Beverages, Recipes

Iced Tea with Ginger-Mint Simple Syrup

Sarah

It’s finally here!! I am so excited… and here’s why!

The Jenna in question here is the writer of Jenna’s Everything Blog. She and her husband, Adam, live in Chicago and are expecting their first baby, Alice, quite soon. When Veronica of Veronica’s Cornucopia emailed me a few months ago to ask if I wanted to be part of a virtual baby shower for Jenna, I didn’t have to think twice!

I’ve been reading Jenna’s blog for quite some time… delighting in her tasty recipes [like these no-bake peanut butter cup bars that I blogged about last summer], eating up her awesome book reviews [she loves the Christy Miller books, which I adored growing up], loving her amazing photography skills [like these Chicago photos], and exploring all the other areas of the “everything” portion of her blog. Including the little fact that Jenna and her husband graduated from Indiana University, where I currently am a graduate student! Woohoo! Anyways, even though I’ve never met Jenna in real life, I am convinced that she and her husband will be awesome parents. They love the Lord and will raise their daughter well… and we are all excited to be able to honor her today!

For the occasion, I decided to make Iced Tea with Ginger-Mint Simple Syrup. I normally don’t take the time to make “special drinks,” but showers are the perfect time to deviate from the norm.

Iced Tea with Ginger-Mint Simple Syrup | thepajamachef.comThis Ginger-Mint Iced Tea is a simple, subtle, elegant drink that is a perfect compliment to any party, occasion, or plain ‘ole everyday refreshment. I made it by infusing a basic simple syrup with lots of fresh mint and ginger… a painless process that I can see myself doing time and time again to flavor my iced tea [or even lemonade] on a regular basis.

Iced Tea with Ginger-Mint Simple Syrup | thepajamachef.comThe advantage to sweetening tea with syrup rather than straight-up sugar is that liquid dissolves more easily in liquid… who knew? It’s a breeze to stir this syrup into iced tea to your taste preference [I used 1/4 cup for a quart]. Speaking of preferences, I typically make iced tea with cold brew tea, but feel free to use whatever method you prefer. That’s the beauty of beverage recipes… they are super flexible and hard to mess up. Always a good thing, if you ask me. 🙂 And speaking of good things, don’t let this recipe be the only stop at the virtual baby shower. Be sure to check out the other recipes from Jenna’s other wonderful blog friends, posted below the recipe. 🙂 Enjoy!

Iced Tea with Ginger-Mint Simple Syrup

  • Servings: 6-8 servings tea, ~ 1 1/3 cup simple syrup
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Ingredients:

  • 1 quart + 1 cup water, divided [filtered if your town’s tap water is as icky-tasting as mine is]
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1/4 cup roughly chopped mint, packed
  • 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, roughly chopped
  • 2 large “family-size” cold brew iced tea bags [or the equivalent of regular tea bags if you prefer iced tea made some other way… I like cold brew iced tea cause it’s easy]

Directions:

In a small pot, combine 1 cup water, sugar, mint, and ginger over medium-high heat. Stir continually until sugar dissolves–about 4-5 minutes for me until sugar was really dissolved, then reduce heat to low. Simmer for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and let steep for 20 minutes.

While simple syrup is steeping, prepare iced tea. Combine 1 quart water and tea bags in a large pitcher [mine is probably ~1 1/4 quarts] and let steep for 8-10 minutes, or until tea is brewed to desired preference. Place in refrigerator to chill.

After syrup has steeped 20 minutes, pour syrup through a fine strainer into a large measuring cup or bowl. Refrigerate syrup, strainer and all [to catch any last lingering drops of syrup caught up in the mint and ginger].

After tea and syrup have chilled, stir in syrup to taste. I used a generous 1/4 cup and found that plenty sweet for me, but it was nowhere near Southern sweet tea so if that’s your thing, use more. Store extra syrup in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to a month.

