It’s tart and sweet and lightly fizzy with a hint of mint.

It’s a refreshing soft drink and a delicious mixer for beer, gin, tequila, vodka or iced tea.

It’s Limonitz.

“Itz lemonade only better,” says the website. Except that itz British-style lemonade. North American lemonade isn’t carbonated; U.K. lemonade is.

But itz a treat however you define it. For perfection, we’d add some fresh mint, as the family originally made the drink. At home it was called “Daddy’s Lemonade.” After years as a special family tradition, they decided to bottle it.

Limonitz is certified kosher by the Orthodox Union (OU) and certified organic by the USDA.

Additional flavors are coming out this summer. We can’t wait.

For more information visit Limonitz.com.

The new soft drink in town. Photo courtesy Limonitz.

Chilaquiles with avocado. Photo courtesy
Avocados From Mexico.

Still looking for something special for Father’s Day breakfast? How about chilaquiles (chee-la-KEE-lace), a traditional Mexican breakfast or brunch dish.

While there are numerous regional variations, here’s a typical recipe: Corn tortillas are cut into quarters and lightly fried. Next comes green or red salsa or mole sauce, then fried eggs.

Pulled chicken can be added; the dish is topped with shredded queso fresco and/or crema, Mexican sour cream. Sliced raw onion, avocado or other garnish can be added. A side of refried beans typically completes the dish.

Don’t confuse chilaquiles with the Tex-Mex dish migas, scrambled eggs mixed with chopped green onions, shredded Cheddar and crushed tortilla chips or tortilla strips.

This recipe is courtesy Avocados From Mexico, which has many delicious avocado recipes on its website.

RECIPE: CHILAQUILES WITH AVOCADO AND EGGS

Ingredients For 4 Servings

Preparation

1. HEAT oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add tortillas. Carefully stir and turn tortillas to coat them with oil until crisp, about 6-8 minutes. Remove from heat.

2. FRY eggs in a separate skillet. As eggs are finishing…

3. RETURN tortillas to medium heat. Pour salsa over crisp tortillas, turning to coat until they are slightly soft but still chewy. Top tortillas with fried eggs, avocado and radishes.

Avocados are a delicious breakfast food: plain, on toast or with eggs. Photo courtesy Avocados From Mexico.

TIP: If you want the tortillas to remain crisp, hold the salsa and pour it over the other ingredients immediately before serving.

Save calories and carbs with a
“deconstructed” crab cake. Photo courtesy
Wild Mushroom Restaurant | Texas.

Crab cakes are a popular item on menus nationwide. The crab is good for you, but the fat for sautéing is less so.

You could place the crab cake(s) on a large bed of salad for a healthy offset. Or you could make these “deconstructed” crab cakes from Chef Jerrett Joslin of The Wild Mushroom Steakhouse in Weatherford, Texas.

Chef Joslin takes the components of crab cakes and works them into an uncooked crab cake:

DECONSTRUCTED CRAB CAKES RECIPE

Ingredients

For The Salad

Preparation

1. MAKE aioli, if desired (recipe).recipe)

2. PLACE crab meat in a bowl, chopping as necessary so that it can be easily mounded. Add fresh parsley to taste.

3. MIX 1 tablespoon of olive oil with 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard. Use as needed to bind crab mixture so that it can be molded, using a metal mold, cookie cutter or table spoons.

4. TOSS arugula with vinaigrette, just enough to lightly moisten.

5. PLACE the crab cake on a plate, then top with He then arranges the ingredients on top of a bed of arugula that has been tossed with citrus vinaigrette.

The result is a new take and presentation on the favorite dish. You can save calories by substituting a spicy vinaigrette for the aïoli.
 
TYPES OF CRAB MEAT

You don’t need to use the costliest jumbo lump crab meat: Use what you can afford. From most costly to least costly, they area;

The most expensive crab meat, jumbo lump, is beautiful to look at. But if it‘s getting mashed in a recipe, save you money and buy a less expensive grade. Photo courtesy Miller’s Crab.

The classic gin and tonic. Photo courtesy Martin Miller’s Gin.

