I’m not a big soda drinker. That’s not to say I never have soda, but it’s not really something I enjoy. Except for the root beer at our favorite local restaurant. They brew it in house with local honey and it is delicious.
My biggest issue with soda is that I can hardly read the majority of the ingredients listed. And I don’t know about you, but normally if I can’t read it, I don’t eat it {with the except of food in foreign languages. That I eat.}
We bought a Soda Stream with a gift card we received from our wedding and were excited to try making our own sodas. We love to drink the carbonated water by itself, but sometimes it’s nice to dress up a glass of soda water with some extra flavor. This first attempt was a great success!
by The Splattered Apron
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Keywords: beverage
- Grated zest of 1 medium orange
- Grated zest of 1 large lime
- Grated zest of 1 large lemon
- 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg, preferably freshly grated
- 1/4 teaspoon cocoa powder
- 1 section of a star anise pod, crushed
- 1/2 teaspoon dried lavender flowers
- 1 1/2 inch of ginger, peeled and sliced into coins
- 1 one-and-a-half-inch piece vanilla bean, split
- 1/4 teaspoon citric acid {we ordered ours from Amazon}
- 2 cups plus 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 tablespoon (packed) light brown sugar
Combine all of the zest, cinnamon, nutmeg, cocoa powder, star anise, lavender, ginger, vanilla and citric acid with 2 cups of water. In a pot, bring the mixture to a simmer over medium heat. Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer for 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, use a spice grinder or a food processor and grind the sugars together for one minute or so; this will help the sugar dissolve. Pour the sugar into a bowl.
Place a double layer of cheesecloth over a sieve.
Then pour the heated mixture into the sieve.
The cheesecloth will catch all of the solids. Lift up the corners of the cheesecloth and twist it together to squeeze out all of the liquid.
Stir the syrup and let cool, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes to help the sugar dissolve. Transfer to a ball jar and refrigerate.
To make soda, add 1/4 cup of syrup to 1/2 cup of soda water. Stir and serve over ice.
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Once it’s mixed it certainly doesn’t look like soda—that’s because there’s no artificial coloring!
I love this new drink of ours. The fresh ginger gives it a wonderful spiciness and the cocoa powder comes through with a bit of richness.
The best part? I know every single ingredient that went into this recipe. I’m not sure I’ll ever drink regular soda again.
The most obscure ingredient in this recipe is citric acid. Who has citric acid sitting around? Certainly not us! Jeromy hunted it down and found it on Amazon, but we were not prepared for what arrived. Instead of a small bag of citric acid powder, we ended up with 3 large bags! There’s no way we can ever use all of this up so I am giving away 2 bags to 2 readers!
How to enter:
- Just leave a comment and tell me what you’ll make with citric acid.
This giveaway is open to U.S. residents only and entries will be accepted until midnight Tuesday, July 3. I will randomly select a winner using random.org.
Happy Weekend, friends!
Recipe adapted from The New York Times.
Earlier this year I participated in Tina Reale’s first Best Body Boot Camp. I loved it. It was my jumpstart to getting back in shape after having Caroline.
When the accountability provided by Tina, I stuck with the program. I saw results. I felt fantastic. Which is why I am so excited that Tina is offering Boot Camp again!
Starting July 23, I am going to boot camp!! Want to join me? It’s only $25 for 8 weeks of training plans and support! Boot camp is open to anyone and everyone—you don’t have to be a blogger to participate! Click here to register.
So are you in? Let’s go to boot camp!
Happy Wednesday! Tomorrow is my Friday and we’re off to Massachusetts for a family wedding and to celebrate the Fourth of July. Woo hoo! While there, I’m planning to run the Fourth of July road race in my hometown. This race will be my first since Caroline was born and I can’t wait to tell you all about it.
During our last visit home I was able to squeeze in a circuit workout. I loved that it didn’t require any equipment and left my legs shaking and my heart pounding.
source: Pinterest, credited to lovespiral.tumblr.com
As much as I would love to take the time to create my own workouts, it’s just not one of my priorities as a working mom. Especially when there are so many talented bloggers out there that put together some serious workouts {I’m looking at you, Lindsay, Madeline and Tina}. Check out my Pinterest workout board for some of my favorites!
I’m always looking for more workouts to add to my list.
What’s your favorite source for workouts?
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HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DAD!!! I love you and can’t wait to celebrate your birthday when we get home!
One of the things that Jeromy and I love about our new house is the neighborhood. Not just the area but our neighbors. There are so many other young {can I still call us young?} families and we have truly enjoyed getting to know all of them. We end up having dinner with our neighbors almost once a week. Sometimes, like this past weekend, we have dinner with our neighbors three nights in a row. Like I said, we love our neighbors.
For one of our neighborhood cookouts I made tabbouleh and I wanted to bring a dessert. Given that it was rather hot, I didn’t want to turn on the oven, so I looked for a no bake option. After I asked Twitter, Cassie suggested this recipe. Naturally, I had to put my own spin on it!
by The Splattered Apron
Prep Time: 15 minutes {60 minutes inactive
Cook Time: n/a
Keywords: raw dessert almond butter oats chocolate bar
- 1 stick of butter
- 2 cups almond butter {I used creamy, but if you prefer crunchy, go for it}
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 2 cups rolled oats
- 1 bag chocolate chips
- 1/2-3/4 cup dried strawberries, chopped
- 1/4-1/2 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
Put the almond butter and butter in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave on high for 45 seconds to one minute, until the butters are melted. Stir them together to combine well.
Add the vanilla and powdered sugar. Stir to combine.
Add in the oats and stir until the mixture forms into a dough. It should pull away from the sides.
Spray a 9×13 glass baking dish with cooking spray and line it with parchment paper {I did not use the parchment paper. Trust me when I tell you it’s a good idea.}
Spread the almond butter mixture in the baking dish and press evenly.
Put the dish in the freezer for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, microwave the chocolate chips for 1 minute. Stir, then continue to microwave in 30 second increments, stirring in between, until the chocolate is almost completely melted. Stir until the chocolate is smooth. Set aside to cook slightly.
Once slightly cooled, stir in the chopped dried strawberries.
Remove the baking dish from the freezer and pour the chocolate and strawberries onto the almond butter layer. Spread evenly, then sprinkle the coconut flakes on top. Place in the freezer for at least 30 minutes to an hour.
Using the parchment paper, remove the whole bar from the baking dish. Carefully slice into 1 inch squares. Store in the refrigerator
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Let me assure you, what these bars lack in looks, they make up in taste.
Trust me on the parchment paper. You don’t want your bars to look like mine!
After one bite, you won’t care what they look like. Your biggest concern will be how to keep all of the bars for yourself.
These are very rich—a small piece goes a long way. Especially if you eat several small pieces just to make sure they’re okay.
Enjoy!
Recipe inspired by Bake Your Day.
The bounty from our garden {not pictured is the cucumber Caroline and I ate for lunch!}
Two babies and a beer. I had my hands full.
Brewing Caroline’s birthday beer!
You’ll never believe what we made with these ingredients…
Our insane raised beds—Jeromy put up the trellis this weekend. We had to prune back the tomato plants to make it work {which is why there are so many green cherry tomatoes in the top picture!}
Happy Father’s Day, Jeromy! Brunch at our favorite restaurant.
Someone is trying to snap her fingers.
First Father’s Day. {A week late since Caroline and I were out of town last weekend}.
What’d you do this weekend?
