Rosemary Infused Lemonade

Well hello there! Enough of all those travel pictures - I'm back, mostly recovered, and ready for some "normal" blogging. Jacob and I have been working on a few house projects this past weekend/week, I've got some awesome pictures to share with you soon!

But, for now - rosemary lemonade. I recently planted a rosemary bush in our garden area, and thank goodness it hasn't died yet. I have a history of killing rosemary plats, so I'm crossing my fingers that I can keep this one alive and healthy for a while. Since the plant was doing so well, I decided to harvest some of it's bounty and create a refreshing summer drink. This drink was created without any alcohol additions, but it could easily be spiked to make it "adult friendly".

First, get yourself some fresh rosemary and add it to a small saucepan with equal parts sugar and water. Turn the heat to medium/low and stir until the sugar is completely dissolved.

Once the sugar is dissolved, let the mixture sit (with the rosemary still in it) until cooled. While the mixture is cooling, juice 5-6 large lemons.

Discard the rosemary from the simple syrup mixture, and pour it into a pitcher. Add the lemon juice. I added a coupe small chunks of lemon for presentation.

Next, add 2-4 cups of cold water to the pitcher. Taste the lemonade as you add water until you reach the desired sweetness/tartness. Don't forget, you'll be adding lots of ice which will make the mixture a little more water-ey than it is in the pitcher.

Pour lemonade over ice and garnish with fresh rosemary and a lemon slice. So refreshing, and a fun twist on a summertime favorite for your next gathering!

Rosemary Infused Lemonade Recipe:

- 4-5 sprigs fresh rosemary

- 1 cup sugar

- 1 cups water

- 5-6 large lemons

- 2 to 4 cups water

- Ice

- Extra rosemary and lemon for garnish

Directions:

- Make rosemary infused simple syrup by adding sugar, rosemary sprigs, and 1 cup water to a small saucepan.

- Heat the sugar mixture over low/medium heat and stir until sugar is completely dissolved.

- Let simple syrup cool, leave the rosemary in the pan for this.

- Juice lemons, discarding seeds.

- Once simple syrup is cooled, discard the rosemary.

- Pour simple syrup and lemon juice into a pitcher, add desired amount of water.

- Serve over ice with rosemary and lemon slices as garnish!

* To make this lemonade "adult friendly", I would add 4-5 ounces vodka, depending on how many plan on sharing the pitcher. Lemoncello would also make a good addition. 

Tacoma and Vancouver

After finishing up my work responsibilities last week, my parents flew in to do a little touring of the area with me. We saw all the highlights in Tacoma, then drove up to Vancouver for some more sight seeing. Sadly, Jacob was not on this trip with us - he will be coming up to Washington during my last week of the three week series in September. We will hit Seattle for the majority of that trip. Below are a few snapshots of the Tacoma and Vancouver highlights. Back to regular recipes and updates very soon!

Disclaimer: these are all iPhone pictures, I took a few with the big camera but the iPhone was most convenient for snapshots.

Glass museum in Tacoma.

A picnic on the pier.

Point Defiance zoo and aquarium.

Happy hour! Pictured are fried rice balls. We also ordered grilled romaine, and fried calamari. Oh, and a pitcher of sangria to share - the best I've ever had! Yum.

Beauty in downtown Tacoma. Blue skies are a rare sight in this part of the country. We felt very lucky to have such amazing weather.

Vancouver!

Stanley park totem poles. My Dad has a picture as a young kid in front of these historic totem poles.

Granville Island public market. Ah-mazing. Let the pictures tell you just how cool this place was.

Coffee break on the dock.

More public market. Fresh sushi and giant spring rolls. Yum!

Canada knows how to grow a pretty garden, that's for sure.

Headed back east! That's Mount Hood rising above the clouds.

It was a great trip, but I was so excited to get home to the hubby and puppy. Thanks for tuning in!

Travel.

As previously mentioned in my last post, I was in Tacoma, Washington last week for work. Washington state is such a beautiful place, and we've even seen the sun quite a bit! I traveled with my colleague and friend, Hollie, and we explored all the local restaurants and trails in our little suburb. Here are a few iphone snapshots from the beginning of the trip.

A salad from our favorite lunch spot, Marlene's.

This stuff was delicious!

A little hike right down the road from our hotel.

Wild berries!

Anthonie's at Point Defiance Park.

Garlic shrimp and potatoes. Yum!

And of course I had to include one of my many hotel breakfasts... 

Having a great time so far, more to come later on including pictures from our weekend trip to Vancouver!

Summer Snapshots

Ok, it's not officially summer yet - but it's quickly approaching. Here are some snapshots from the last week or so around the yard and the weekend celebrating Libby's graduation and a weekend at the farm (aka Jacob's parent's house)!

Jacob's parents have a huge garden that feeds their family (and many more lucky people) throughout the year. Saturday night's dinner was made using almost all farm-fresh ingredients. These iPhone photos don't even begin to capture the beauty of these ingredients!

And last but not least, Libby! Done with high school and coming to ASU on track scholarship for school! So glad to have her in the western part next year :).

I'm currently in Tacoma, Washington for a work related training. I'll try to post some pictures and food reviews while I'm here!

Vegan Strawberry Rhubard Apple Crisp

I stopped at a little road side stand a few days ago and came home with these treasures:

I had plans already in mind for the rhubarb and strawberries. Since my pie crust making abilities are lacking, pie was out of the question. What else to do with this amazing combination of spring delicacies? Crisp! Crispy, buttery, oat filled crisp!

But first, the process.

The actual crisp part consisted of old fashioned oats, sunflower seeds, coconut butter, flour, sugar, and cinnamon.

But before the crisp goes on, the fruits get a little citrus and sugar dusting.

Mix up all the crisp ingredients (only your bare hands will do for this).

and spread it evenly on top.

Heat the oven to 350 degrees, and pop it in there for 25-30 minutes.

The crisp will come out golden, well, crispy.

If you're trying to stay with the vegan theme, serve with some coconut ice cream (found at most health food stores). If not, serve with any kind of dairy filled ice cream or whipped cream of your choice. I topped mine with a little drizzle of heavy cream and a sprinkle of sugar. Divine!

Vegan Strawberry Rhubarb Apple Crisp Recipe:

Serves 6

- 2 cups strawberries, trimmed and cut into large chunks

- 2 cups rhubarb, trimmed and cut into small pieces

- 1 cup apple (granny smith or golden delicious work best), cut into small pieces

- 2 cups old fashioned rolled oats

- 1/2 cup sunflower seeds

- 1/4 cup flour

- 1/4 cup sugar

- 1/2 cup coconut oil

- 1 tsp vanilla extract

- 1 tsp cinnamon

Directions:

- Place cut up strawberries, rhubarb, and apple in a lightly oiled baking dish. The one I used was a size smaller than a 9 x 13 pan.

- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

- Mix together the oats, seds, flour, and sugar.

- Add the coconut oil, vanilla, and cinnamon.

- Use your hands to mix everything together. The mixture will be crumbly and slightly moist.

- Spread the oat mixture evenly over the fruit.

- Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until the oats are golden and the fruit is soft and cooked through.

- Serve with ice cream, whipped cream, or plain!