Today is World Gin Day, a holiday created by Neil Houston of Birmingham, England. It started modestly in 2009 when Houston. who reviews gin on his website, Yet Another Gin, gathered some friends. It has since turned into a worldwide celebration.

“World Gin Day is a celebration of all things gin,” says Houston, “and a chance to mix up your favourite G&T [gin and tonic]or other gin cocktail.”

We’ll go for the G&T: as delicious as it is simple to prepare.

GIN & TONIC RECIPE

Ingredints

1. FILL a highball glass with ice cubes. Add the gin, tonic water and lime juice. Stir thoroughly to blend.

2. GARNISH with lime wedge and serve.
 
Preparation

To prevent dilution of your drink, use our favorite trick: Make ice cubes with the tonic water (or iced tea ice cubes for iced tea, juice ice cubes for juice, etc.)

Simply freeze tonic water in an ice cube tray. We use a covered ice cube tray to keep the cubes tasting fresh, but you can use plastic wrap.

 
THE HISTORY OF GIN & TONIC

Historically, spirits were created for medicinal purposes. So was the G&T.

Malaria was a persistent problem in the world‘s tropical regions. In the 1700s, quinine, a muscle relaxant developed from the bark of the cinchona tree by the Quechua natives of Peru, was found to be helpful in treating the disease.

Like much medicine, quinine had an unpleasant, bitter taste. In the early 19th century, British officers in India inadvertently created tonic water (quinine water) by adding a mixture of water, sugar, lime and gin to the quinine.

Today‘s quinine water contains much less quinine, since it is no longer used as an antimalarial. That‘s why some people enjoy it as a soft drink.

Grey Goose has whipped up a new cocktail recipe to enjoy during the U.S. Open this weekend.

Called “The Original 19th Hole,” it was inspired by the brand’s relationship with the #4 golfer in the world, Matt Kuchar (Matt may have to hold off on enjoying one until after the tournament).

COCKTAIL RECIPE: THE ORIGINAL 19th HOLE

Ingredients Per Drink

Something special to sip during the U.S. Open. Photo courtesy Grey Goose.

1. MIX vodka with pineapple and orange juices. Pour over ice in a tall glass.

2. TOP with lemon-lime soda and garnish with a lemon wheel.
 

FIND MORE OF OUR FAVORITE COCKTAIL RECIPES.

Sundried_tomatoes. Photo by Andrew
Deacon | Wilimedia.

Luscious, local vine-ripened tomatoes won’t be in our farmers markets for another month. So until their joyous arrival, we’re still making do with cherry tomatoes and sundried tomatoes.

One of our interns asked if sundried tomatoes had to be rinsed before eating, inspiring today’s tip.

First, the answer is yes: Like mushrooms, sundried tomatoes should at least be brushed or wiped with a damp cloth. But the rest depends on the format of the tomatoes and how you plan to use them. If you rinse them in water they will plump up, but your recipe might have other instructions.

WHAT ARE SUNDRIED TOMATOES?

Sundried tomatoes (also spelled sun-dried) are ripe tomatoes that have been dried in the sun for 4-10 days. They keep their nutritional value, and provide tomato flavor when the fresh fruits* are not in season. As with other dried fruits (raisins, prunes), drying concentrates the flavor and makes it more intense. So compared to fresh tomatoes, fewer sundried tomatoes are needed in a recipe.

*Yes, tomatoes are a fruit. Here’s the difference between fruits and vegetables.

CREATING SUNDRIED TOMATOES

Most of the water evaporates in the drying process, creating a shelf-stable ingredient. No refrigeration is necessary, and the tomatoes remain soft and flavorful for months.

It takes from 9 to 15 pounds of fresh tomatoes to make a single pound of sundried tomatoes. The tomatoes are typically pre-treated with the preservative sulfur dioxide to maintain their bright red color; otherwise they turn a blackish-red over time.

Traditionally, sundried tomatoes are made from red plum tomatoes, but you can sometimes find yellow varieties. Sundried tomatoes can be purchased loose or packaged, dry or packed in olive oil. They are sold in paste and purée forms.

