March 09, 2012

homemade lemonade

my friend brought this to lunch one day and it was so refreshing. i loved it because it wasn't overly sweet and it was perfectly tart. i love adding fresh mint leaves or ground cloves to lemonade for something different once in a while.

5 quarts water
3 C sugar
2 T citric acid
1 T lemon abstract.

March 04, 2012

creamy cauliflower soup--without the cream!

this soup was so delicious! it made just barely enough for my family and we were all sad that we didn't have leftovers today. i didn't have sharp white cheddar so i did half regular cheddar and half emmentaler. it came from everyday food magazine.

ingredients

3 T butter
1 medium yellow onion, diced small (i used 4 green onions)
1 medium head cauliflower, trimmed and cut
4 C chicken broth, maybe more for consistency if needed/wanted
1 1/2 C sharp white cheddar
coarse salt and ground pepper
cayenne pepper

directions

1. in a large pot, melt butter over medium. add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 8 minutes. add cauliflower and cook until just beginning to brown, 12 minutes. add broth and 1 C water; bring to a boil over high. reduce heat and simmer until cauliflower is very tender, 20 minutes. transfer mixture to a large bowl.

2. in batches, fill a blender halfway with mixture and puree until smooth. return pureed soup to pot and add more broth or water for a thinner consistency, if wanted. heat over medium until warmed through; and cheese in batches and stir until melted. season with salt and pepper. serve sprinkled with cayenne.