Fresh Blueberries for Blueberry Lemonade

Although House Cook is located firmly in suburbia, this area near Atlanta is a bit odd. It grew so fast that in some ways the landscape never had time to catch up. Down the street from House Cook is a tangle of trees that hides a fantastic blueberry patch. Many of our neighbors like to tromp into the woods and pick fresh blueberries, and a few days ago we joined them.

Grabbing tupperware and boots, we trooped out into the undergrowth to hunt for delicious, ripe berries.

It was fantastic! Many of the bushes still had berries that weren't yet ripe, but we found plenty that were.

Looking for something delicious to do with the berries besides just gobble them all up before getting home, we've decided to bring you fresh blueberry lemonade.

 Fresh Blueberry Lemonade Recipe

Ingredients

3/4 c hot water

3/4 c sugar

1 c fresh lemon juice

1 c fresh blueberries

4 c cold water (or sparkling water)

Step 1: Puree together your hot water, sugar, lemon juice, and blueberries until everything is thoroughly mixed. 

Step 2: Pour your mixture into a pitcher through a fine mesh strainer (unless, of course, you like the pulp in which case just dump it all in). 

Step 3: Stir in your cold or sparkling water, serve over ice and enjoy! 

Champagne Julep: a classic drink to celebrate us all being back together

Huzzah! The sisters of House Cook are all together for the first time in several months! To celebrate all being together...and since we're here in the South...we're toasting the day with Champagne Mint Juleps  These delicious, fresh drinks are perfect for the hot weather and a sweet way to celebrate in the humid heat. 

Champagne Julep Recipe

Ingredients:

Makes 4 cocktails

fresh mint leaves

4 oz aged rum

6 tsp powdered sugar

3 cups champagne 

cracked ice

Bruise your mint leaves by crushing them between your fingers and mix your leaves, sugar, and rum with the ice until the sugar is thoroughly dissolved. Pour in your champagne and stir. Once all of your ingredients are mixed, pour into glasses and serve cold. I added an extra sprig of mint leaves to each glass as a garnish. 

Dragon's Breath Dawn: an iced drink for the hot summer

This week has felt dragon-filled for us in House Cook. Our Khalee-C, Julianne, and one of her dragons have been traveling across the country with the oldest in our bunch, Sarah-Lambert. We'll share more about their travels later, but for now we introduce you to the tasty drink they enjoyed last night. 

Yesterday was a hot Kansas day for our two wanderers and today promises to be hotter with temperatures topping 100 degrees. Still, it's not as bad as the Texas heat which felt like having a hair dryer on high pointed at your face. To cool down, we've created a delicious and pretty drink that's like an Orange Julius meets an Hawaiian Sunrise: our very own Dragon's Breath Dawn. 

This tasty drink is cool and refreshingly sweet with a hint of lime to give it a nice bite. 

Dragon's Breath Dawn Recipe

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

3/4 cup vanilla ice cream

3/4 cup orange sherbet 

1 tbsp fresh lime juice

1 1/2  cups orange juice 

dash of maraschino cherry juice (per glass)

1 cup crushed ice

Blend together ice cream, sherbet, orange juice, and lime juice. Once they are totally mixed, mix in the crushed ice. Pour into glasses and drizzle no more than a teaspoon of maraschino cherry juice in each glass.  Drink right away for a nice, cold treat!