HOW TO USE SUNDRIED TOMATOES

You can use the tomatoes as is, or reconstitute them. Specific recipes will tell you what to do, but here are some general uses:

Dry Sundried Tomatoes

 
Reconstituted Sundried Tomatoes

You can purchase sundried tomatoes already reconstituted in oil, but it’s more cost effective and flavorful to reconstitute your own. You control the quality of the oil, and can add basil, garlic cloves, jalapeño or other heat, oregano, rosemary, etc. (or use flavored olive oil).

Fettuccine with sundried tomato pesto. Photo courtesy American Egg Board.

To reconstitute the tomatoes in olive oil or other oil (we like a flavorful oil), cover them with the oil and refrigerate for 24 hours. You can add herbs or spices to the oil. Then drain the oil and use it for salad dressing or cooking oil.

Once the tomatoes are reconstituted, use them within several days or cover then in olive oil and store in the fridge for up to two weeks. Be sure that the unused tomatoes are completely covered with oil, adding adding more oil as necessary—and planning to use the oil when the tomatoes are gone.

HOW TO USE SUNDRIED TOMATOES

Use sundried tomatoes anywhere you’d use fresh tomatoes, and even where you wouldn’t:

 
But the best way to use them is to put them on the counter as you’re preparing food. The opportunities will simply present themselves!

A cream puff stuffed with crème pâtissière,
pastry cream. Photo by Stu Spivak |
Wikimedia.

When we published an earlier tip for a brambleberry tart, we went to link to a recipe for crème pâtissière—pastry cream—and discovered we hadn’t published one. Zut alors!

So here we remedy the situation, and also explain some of the different “crèmes” in French pastry.

Crème pâtissière (CREHM pah-tissy-YAIR) is used to fill cream puffs (profiteroles), napoleons, éclairs, tarts and génoise (sponge cakes), among other cakes and pastries. Traditionally flavored with vanilla, it can be flavored with cocoa, coffee, orange and other flavors.

CREME PATISSIERE RECIPE

Prep time 5 minutes, cook time 10 minutes, chill time 1 hour.

Ingredients

Preparation

1. WARM the milk over low heat in a small saucepan, until it is just hot enough to steam. While the milk is warming…

2. WHISK together the egg yolks, sugar, flour and cornstarch until the mixture is completely smooth.

3. ADD half of the steaming milk to the egg mixture, whisking constantly.

4. ADD the milk and egg mixture back into the pot of hot milk, continue to stir. Heat for 1-2 minutes, until the custard reaches 170°F on a thermometer and is very thick.

5. REMOVE from the heat, stir in the vanilla extract or other flavor. Chill for an your or longer before filling pastry.

THE FRENCH CRÈMES

In French baking, there is no word to match the English term custard. Thus, recipes with the word “crème” encompass both eggy English-type custards and creamier fillings. Here are a few; see our Custard Glossary for many more.

Creme anglaise (CHREM on-GLEZ, translated as English cream) is a thin pouring custard, used as a sauce. The idea evolved in ancient Rome, where cooks used eggs as thickeners to create sweet custards and creams. Both the English and the French have a long history with both, either consumed alone or used to compose a wide range of desserts.

Crème brûlée (CREHM broo-LAY, meaning burnt custard), is the richest and thickest of the three classic, silky, baked French custards (crème caramel and pot de crème are the others). All three are made of eggs, sugar, milk and/or cream in different proportions, along with a flavoring such as vanilla. The “brûlée” is a brittle layer of caramelized sugar, burned under a salamander or other intense heat source.

A napoleon with one layer of crème pâtissière and one layer of custard.

Crème caramel, the lightest of the classic French custards, crème caramel is made with whole eggs as well as yolks, milk as well as cream. Caramel syrup is poured into the mold or ramekin before adding the custard base. After the custard has set, it is unmolded, leaving the caramel sauce on top and pooling around it.

Crème chiboust (CREHM shi-BOOST) is a crème pâtissière that has been lightened with stiffly beaten egg whites (Italian meringue). Some people use whipped cream to lighten, but this variation is actually called millefeuille cream. Crème chiboust is flavored with vanilla, orange zest or liqueurs. Mixed with fruit, it becomes crème plombières. The original recipe was purportedly created by a pastry chef, M. Chiboust, proprietor of a pastry shop on the rue Saint-Honoré in Paris, to fill the gâteau St. Honoré he created. The filling is also called crème Saint-Honoré or simply Chiboust. The filling is also used for the Paris-Brest pastry.