Be sure to continue the virtual baby shower love for Jenna by checking out these wonderful posts too:
A Little Lunch (Eufaula, OK): Sugar and Spice and Everything Nice Scones
City Songbird (Greensboro, NC): Merry Christmas, Alice!
Eats Well With Others (New York, NY): Peanut Butter and Honey Ice Cream
Hunting for Bliss (Bozeman, MT): Garam Masala Deviled Eggs
Pinking Shears & Broccoli Spears (Newark, DE): Making Food Good For Your Baby
Sydney Shares (Eugene, OR): Baby BLTs 
That’s Some Good Cookin’ (Salt Lake City, UT): Cheesecake Cookie Bars
The Pajama Chef (Bloomington, IN): Iced Tea with Ginger-Mint Simple Syrup
Two Dogs In The Kitchen (Sterling, MI): Spicy Asian Meatballs
Veronica’s Cornucopia (Wichita, KS): Raspberry Almond Fudge Cookies
Very Culinary (Sacramento, CA): Toasted Orzo and Chickpea Salad
Words on Wendhurst: A Gift For Jenna and Alice
Desserts, Other, Recipes

SRC: Chocolate Mousse

Sarah

First Monday in September! Even though it’s Labor Day, it’s still a Secret Recipe Club kind of day. 🙂 If you’ve missed past SRC posts, the premise is this: you’re assigned a different member’s blog every month. You visit their blog, choose any recipe you want, then make it and share it on your blog. Everyone else posts about their secret blog the same day. It’s fabulously fun to try out new blogs. If you have a blog, definitely check it out and consider joining! I highly recommend it.

This month I was assigned Veggie Grettie. This blog is written by Gretchen, who believes in food as the ultimate medicine. You can read her story here, and I suggest you do because her story is pretty inspiring, even though I don’t personally eat a completely plant-based or gluten-free diet. Gretchen has many awesome recipes, reviews, and educational posts on her site… it was so fun to peruse. Anyways, I must admit that I adapted the recipe I made from Gretchen’s blog… but simply because I already had regular milk, cocoa, chocolate, and sweetener at home and wanted to make this recipe right away. But do click over to the original to see her recommendations for ingredients. However, do not despair because [in my opinion] I did not change the biggest component of all from this vegan chocolate mousse recipe: TOFU!

Yes, that’s right. That smooth, creamy, chocolately mousse isn’t made with heavy cream or eggs, but rather a block of extra firm tofu. Whaaaat? And I promise you that you cannot taste any tofu at all. There is no tofu-y taste, no tofu-y texture, just a luscious chocolate dessert that can’t be beat. It’s fabulous!

Ben was a doubter when I told him about it. He thought it was weird, but since he’s such a great guy, he always is willing to try anything I make. 🙂 As I was dishing up this dessert last week, here are some of the names Ben came up with to call this dish rather than Chocolate Mousse:

  1. tofudding
  2. tofousse
  3. moufu

Which do you prefer? I actually like tofousse. Tofudding creeps me out, and moufu sounds like a character from a Disney movie.

But after a bite or two, here’s what I had on my hands…

He loved it! And when asked if he would have suspected tofu was in this dish had he not known, this was his reply: “when you put a chocolate dessert in front of me, the first thing that comes to mind is not tofu.” I think that about sums it up. I wish I had done a fake out test on him, but sadly I didn’t. However, you can! Because really, who would guess that this was a big bowl of anything but chocolate mousse?

It’s rich and creamy, while being fairly healthy and even vegan [if you want]. I’m so glad I got the chance to try this recipe from Gretchen… it is amazing and I hope you try it too! 🙂

Chocolate Mousse [adapted from Veggie Grettie]
click to print

Ingredients:

  • 8 ounces good-quality dark chocolate, chopped roughly
  • 14 ounce package of extra firm tofu
  • 1 1/2 to 2 cups skim milk
  • 6 tablespoons cocoa powder
  • 6 tablespoons sweetener [I used half honey, half sugar]

Directions:

Melt chocolate in a double boiler over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally.

