What to Eat When You Don't Want to Heat Up the Kitchen

Gazpacho!

I'm sorry, that wasn't a sneeze.  Gazpacho is an appetizer attributed to Spain.  It's a soup you serve cold, and you don't need to cook any of the ingredients to make it.  This makes it a perfect dish to serve when we're in the middle of a heat wave and the thought of turning on your stove or oven is enough to send you into a heat stroke.

Earlier this week, I made a gazpacho and served it with sandwiches.  It was the perfect fare for this 93+ week here in PA.

The recipe I followed was this Blender Gazpacho from Martha Stewart.  I used two large beefsteak tomatoes, 1 cup roasted red peppers, 3 slices of Udi's gluten free bread that I toasted, 1/2 of a small regular cucumber.  The rest of the ingredients were as instructed in the recipe.  My John was weary about trying a cold soup, stating the idea of chilled soup was off-putting, but he loved this!

The sandwiches I made were bacon and avocado.  Toast four slices of bread, I used Udi's gluten free multigrain.  As far as cooking bacon goes, I cut the package in half with scissors so all the bacon slices are half slices.  Crisp up enough for 5 half slices each sandwich (10 for two).  I buy uncured as I hear those pesky added nitrates are no good for you, plus it's not as salty.  Regular bacon is way too salty for us.  Cut a ripe avocado in half lengthwise, twist and pull apart.  Take the back end of your knife and hit the pit with the blade, twist, and the pit should pop right out.  Thinly slice the avocado.  Slather on some classic hummus, add the avocado and bacon.  It's wonderful with this tomato based gazpacho.

We also eat of lot of meals that are sliced fruits and veggies with hummus, prosciutto or dry sausage, olives, cheese, nuts.  It's mostly because it's quick and easy, but in the summer it's also light and refreshing without heating up my kitchen.

What is your favorite summer cuisine at home?  Please let me know how you like the gazpacho!

As Close As It Gets

Recently, I have started to get as close to natural as I can.  As a Kitchen Witch, it is almost embarrassing that I haven't done this sooner!

Sometime in the last year, I went through my kitchen and dumped anything containing high fructose corn syrup.  I cried as I found that included my tonic water.  For those of you following along and just getting to know me, I am a huge fan of gin & tonic and gimlets.  I immediately started researching tonics and looking for a brand I could drink.  Enter Fever Tree!  Fever Tree sources the highest quality ingredients and doesn't add in anything artificial.  There are no preservatives, no colors, no corn syrup of any kind!  They offer several varieties, and just looking at their website now so I could link it up for your convenience, I see they have a new tonic that I have not yet tried.  You can taste the difference very easily, no matter what you are mixing it with.  I can never drink a hum drum tonic brand again now that I have tasted the awesomeness of Fever Tree Tonic.  I can purchase a limited variety at my local Giant and Wegmans.  It is over a full dollar cheaper at Wegmans.  If you can't find any Fever Tree at your local market, you can order from Amazon.  I am also going to take a moment and let you know that Bluecoat Gin is also amazing with its clean and crisp profile and comes in a beautiful blue bottle.  Bluecoat is made and bottled right here in Philadelphia, PA.  No matter which variety of Fever Tree Tonic you chose to indulge, mixing it with Bluecoat Gin is a perfect combination.  Hendrick's Gin is another of my favorites, however, with its rose petal and cucumber infusion, it can be a little too sweet with some varieties of Fever Tree Tonic, like the Elderflower Tonic.  I have yet to again purchase Magellan Gin, as it is difficult to find in PA.  But that is really the only other gin I drink.  Magellan Gin is a lovely hue of blue as it is infused with iris, so again, it may only work well with the regular Indian Tonic by Fever Tree.

I also started making things from scratch, such as household cleaners, laundry soap, etc.  I am getting ready to make my own toothpaste and soaps.  One of the blogs I found for recipes that I like is Wellness Mamma.  She links the ingredients to where you can order them online, if you can't find somewhere local to purchase from.  I enjoy this blog for the recipes and what's behind the recipes.  She's done a lot of homework and links resources, so I don't have to do the initial hard research.  Of course, there are some things I still look into further before trying, we all have to think for ourselves.

Let me know what you think about Fever Tree!  Have you tried it before?  Are you going to try it after reading this post?  

Do you make anything from scratch?  What is your favorite item to make from scratch for your home?

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