Beat the Heat
Hear comes the sun!
We don't get this kind of weather very often here in Northern Ireland, but we know how to make the best of it when we do. Days away, picnics on the beach, leisurely walks and sometimes we just like to be in the garden or our back yard....that'll do me nicely....for me there's no place like home on a sunny day.
The last thing we want to do in this weather is cook or even eat if it's really warm. I like to make sure there is lots of cold drinks and ice cream and fruits available during the day to keep cool. I just want to share a few ideas with you all.
Water is the best thing to drink in hot weather but I like to jazz mine up a little.
Take some slices of lemon, lime and orange and put them into a jug along with ice, few sprigs of mint leaves and fill the jug with lots of ice and sparkling water or still, whichever is your preference.
Keep leftover citrus fruits fresh and ready for use again in the fridge by pinning the off cuts to the fruit with a cocktail stick!
Melon and Ginger
Melons are so refreshing in hot weather. I like to serve mine chilled from the fridge with some stem ginger in syrup. It just changes the taste and definitely makes it very moreish!
Even if you think you don't like ginger, give it a go, you'll be surprised.
You will need a jar of stem ginger in syrup and a melon of your choice. I like Honeydew but it's all about preference. Cut the melon in half lenghtways and scoop out the seeds. If you have a melon baller tool use it to make small balls of melon. If you don't have one then cut the melon into wedges, slice of the flesh from the skin and dice into cubes of equal size. Chop 2 pieces
of the stem ginger and add to the melon with some of the ginger syrup from the jar. Add a few sprigs of mint to decorate and chill in the fridge for 30 mins, if you can wait that long!
Easy Raspberry Shortcake Ice-cream
Northern Irish people love ice-cream at anytime of the year and in this little province we have many award winning ice-cream makers. For those of you who think you could never make ice-cream then think again. This is a really easy recipe and made in the one bowl without any ice-cream making gadgets!
Beat 2 lge cartons of double cream until stiff. Fold in 1 teasp vanilla extract and 1 lge tin of condensed milk and a few broken shortbread biscuits. Mash 1 punnet of fresh raspberries. Mix into the ice-cream mixture and then pour into a large loaf tin lined with clingfilm. Decorate with any leftover fruit and crushed shortbread. Cover and freeze for 8 hours. Once frozen lift out of the freezer and let it sit at room temperature for a few minutes to soften slightly. Lift out of the tin and slice or just scoop it out.
Enjoy!
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