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This was refreshing to drink on a hot, humid, August afternoon. I am a BIG fan of bubble tea. I usually have to shell out about $5.00 on a ’small’ to get my fix. I have always wanted to learn to make my own…
My mother in law happened to have small tapioca pearls on hand, so i gave it a try. I ended up making enough for all 5 of us. First i tried shaking the milk and tea with ice, then i tried a blended version. I have had both in Asian cafe’s before, but usually like the frozen/ blended version better. The key to success i learned while making it is to use MORE SUGAR. The black tea was a really nice pick-me-up in the afternoon. If you are using large tapioca pearls, make sure you buy big straws to eat them with!
- 7 bags of black tea
- skim milk
- small bottle sugar syrup (like the kind used in coffee drinks – i used raspberry)
- 1 C tapioca pearls (traditionally the large kind, though small works too)
- ice
- Make the tea (1 bag per 6 oz water), add 1 C sugar syrup while the tea is still hot, and refrigerate.
- bring 4 C water to boil, and add tapioca pearls. boil for 25 minutes, remove from heat, and let sit for 25 more minutes.
- When the tapioca is finished, rinse and drain (or strain small pearls) with cool water. Put about 2 T in each glass.
- combine 1 C tea with 1 C milk and some ice cubes in a blender, and mix until frothy and frosty.
- Stir a couple teaspoons of tea into the glass with tapioca pearls to loosen them up, then pour in blended tea. Serve with a straw.
Okay, so I was set on making this the instant that I saw it on Smitten Kitchen’s site. Joe bought a somewhat sub-par watermelon whilst I was at the beach, so it seemed like the perfect opportunity to make lemonade of it. I made some alterations to taste while putting it together, so I feel okay about posting the recipe. I guess that’s how recipe blogging works…
- 2 C watermelon puree (using immersion blender)
- 1/2 C simple syrup
- 1 C lemon juice (gasp – from a bottle)
- 2 C water
Just mix it up and add ice to the serving glasses. Joe and I added a little gin to ours…
what could be more perfect for a summertime road trip than some really good limeade? it is super simple to make and DELICIOUS. why bother wasting money on a sugary drink at a gas station? we paid a dollar for 15 limes as our local (Alexandria) Latino grocery store, and cents for the sugar. It tastes better than any limeade i have ever had.
- 1 1/2 C sugar
- 8-10 limes (16 oz. lime juice thanks to our beach house’s electric juicer)
- 4 C water
heat sugar and 3 C water in microwave, stirring once, until sugar is fully dissolved. juice limes and mix with sugar water, adding additional water to taste.
I was feeling too lazy to walk/bike our dinner down to the water (1 1/2 mi. away), so we picnicked in the living room instead! The nettle cheese was a gift from my parents who brought it straight from Holland. You are supposed to be able to wait and let it age and harden in the fridge, but we couldn’t wait.
olive tapenade:
- 1 C Kalamata olives (i just grabbed a few varieties off the olive bar)
- 2 T capers
- 5 sun dried tomatoes, sliced
- 1 T fresh lemon juice
- 1 1/2 t fresh thyme, chopped
- 1/2 C extra virgin olive oil
- Freshly ground black pepper
- Pulse in a food processor until olives are sufficiently chopped up.
Dark + Stormy:
- 6 oz ginger beer
- 2 oz dark rum
- 1 lime wedge
- ice
Salad Dressing Recipe (link)
