Brewed Iced Tea

I debated making this post because it hardly feels like a recipe - there is almost no effort required! But this iced tea is reminiscent of the sun tea my mom used to make while I was growing up, and it is a staple in my life now. And honestly, I don't even care that it breaks every rule in the proper tea-drinking book. It's delicious, and that's enough for me. I can drink it all day long without guilt, since there is just enough sugar in it to take out the edge off from the over-steeped tea tannins. This is a great drink if you are wanting to cut out or reduce the amount of pop you drink, but aren't a huge fan of plain water.

Typically, I double this recipe, so these proportions can be adapted to suit your needs. I have also had great success by substituting the orange pekoe for Twinnings Earl Grey. I find bottled lemon juice in this drink to taste the best. I have used fresh lemons before... and honestly, it's not the same. But, feel free if you prefer the taste of fresh lemon juice yourself.

Recipe
Author: Amanda
Difficulty: easy
Makes 1 litre

Ingredients

• 2 orange pekoe tea bags
• 2 tablespoons white sugar
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 litre boiling water

Directions
Place tea bags in heat-proof glass or plastic pitcher. Add boiling water, and let steep at least two hours. Remove tea bags, add sugar and lemon juice. Stir well. Chill well before serving.

Step-by-Step Photos

Toss a couple tea bags in a heat-resistant pitcher or glass jar. Super easy!

Bring a litre of water to boil.

Add the boiling water to the tea bags. Also easy!

Steep for at least two hours. It's totally okay if you let it sit for even longer - I actually forgot about this until the next morning. It's still delicious.

Remove the tea bags so you can add the sugar and lemon juice. Stir well, or all the sugar will sit at the bottom.

Serve well chilled. This ice tea is my addiction. I really can't get enough. Ever.

Homemade Coconut Milk

BPA free sound good? Homemade sound fun?! Let's make some homemade coconut milk! I have become sick of buying canned coconut milk as it seems expensive for what you really get, so I grabbed a 2 KG bag of unsweetened shredded coconut at costco for $11 and decided to make my own.


Difficulty: easy peasy
Author: adapted from wellness mama.

Ingredients 

• 2 cups unsweetened coconut 
• 4 cups water 

Directions

Place 4 cups of water and 2 cups of unsweetened shredded coconut into vitamix. Turn that baby on slowly working up to ten speed then flipping the ultra power switch.

Blend for about 5 minutes or until thick and creamy.

Next, grab a large bowl and a strainer. Pour coconut mixture into strainer a little bit at a time being careful you don't over fill it. Once you've separated the fiber from the liquid you have coconut milk!

Put the coconut milk into a mason jar and place in the fridge for up to three days. Use it to make coconut rice, banana coconut smoothies and tons more. Enjoy. 

Green Juice 1

Last year, my wonderful boyfriend got me a juicer for my birthday. It is so much fun to play with, and fresh juice has incorporated itself into my diet on a somewhat regular basis. I go through fits and starts with juicing - because so much produce is used for one serving of juice, I try to make juices from what I find on sale. This week, I was in luck! Pineapples were on sale for $2, and I found a discounted bag of Shanghi Bok Choy that was on the cusp of usability. I've grown fond of the after-bite a jalapeno pepper and fresh ginger add, so they tend to be staples in my juicing habits. All in all, this juice cost less than two dollars a serving, which is a steal compared to a juice bar.

Recipe: Green Juice 1
Difficulty: easy
Author: Amanda
Serves: one large glass or two small glasses

Ingredients

• 2 bulbs Shanghi Bok Choy (or any kind of bok choy)
• 1/4 fresh pineapple
• 1 green apple
• 1/2 field cucumber
• 1 jalapeno pepper
• 1 inch segment fresh ginger

Directions
Separate and wash bok choy leaves well. Cut off the top and bottom ends of the pineapple, peel, and quarter with the core intact. Wash the cucumber and apple, and cut in half. Trim the top end off the jalapeno pepper, and cut an approximately one inch segment off the fresh ginger. Put all items through the juicer on appropriate settings for firmness, and serve immediately.

Step-by-Step Photos

Rinse, separate, and prepare everything for the juice. Once you get started, it moves really quickly so you need to have everything ready to go. Every juicer is a little different, so how big you can leave your fruits and veggies is dependent on what machine you are using.

