Drinks Archives - Cook By Book

Category: Drinks

03
Apr
2014

Sunshine Smoothie for Two ~ 100th Blogpost!

Woohoo (with more o’s than I can type)!!! This is my 100th blogpost! I know I should have reached this teeny-tiny (quite huge for me of course!) milestone a long time back but I’m glad I did. I thank each and everyone of you for being with me on this journey. And even tolerating my sporadic absence. You guys are sweetest. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. Really 🙂

I’m sure we all agree on this that no celebration is complete without a cake. And I know I should have brought one today but instead, I come bearing smoothie and I ain’t sorry. This is no ordinary smoothie, it’s a sunshine smoothie! Yes, pure liquid sunshine for breakfast and you won’t need anything else. Great way to get lots of fruit in your system. So go fruit wild this summer. This one is mindbogglingly refreshing!

Sunshine Smoothie2

This fruity concoction is so creamy, it may trick you into thinking there is ice-cream involved. This smoothie is created using shockingly simple ingredients aka fruits and nothing else! I’m a huge fan of frozen banana whip and it works as a great base for a smoothie. I made this whip for breakfast last week with frozen kiwi and banana and it turned out totally amazeballs. The idea was sparked then to turn it into a gorgeous smoothie.

I went fruit crazy and added mango (my fav), banana, kiwi and orange with a squeeze of lime and a spoon of honey, blend and Ta Da! You get this tropical heaven. Truly summer in your glass! (See I didn’t whine about the hottest, sunniest weather we’re experiencing here even once.. Ha!)

Put your feet up and enjoy this citrus bursting smoothie. It’ll brighten up your day and make the weather certainly more tolerable. Trust me.

Sunshine Smoothie for Two

Serves: 2 obnoxiously | Prep time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

1 large frozen mango, previously peeled & sliced
1 large frozen banana, previously peeled & sliced
2 frozen kiwi, previously peeled & sliced
2 oranges, peeled, seeded and sliced
Juice from 1 lime
6-8 ice-cubes
1 Tbsp honey (optional)

Directions:

Blend all the ingredients in a blender on high speed till you get a smooth consistency (for about 2-3 minutes). Serve in tall glasses.

*You may turn this smoothie into green smoothie by adding 1 cup of your favorite greens.

*You may swap kiwi with frozen chunks of pineapple. Whatever rocks your boat!

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05
Feb
2014

Orange Strawberry Spritzer For Two ~ Valentine’s Special

categories: Drinks, Summer

It’s been ages since I posted any recipe for a drink. When I had a refrigerator full of sweetest, fresh strawberries last week, I had to oblige and make you(essentially I mean, me & hubby) this lovely spritzer. It is such a simple concoction that I am sort of embarrassed to even post it as a recipe. But it was so refreshing, I knew it had to make an appearance here!

It being a month of LOVE, this seemed just perfect for the celebration! Make your evening special with this recipe scaled down for just the TWO of you! Quick to make and oh-so-delicious to taste. Sparkling water lends such a delicate touch but you may use club soda as well. Not over the top yet an elegant, low-cal, non-alcoholic drink. It is just great for unannounced guests/friends and you may use frozen berries for such emergencies. You’re sure to impress everyone!

Enjoy!

Orange Strawberry Spritzer For Two

Serves: 2 | Prep time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

7-8 fresh strawberries, hulled (You may use frozen)
1 Tbsp sugar
1 medium orange, juice squeezed
1 Tbsp lemon juice
Sparkling water/club soda
Strawberry slices, for garnish (optional)

Directions:

In a blender jar, add strawberries and sugar and purée smooth. Pass it through fine cotton mesh or sieve to get rid of the seeds(totally optional!).

Stir in orange and lemon juice to it. Pour sparkling water/club soda on top. Add 3-4 ice-cubes to each serving glasses and pour spritzer to it. Garnish with strawberry slices.

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12
Aug
2013

Serenity ~ Coconut Water Fruit Punch

categories: Drinks, Quick Fix, Summer

Its been ages since I last posted drink’s recipe here. In fact, its been long since I stirred up some new fancy-schmancy drink! I have been drinking my share of Iced teas and coffees but have not created any new combination worth sharing…

So here is what I made over this past weekend. And it involves something I’ve been drinking a lot lately! Cocojal.. It’s nothing but packaged tender coconut water.. It comes in pineapple and lime flavors too but I prefer it plain, unflavored one. I’m in so much love with it that I have almost 2 bottles a day. You can see I’m totally addicted!

I know what you guys are thinking.. Every nook and corner of my part of world is bursting with vendors selling tender coconuts and still I drink packaged version! Shocked?! Don’t be.. I prefer the packaged version for several reasons. It’s convenient, I like it chilled and you know it is going to be sweet every single time! If you’re against packaged stuff then feel free to use fresh tender coconut water.

I have been craving for some vacation from quite sometime now. Situation has it that it’s not going to be possible for sometime. Hence I took control of the situation, made this, put my feet up and relaxed while sipping on these. And I envisioned myself at my favorite beach in Goa! If you are in more of a celebratory mood, add champagne/white wine to it!

There is no specific recipe for it as such as it is not exactly science. Feel free to make with whatever combination works for you. It is just that simple… No sugar added required!

