Minted Blueberry Lemon Sauce

Im making brunch for a friend this morning.  A friend who just got her dream job and so its time to celebrate!  A sweet occasion calls for a sweet summer brunch, so on the menu includes Berry Pancakes, a virgin-attempt at a vegan French Toast (recipe not ready for a post, but stay tuned!), Apple Pie Muffins and a side of fresh, local berries.  I concocted this sauce to serve with the pancakes.  It started as a Lemon-Mint Sauce, but I didn’t like its chalky white color, so to offer a more aestectically-pleasing sauce I add some blueberries, which ended up being a good move because now its pretty and tastes better too.

Ingredients

• 3 tbsp sugar
• 2-3 tbsp cornstarch or gravy-thickener
• 3-4 tbsp lemon juice
• 2-3 sprigs of mint
• 1/4 – 1/2 cup water, as needed
• a handful of frozen blueberries

Instructions

In a small sauce pan over medium heat, combine the sugar, cornstarch, lemon juice and mint.  Slowly add the water until a creamy, semi-thick sauce forms.  Turn heat to low and stir until blended.  Be careful not to have the heat too high, as it will bubble and evaporate.  Add the blueberries and stir until blended.  Remove from heat and serve with pancakes, as an ice cream sauce or over fresh bread with butter.

mangia!

Heirloom Tomato + Peach Salsa with Goat Cheese

Its unfortunate that I dont have a photo of this because its quite beautiful to look at.  Its also quite delicious to eat, so perhaps thats the reason why I wasn’t quick enough with the camera when Red, Mikey and I were picnicking yesterday, amidst our adventure and eventful bike ride along the river!  I know I will be making this again before the heirloom tomatoes and peaches trickle out of season, so Ill be sure to snap a photo then.  Until then, use your colorful imagination as you find yourself heading to your local farmers market to grab your produce and whip up this simple, summer pleasure.

serves 3 hungry, bike-riding adventurers

Ingredients

• 2 heirloom tomatoes, preferably from the local market
• 2 peaches, again from the local market
• 2-3 mint leaves
• 1/2 log of goat cheese
• whole wheat pita or flat breads

Instructions

Chop the tomatoes, peaches and mint and combine into a colorful blend.  Serve on flat bread (or on a bed of arugula) with goat cheese.

mangia!

Cherry-Kissed Black Iced Tea

A yogi student served me a version of this tea one day when I went to her for a much needed hair cut.  Arriving exhausted and sweaty from the DC summer heat, it was the perfect refreshing beverage to cool me down.  I experimented with different black teas and found that darjeeling works well.  You can also opt for cranberry juice instead of cherry, but they are both de-lish.

yields approx. 1 pitcher 

Ingredients

• 5 cups of water, boiled
• appropriate amount of black tea for water (3-4 bags or 3-4 tbsp of looseleaf)
• 1-2 cups of tart cherry juice
• 2-3 sprigs of mint

Instructions

Prepare tea in pitcher and cool off in refrigerator.  Once its cold (prior to serving), add cherry juice and mint leaves.

mangia!