Juice ingredients, adjusting juicer settings depending on item firmness. I usually try to start with the apple or cucumber because of the high water content - that way the bok choy can get sandwiched between the other ingredients. I don't know if that actually is more effective, but it makes me feel like it is. So that's what I do.

Pour juice from receptacle to a glass, while attempting to keep the foam from the glass. Fresh juice foam tastes a little scummy to me and has an odd texture, but if you like it you can go ahead and drink that too.

Serve immediately. Fresh juice may start separating if left alone for a few minutes, so I usually use a straw or a spoon to stir it occasionally as I drink it. I found this juice filling, refreshing, and with a nice kick at the end from the jalapeno. Delicious.

Whole Wheat Walnut Tea Biscuits

Baking was my introduction to being on my own in the kitchen. There's something just so inherently satisfying about taking some very basic ingredients, mixing them together in a certain way, apply heat, and like magic, you have something delicious instead. It's like science you can eat. I don't bake as much anymore unless I know I'm having company over or will bring my treats to work to share, but these tea biscuits were the perfect vehicle for the Caramel Pear Butter Paige and I made last month. I try to use whole wheat at least in part whenever I bake to help offset the empty carb ratio. Either way, the whole wheat adds a nice "rustic" feel to the biscuits, and I added the walnuts which are a welcome crunch.

Recipe
Makes about 20 biscuits
Author: adapted from Joy of Cooking
Difficulty: easy

Ingredients

• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup chopped raw walnuts
• 1/3 cup butter or shortening
• 1 cup sour cream or buttermilk

Directions
Whisk together dry ingredients in a bowl. Cut butter into dry ingredients until consistency of small crumbs. Stir in chopped walnuts. Stir in buttermilk with a fork, stirring just until the dough comes away from the sides of the bowl. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured board. Knead gently and quickly, 8-10 times. Roll out with a lightly floured rolling pin to beween 1/4-1/2 inch thick. Cut into buscuits, and place on ungreased baking sheet. Bake at 450F until lightly browned, 12-15 minutes.

Step-by-Step Photos

I didn't have any buttermilk or sour cream on hand, so I just made some pseudo-buttermilk that is suitable for baking. Measure out one cup of milk, and add one teaspoon vinegar. Apparently apple cider vinegar can affect the taste (I didn't notice for this recipe), but white vinegar is perfect. Add the vinegar, give the milk a brief stir, and let sit until ready to add to the dry ingredients.

Add dry ingredients into a medium mixing bowl, and whisk together.

Add the butter, cold, and use a pastry blender or two knives to cut the butter into the dry ingredients until it has a crumbly consistency.

Add the half cup of chopped walnuts, and stir to combine.

Make a well in the dry ingredients and add the buttermilk, which should have sat for long enough by now if you made it yourself.

Use a fork to stir the mixture just until combined and pulls away from the edges of the bowl. If you over-stir, you risk having tough-tasting biscuits, which is simply no good at all.

I hate fighting with the mess dough makes on bare counter tops, and I don't have a pastry mat. But I had an epiphany - and it turns out that a couple of placemats make for a great pastry mat in a pinch!

Dust your workspace with flour and dump the dough out on to the flour. Briefly knead the dough, folding it over and pushing the fold into the dough, turning the dough over as you go, about 8-10 times.

Dust a rolling pin (or empty wine bottle with the label scrubbed off) with flour and roll the dough out into an approximate rectangle about 1/2 inch thick.

I don't have any cookie cutters, so I used a mason jar ring to cut out the biscuits. It ended up working perfectly.

Using a cookie cutter or mason jar ring, firmly press out the biscuits from the dough. Remove the formed biscuits, and briefly knead the leftover dough and repeat the above steps to fully utilize the dough to get another round of biscuits from it. I personally only did it once, but if you are feeling particularly ambitious you can probably get 3 sets of biscuits from the dough.

Line a couple baking sheets with parchment paper and lay out the biscuits.

Bake in a preheated oven at 450F for 12-15 minutes. If baking with two trays at a time, switch their positions in the over half way through baking time. Cool biscuits on a wire rack, if available.

Serve plain, or with butter, jam, or preserves. I gobbled mine down with that delicious caramel pear butter, pictured here.