I was feeling tropicalish so I added a drop of blue food-color to my drink and it turned in to perfect ocean blue! If you hate food-colors then add Curacao Bleu syrup to achieve the desired blue. Double or triple the recipe if serving a larger crowd as it is so perfect for parties. If making this for girls’ night or bridal shower, add a drop of pink/red food-color! Again you may add a splash of Grenadine syrup to achieve the desired pink. World is much better in PINK! 😉

Garnish with fruits like berries or pineapple and cheers!

Serenity ~aka~ Coconut Fruit Punch (vegan, gluten free, soy free, no added sugar)

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

3 bottles Cocojal, 600 ml (approx 20 oz)
1/2 cup apple juice
1/2 cup pineapple juice
1 drop blue food colouring
Choice of frozen/fresh fruit cubes, for serving

Directions:

Combine all the ingredients together in a large bowl or pitcher, stir and refrigerate till it is time to serve. Garnish with fruits on stick.

*Notes:

Do not add ice-cubes to the drink. It makes the drink more watery. If you want then freeze coconut water, pineapple juice or apple juice in an ice-cube tray in advance and add them to drink as “ice” cubes.
Liqueur lovers can stir-in champagne/white wine to the drink.

P.S. I have not been compensated by Cocojal in any way for writing this post. All the opinions expressed here are personal.

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15
Jun
2013

Cucumbertini ___ To spike it or not!

categories: Drinks, Summer

This is the ultimate summer drink!

This is THE summer drink!!!

I swear… This is the best cooler posted on my blog till now..

So simple yet so refreshing..

If you are sipping on this in the midst of a scorching noon heat or in a humid summer evening, I swear you will forget all about the weather and swim in the serenity of this concoction! It’s got a knack to calm your soul. Believe me… It is THAAAT GOOD!

Have it as it is or spike it with vodka to create a sophisticated cocktail.. Definitely a party-pleaser and ideal for girls’ night-in!

Both version will certainly make your Saturday evening stunning!

What are you waiting for??!! Mix it up & chillax! 🙂

Cucumbertini

Yields: 2 large glasses

Ingredients:

3 fresh petit English cucumbers, peeled and roughly chopped
2 Tbsp celery, roughly chopped
2 Tbsp Monin’s Cuaracao Triple Sec
Juice squeezed from 1 lemon
1 Tbsp caster sugar (optional, I did not use)
1/4 cup + 1 cup cold water
6-8 ice-cubes, a couple more to add to the glasses

Directions:

Take cucumber and celery in a blender. Pour 1/4 cup cold water and blend til it is pureed. Take a sieve and strain the puree.
Pour strained liquid back to the blender. Add triple sec, lemon juice, caster sugar, 1 cup cold water, ice-cubes and blitz it. Pass the potion through a sieve again. Your cucumbertini is ready to be served on the rocks! Garnish with a lemon wedge.

*Spoon the foam out from the cucumbertini before pouring in glasses if you prefer a clear concoction.

This recipe is my entry for Event by Archana’s Kitchen – Summer Fiesta

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14
Jun
2013

Mango & Banana Oatmeal Smoothie with a hint of Basil

categories: Breakfast, Drinks, Summer

A true breakfast smoothie which is wholesome on its own and will keep you full till lunch hour.

This summer, I am trying to bring you as many mango recipes as possible before we run out of them for another year. Of course, we can freeze its chunks or pulp but it won’t be as good as having them fresh in the heat of summer when they are in abundance. Gosh! It would be good to be able to have mangoes all year round, isn’t it?! Anyways… I definitely plan on freezing lots and lots of mangoes til I run out of place in my freezer. Today’s recipe calls for frozen chunks of mango. So you can dice mango in pieces at night and freeze them overnight to make this smoothie in the morning.

Mango and banana is a classic combo! You can’t go wrong with it. Juicy, succulent mango whipped with creamy bananas. Heaven!

I am going to use frozen chopped bananas as well. It helps me attain smooth, thick and luscious consistency. These have become a true staple in my house. I deliberately buy them only to chop them and toss them in airtight container to freeze away.

Added to this classic combo is spoonfuls of quick-cooking oats. Anyone who hates oats won’t even know you have put them in there! So great for those picky-eaters! (I mean kids, of course! Not me!!! 😛 )

The huge flavor kick comes from the basil leaves added to the smoothie. So it is must.. do not skip or it wont taste the same!

Another benefit of this smoothie is that it is sugar-free. Mangoes in my part of the world are super-sweet and bananas I used were overripe which means they were pretty sweet too which helped me in omitting the sugar completely. If you feel the mangoes you have got are not sweet enough, add spoonful of honey to your smoothie.

You can easily make this smoothie vegan by using coconut milk or soy milk. Personally, I think coconut milk would go really well with mango and banana.

Mango & Banana Oatmeal Smoothie with a hint of Basil

Yields: 3 large or 4 small glasses

Ingredients:

Frozen chunks from 1 mango
Frozen chunks from 2 bananas
1/4 cup quick-cooking oats
4-5 basil leaves
1 cup milk
1/2 cup cold water or a little more
6-8 ice-cubes

Directions:

Add all the ingredients to the blender and blitz them into smooth mixture. Add more water if consistency is too thick for you. Garnish with fresh cherry and serve immediately.

*Add 2 Tbsp of honey if mango used is not sweet enough.

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