Meanwhile, combine tofu, 1 1/2 cups milk, cocoa powder, and sweetener in a food processor or high powdered blender [like a Vitamix] and blend until very, very smooth. Be sure to stop and scrape down the sides as needed.

After chocolate has melted, stream in with other ingredients, and continue to blend until smooth. Mixture will be warm and not quite the consistency of pudding. If it seems too thick, add up to another 1/2 cup of milk.

Place in a covered container and refrigerate at least several hours to thicken completely.

When ready to serve, spoon or pipe into individual bowls. Top with berries, whipped cream, spinkles, or my personal favorite, Trader Joe’s Sugar, Chocolate, and Coffee Bean Grinder.

Time: 15 minutes preparation, plus time to chill.

Yield: 4 1/2 cups.

Be sure to check out other posts from today’s SRC reveal. Happy Labor Day!

Menu Plans

Menu Plan

Sarah

Week of September 3

Monday: Pulled Chicken with Mango Barbecue Sauce
Tuesday: Sweet Potato Chile Mac
Wednesday: Summer Mexican Soup
Thursday: leftovers
Friday: black beans & rice
Saturday: homemade pizza
Sunday: church anniversary party!

Recipes, Rice, Sides

Brown Rice, Feta, and Tomato Salad

Sarah

I can’t believe it’s almost September! Yikes! Not just because the clock is continually ticking down to when I absolutely have to, have to, HAVE TO have my thesis done (December 15th, no exceptions) but because the end of my favorite produce season is almost near. Oh summer and your juicy peaches, sweet corn reminiscent of candy, fantastic watermelon, sweet tomatoes, crunchy peppers, how I love thee! Not that I don’t like the apples and pumpkins of fall [I mean, hello, I’m a pumpkin-obsessed girl here] or anything like that… but summer means relaxing strolls through the farmer’s market while dripping in sweat because we went running beforehand getting the absolute best fruits and veggies imaginable. And I’ll be sad to see that end. However, there’s still plenty of time to gather yummy summer foods so I’m going to do my best to share all my new favorite summer dishes now, before it’s too late.

This simple rice salad is one of those fabulous summer dishes that I wanted to be sure to share.

Brown Rice, Feta, and Tomato Salad is filled with pantry staples like brown rice and chickpeas, but is spiced up with three of my favorite things on the planet: cherry tomatoes, feta, and mint. Oh goodness, that combination gets me every time!

It is so so so good. You should have seen me trying to maneuver my bites as I ate this salad for lunch on campus last week. I was sitting in the shade of a huge maple tree, balancing my Kindle on my lap while trying to carefully construct each bite to contain a piece of tomato, a chickpea, some feta, and some mint, all while avoiding the rice clusters that I ate last because they weren’t as exciting. I’m sure I looked perfectly ridiculous… and for the record, this is all 100% true, even if that might sound a bit fabricated for the sake of a blog post. Eating outside while reading is pretty much what I do everyday it’s nice outside. I’m trying to break myself of the habit of eating at the computer/while I’m working, to give myself a break in the day. So far, it’s working pretty well. I’ll be terribly sad when late fall comes and it’s too cold to do that… but maybe soon after that I’ll land a great job in a warm climate and I can eat outside year round! That would be nice!

But until then… there’s this fabulous salad, with a wonderful mix of sweet and fresh flavors, paired with hearty grains and legumes [I just looked it up, chickepeas are legumes, fyi] and a little feta for some salty flavor. I think it’s best that I make it it again before tomatoes return to their dreary out-of-seasonness… and it would be remiss of me to not encourage you to do the same!

Brown Rice, Feta, and Tomato Salad [adapted from PBS Food]
click to print

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup brown rice, uncooked
  • 1 15-oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • 1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese
  • 1 cup halved grape tomatoes
  • 2 tablespoons chopped mint
  • 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon brown sugar
  • freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

Prepare brown rice according to package directions. After brown rice is ready, set aside to cool.

