music mondays

#currentlyplaying #country

summer's perfect drink: refreshing ginger lemonade

Seeing as it's the first day of summer, what's more appropriate than having a glass of homemade organic lemonade to quench your thirst? Even better, what about a ginger lemonade! As Ina Garten (I love her) would say, "It's a classic lemonade, but with the volume turned up". I was at a friend's house that had a bunch of ripe lemons on their tree, so took a good bagful home in anticipation of making some lemonade. I'm a huge fan of flavored simple syrups, I think they're fun and can add a special touch to an otherwise typical drink. I also love ginger. Love it. Let's put it this way, I'm totally that person you go out to sushi with that is asking for more pickled ginger and eating it off everyone elses empty sushi plates. It's spicy flavor is wonderful, but many times I find that anything "ginger flavored" in the store is really weak, and the spicy zing I like is pretty much nonexistent. So why not make a ginger lemonade that meets my idea of that spicy ginger flavor. I decided to infuse the ginger flavor into a simple syrup and add it to the lemonade making this drink the perfect summer treat. It's also a great party drink to serve, read below to find out how to fancy it up for a summer get together!

Homemade Organic Ginger Lemonade

1 1/2 cup organic lemon juice (about 10-15 lemons depending on how juicy they are, mine were very juicy and large so I only needed 10)
1 piece organic ginger (about the size of your palm)
1 1/2 cups of organic cane sugar
3 cups of filtered water (reserve 1 1/2 cups for simple syrup)

Making the ginger simple syrup:
Slice ginger into strips (you can peel off the skin, but I left mine on, just be sure to wash it if you don't peel). Add sugar and 1 1/2 cups of sugar to small pot along with slices of ginger. Heat in saucepan and simmer for 10 minutes. Taste the simple syrup, it should have a strong ginger flavor with a nice kick to it. If it's not strong enough, steep longer. Note, the ginger flavor will be subdued once added to the lemonade, so make sure the simple syrup has a strong ginger flavor. After 10 minutes, allow syrup to cool to room temperature (with ginger still in it).

Making the ginger lemonade:
Juice 1 1/2 cups of lemon juice and strain if there are any seeds. Take lemon juice and add *1 1/2 cups of water. Add in the ginger simple syrup (feel free to add a cup first, then taste test to see if you want it sweeter). Once you've got it to the right sweetness level, put in a container and add a few pieces of ginger from the syrup. Refrigerate overnight and consume within 3-4 days, though I'm sure it won't last that long. *You can also make it a concentrate by adding less water to the lemon juice, then upon serving top with some sparkling water instead. This is what I'll be doing at my next summer party. Or, do it shaken with your favorite alcohol!

asian style steamed fish

I la-la-loooove asian style steamed fish, but I normally only have it when I'm either eating at a Chinese restaurant, or dining with my grandma. Since these aren't as frequent as I would like, I decided to finally do it on my own (this is actually the very first time I've done a whole fish all by myself). I'll admit, I was a bit nervous at the market-- I used to go with my grandmother to Chinatown and get the live fish where I would see them "bock" (as my grandmother says it) them on the head to kill the fish, but this time I was by myself. It wasn't nearly as bad as I was anticipating, but let's just say I stood there a while looking at the tanks deciding what to get (I think somewhere in the back of my head I was also putting off my decision so I didn't have to see them kill the fish). Next time it will be much quicker. I love that asian steamed fish is healthy, delicious, and really quick to cook. I used this asian steamed fish recipe which turned out fantastic. I'm already contemplating next time... it'll be a little black bean, soy, garlic, ginger... yum, can't wait!

music mondays

Really love this song...

music mondays

I'm not a huge fan of this song, but when performed by these two I'd listen to it any day. There's also a little bonus towards the end. Enjoy!

the best of both worlds

If you haven't already noticed, I'm a huge fan of wanting to look polished, but ultimately, comfort prevails so having pieces in my wardrobe that meet these two criteria are important. And this knit sweater meets exactly those (and more). The cut makes it so easy to wear partially tucked in or loose fitted. It's a blend of linen and silk, making it perfect for the warmer weather or a layering piece for colder months. The neutral taupe color makes it easy to pair with almost any bottom you choose. I'd say, this sweater really is that versatile.

T. Babaton silk knit sweater, Jbrand black-green denim, converse high-tops, Kenzo sunglasses

music mondays

Since his new album, Makai, comes out tomorrow, I give you one of my favorite acoustics by the man himself. There's so much soul in that voice...

my boyfriend jean shorts

There's nothing I like better in an outfit than laid-back boyfriend style, with a feminine feel. You get the comfort of feeling like you're in your sweats or pajamas, but don't quite look the part. These are some of my favorite boyfriend-inspired pieces because they are cut for women, so they still accentuate and hug the right areas, but possess that yea-i-just-threw-on-my-bf's-clothes-and-am-ROCKING-it-attitude. They are undeniably comfortable, and a little bit rugged. I have many denim shorts, but none that fit like these, and boy, do they fit like magic. They are slouchy, but just fitted enough. This tank is rugged and worn, it feels like you've had it forever and is absolutely the most comfortable thing in my closet. I think I have a new summer uniform.

Wilfred tank, Rag and bone boyfriend shorts (moss), high-top Converse, Forever 21 bag. Kenzo shades