine all-purpose flour such as "Wondra" flour, shake off the excess.
Heat a large heavy-bottom pan over high heat. Add 2 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil and 2 tablespoons unsalted butter to the pan and swirl them around. Add the shanks and cook for about 3 minutes per side.
Cook the shanks until they are nicely browned on both sides.
Add 2-1/2 cups of a good quality Italian white wine, such as Pinot Grigio and stir it occasionally to de-glaze and loosen the browned bits on the bottom of the pan. Reduce heat to medium-low, partially cover, and simmer for 30 minutes. Turn the meat and cook until tender, about 30-45 minutes more.
While the meat is cooking, make the Risotto Milanese. One of the unique ingredients in this risotto is saffron, which gives this an enticing fragrance. You only need 2 teaspoons of saffron threads for this recipe and remember, this is the worlds most expensive spice, so a little does go a long way!
Add the saffron to 5 cups of hot chicken stock, stirring to infuse. Set aside.
In a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, add 2 tablespoons of olive oil, heat until hot and add 1 small onion, finely diced, cook until soft and translucent, 8 to 10 minutes.
Next add 2 cups of Arborio rice and cook, stirring, until toasted and opaque, 3 to 4 minutes.
Add 1/3 cup dry white wine and cook, stirring until almost evaporated. Add 1 cup of the stock and cook, stirring, until almost all the liquid is absorbed. Continue cooking, adding 1 cup stock at a time and stirring until each addition as been absorbed before adding more stock. Continue process until rice is tender and creamy but still slightly al dente, about 17-20 minutes. You may not use all of the stock.
Stir in 3 tablespoons of unsalted butter and 1/2 cup of freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese until well combined.
By now, the veal should be done, serve immediately with a little of the pan sauce and sprinkled with a bit of the gremolata, along with the risotto, sprinkled with a little more Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. A wonderful Italian Sunday dinner!