Meanwhile, combine chickpeas, feta, tomatoes, and mint in a large bowl. In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and brown sugar.

Add about 2/3-3/4 of prepared rice to chickpea mixture and stir to combine. Don’t worry about being precise, just eyeball the amount. I was probably closer to the 2/3 mark. Pour dressing over and toss to coat. Add freshly ground black pepper to taste.

Serve warm or refrigerate for a cold lunch or side salad.

Time: 45 minutes [10 minutes active]

Yield: 4-5 servings.

Breakfast, Pancakes, Recipes

Peaches and Cream Pancakes

Sarah

There’s nothing I love more than a perfectly cooked pancake. Except maybe a perfectly ripe piece of fruit. And right now, the fruit that is absolutely perfect from my farmer’s market is peaches! Are peaches? I’m sure my grammar expert of a husband will correct me in the comments, and if he doesn’t then I’ll know that he didn’t read this post today. Which might happen since he has training at work this week. Anyways, onto the yummies!

As I said, peaches are perfectly ripe and juicy right now, so what better way to enjoy them for breakfast than in these scrumptious and easy Peaches and Cream Pancakes? The secret to these light and fluffy p’cakes, as they’re sometimes referred to in our house [yes, we’re 4] is room temperature milk and eggs, lots of baking powder, and butter, not oil for the fat. Yes, I said fat. They’re panCAKES so it’s to be expected. 🙂 And it’s only 3 tablespoons, not too bad at all.

Flavoring these lovely pancakes is a generous amount of sweet chopped peaches and tangy, spicy crystallized ginger–not too much, just enough to make an impact. If you love ginger, feel free to increase the amount, but we felt that 1 teaspoon was just right. These pancakes are definitely a welcome alternative to traditional summer blueberry, strawberry, insert any other berry here pancakes.

Don’t forget about the cream! My cream of choice was velvety, luscious vanilla yogurt [Dannon All Natural Vanilla is my favorite]. I eat yogurt as my “syrup” on pancakes pretty regularlly, and love how the creaminess adds some natural sweetness to the pancakes without all the added sugar of syrup [though real maple syrup has it’s place too!].

Ben preferred whipped cream on his pancakes. Though as he pointed out to me, leftovers were consumed with yogurt… and next time, he wants a double [triple?] dose of peaches by trying peach yogurt instead of vanilla. Craaaaazy!

These pancakes are the perfect summertime breakfast. I know I’ve used the word “perfect” about seven times in this post, but I hardly think that’s excessive. Peaches and Cream Pancakes are just so perfect and amazing and I wish I had some right about now! Enjoy!

Peaches and Cream Pancakes [adapted from my Go-To Pancakes]
click to print

Ingredients:

  • 1 1/2 cups flour
  • 3 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • sprinkle of salt
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1 1/4 cup skim milk, at room temperature
  • 1 egg, at room temperature
  • 3 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled [can sub oil too]
  • oil for cooking
  • 2 peaches, chopped
  • 1 teaspoon crystallized ginger, chopped
  • vanilla yogurt or whipped cream for serving

Directions:

Preheat skillet over medium heat.

In a medium size bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Make a well in the center. Measure out milk in a measuring cup and then add egg. Beat gently with a fork. Add [cooled] butter and stir again. Pour liquid ingredients into well of dry ingredients, then stir gently to combine. Add half of the chopped peaches and all the ginger, then stir again. Don’t worry if batter is lumpy.

Pour batter onto hot skillet in 1/4 cup increments. Cook for a couple minutes on the first side until bubbles form, then flip and cook on other side until golden brown. Keep warm on a dinner plate covered with an aluminum foil tent until all are prepared, then serve with vanilla yogurt or whipped cream and additional chopped peaches.

Note: It is not 100% necessary to let milk and egg come to room temperature, but it yields better results. Recipe can be easily doubled with good results!

Time: 30 minutes [plus additional time to let milk and egg come to room temperature].

Yield: 12-14 pancakes.