Category: drinks

Humility + An Avocado Smoothie

~ Sophie ~ 3 Comments

What comes to your mind when you think of  humility. A wide array of scenarios come to my mind whenever I think of the word. Merriam Webster defines humility as the quality or state of not thinking you are better than other people: the quality or state of being humble.  So far this year has been a roller coaster ride and among those ups and downs, I have met truly amazing people. People I am not worth talking to let alone shake hands with. One thing I noticed with them all is the fact that they are down-to-earth people. As much as I could not fathom the fact that I met these incredible  people, they were just being normal regular people. They would not throw the fact that they are famous, well learned, seasoned travelers, successful and talented in your face. I was incredibly humbled by their humility.

What is your definition of humility and what one person, event or thing has taught you to be humble? Leave your response in the comments section below.

I am sharing a quick and easy smoothie that I am sure you will like.  Don’t you love the texture and versatility of avocados? There are so many things to do with avocados.

What you will need:

1 Avocado(fully ripe)

1/2 C. Milk

2 C. Cold water

5 Tbsp. Sugar

 

Method

Peel the avocado, remove the seed and thinly slice it . Put the sliced avocado in the blender. Add the milk water and sugar. Blend till pureed. Serve(especially with breakfast).

 

Have a great week.

🙂

Sophie

 

 

PS: To add flavor to the smoothie, you can add half a teaspoon of either cinnamon or ginger spice while blending.

Lemon Iced Tea

~ Sophie ~ 9 Comments

 

I remember the first time I had iced tea, I was sold. I vowed to make it one day. That was way back in primary school. Somehow the taste of that lemon-mint flavored bottled iced tea stuck in my memory till this tea was made this last Sunday. Tasting it, I realized it was so close to that tea I had tasted over six years ago. Nothing can beat that feeling of recreating something. So I am here to share with you this relatively easy iced tea recipe.

What you’ll need:

3 Litres water

5 Teabags

2 ½ Lemons

Ice cubes/ crushed ice

Sugar

Method

In a large sauce pan, add the water and the teabags and bring to a boil. When the tea has boiled, remove from fire and let it cool completely. Squeeze the lemons and sieve the juice. Add the lemon juice and sugar in the cooled down tea and stir thoroughly till the sugar is fully dissolved. Chill for 30 minutes in the refrigerator. Serve with lots of ice cubes and a lemon slice or wedge.

I know you are wondering why all that much tea but it goes in an instant, trust me. Especially now that the weather is scorching hot. The secret to making great iced tea is having a lot (A LOT) of ice cubes!I did not put any measurement for sugar since we all have different preferences when it comes to sweetness. For the record, almost a kilo went down while making this.

How  did you celebrate the women in your life?

Have a great week

 

🙂

Sophie

Tea Time: Black Jack Tea With Red Plum Jam Mini Pies

~ Sophie ~ 5 Comments

It’s the Christmas season and this means families getting together to spend some quality time. Spending quality time involves food, in fact, a lot of food. Speaking of food, ever since I was little(r), I always dreamed of having a tea party. Yes a tea party complete with fancy china and all sorts of sweets that I made for everyone attending. I think I am close to achieving  this dream now that I know how easy it is to make these pies.

I am sure most of you know what black jack is. A common weed  that has awns which get  stuck to your clothes if you happen to be near a bush of some sort. As irritating as this plant can be, it also has benefits like how it makes a super flavorful tea.  Seriously, my list of teas(is this a word?) is growing. All you  have to do is get some black jack leaves with their flowers too(preferably the tender ones), wash them and  boil them in enough water.  After it has boiled,strain out the awn, leaf and flower particles, add sugar and serve. It’s that simple really. So in honor of the holiday season, I thought this super easy black jack tea would really go well with these jam pies. Since the teas is easy to make, I am sharing the pie recipe below

What you will need:
Zesta Red Plum Jam
2C. Baking flour
½ C. Margarine (blue band)/ Butter
1/2 C. Cold water
1Tbsp. Sugar
½ Tsp. Salt

Method
Sift flour in a bowl. Add salt and sugar. Mix well.
Add margarine and using your hands mix it in the flour until the mixture becomes coarse.
Next add the water, a tablespoon at a time, while mixing. Keep adding little water until a firm dough is formed. It should not be very wet and should not stick to your hands so much (you may need more or less water).
After you have formed a firm dough, put it back in the bowl and keep it refrigerated for 15 minutes.
After 15 minutes, remove from the refrigerator and, on a floured surface, cut the dough into two equal parts.
Using a floured rolling pin or a glass bottle, roll the dough out till it is thin enough. Using a circular cookie cutter or glass, cut out as many circles as possible. The size of the cutter determines the size of the pies. If you want them large, use a larger cutter and vice versa. Using a rolling-pin, roll out the scraps and continue cutting out circles until the dough is over.
Spoon ½teaspoon of the Zesta red plum jam into the center of half of the pie circles. Make sure to leave enough of a border around the filling to seal them shut. Do not overfill!
Brush around the edges of the dough with a finger dipped in a whisked egg. This will be the “glue”.
Place a second dough circle on top each filled circle then use a fork to press the edges together.
Cut a hole on the top of each pie with a sharp knife and place on prepared sheet pan.
Refrigerate for 15 minutes.
Bake the pies for 15 minutes, or until they’re golden brown. Enjoy!
Makes 25+

I realize the method is lengthy but it’s just me trying to break down the whole process which is easy. So no worries. While making the tea, I grabbed the camera and went out in the back yard to shoot some weeds A.K.A Black Jack. That’s how easy it is to find black jack.

 

Happy Holidays

🙂

Sophie