Crème pâtissière is the equivalent of confectioner’s custard, although the English confectioner’s custard is less rich kind than French crème pâtissière. Made from egg yolks, milk, sugar and a little flour, with vanilla or other flavoring, crème pâtissière is used to fill cream puffs, eclairs and gateau St. Honoré,* and is a base for fruit tarts.

*Gateau St. Honoré, or St. Honoré cake, is named for the French patron saint of bakers and pastry chefs, Saint Honoré (Honoratus, bishop of Amiens, d. 600 C.E.). It is a base of puff pastry with a ring of pâte à choux (cream puff pastry) piped on the outer edge. Small cream puffs are dipped into caramelized sugar and attached side by side on top of the circle of the pâte à choux. This base is traditionally filled with crème chiboust and finished with whipped cream, using a special St. Honoré piping tip.
 
LOVE THIS STUFF? CHECK OUT OUR CUSTARD GLOSSARY.

Grilled potato salad (added franks not
shown). Photo courtesy McCormick.

In this recipe, we combine grilled hot dogs with grilled potato salad, and serve it as a side. So you can have a burger, chicken or other meat from the grill, and still enjoy a hot dog—mixed into the potato salad.

We adapted this recipe for Montreal Grilled Potato Salad from McCormick.com, adding
our own spin: grilled frankfurters, cut into bite-size pieces and mixed into the potato salad.

The potato salad recipe makes eight 3/4-cup servings; depending on how many franks you use, the portions will be larger. Prep time for the potato salad is 10 minutes, cook time 20 minutes.

GRILLED POTATO SALAD

Add a fun flavorful twist to summertime potato salad by first grilling the potatoes and vegetables. Put some franks on the grill at the same time, cut them into bite-sze pieces and add them to the salad.

Ingredients

 
*Substitute: Create your own blend of coarse salt, black pepper, garlic, paprika and red pepper.

Preparation

1. MICROWAVE potatoes on HIGH 7 minutes or until almost tender, turning potatoes over halfway through cooking.

2. GRILL potatoes and vegetables over medium heat 10 to 15 minutes or until potatoes are crisp and vegetables are tender, turning occasionally and brushing with oil. Cool potatoes and vegetables slightly then coarsely chop. While potatoes are grilling, add franks to the grill.

3. MIX mayonnaise and seasoning in large bowl. Add potatoes, vegetables and sliced franks; toss to coat well. Sprinkle with additional seasoning, if desired. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Grill ‘em, slice ‘em, toss ‘em into the potato salad. Public domain photo.

As American as blueberry and cherry pie.
Photo courtesy Centerville Pie Company.

If you’re planning for July 4th festivities, here’s a fun food idea from Centerville Pie Company of Centerville, Massachusetts: an American flag pie.

Prepare your favorite blueberry and/or cherry pie recipe. The Centerville Pie bakers fill the pie crust 3/4 with cherry filling, and use blueberry filling in the upper left corner. Then, they simply cut the top crust in strips to resemble the stripes in the flag.

You can also use whipped cream to create “stars” on the upper left corner.

Centerville Pie Company is happy to ship a pie to you, and pie lovers will really enjoy looking at all of the delicious pies on the website.

FIND MORE OF OUR FAVORITE PIES IN OUR PIE & PASTRY SECTION.

If you love to bake but want to use less refined sugar, consider honey as a substitute. Here are tips on cooking with honey from Honey.com, the website of the National Honey Board, where you can find every type of recipe plus beekeepers in your area:

SUBSTITUTING HONEY IN BAKING

Honey helps enhance browning, so it creates beautifully browned baked goods. The extra body provided by honey adds shape to cakes, pastries and other desserts. If you need to prepare baked goods in advance, honey gives them that “bakery fresh” taste, even days later.

Reach for the honey instead of the sugar. Photo courtesy Michael S. Richter | Morguefile.

 
SELECTING HONEY FOR BAKING & COOKING

Seabass with Aji Chile Honey Marinade.
Photo courtesy Honey.com. Here‘a the recipe.

GREAT HONEY COMBINATIONS