Flavored Coffee Syrup Recipe

I LOVE delicious coffee drinks, especially when they have fun flavors!  Coffee houses always have tons of options to spice up your drinks like peppermint, cinnamon, raspberry, etc.  So here is a recipe to help you bring  coffee house flavor into your home!

Ingredients:

1 c. water

1 c. sugar

1 tsp. your favorite flavor extract

McCormick has tons of different types of extract so don't feel like you have to just stick to coconut or vanilla.  When I went to Walmart, I noticed that they had hazelnut, caramel, peppermint, cinnamon, raspberry, and tons more!  Also, don't be afraid to get creative!  You can most definitely do a combination of extracts to make your own flavor.

Directions:

1. Start off by combining the water and sugar in a pot and bringing it to a boil so that the sugar dissolves completely.

2.  Remove your simple syrup from heat and add in the extract.  You can add more or less than a teaspoon...it's whatever you like!

3.  Add a few tablespoons of your flavored syrup to take your cup of coffee to the next level!

and that's it!..so so super easy!

enjoy!

-amy gat

4th of July Fruit Tart

In honor of the 4th of July here's a very tasty and very red, white, and blue dessert recipe!

Crust:

1 c. room temperature butter

1/2 c. powdered sugar

2 c. flour

a pinch of salt

Filling:

1/3 c. heavy cream

1/2 c. powdered sugar

1 package room temperature cream cheese

strawberries

blueberries

1. Set the oven to 350 degrees

2.  To make the crust, cream the butter and the sugar together until they are completely combined

3.  Add the flour and salt to the butter mixture until a dough is formed

4.  Press the dough into the bottom and sides of a tart pan and bake for 20 minutes

5.  While the crust is baking, make the filling by combining the heavy cream and powdered sugar and whipping up to a thick consistency (but not all the way to stiff peaks)

6.  In a separate bowl, whip the cream cheese until it is soft and smooth

7.  Whip the heavy cream combination and cream cheese together until they are combined

8.  Before filling the tart shell, be sure it has cooled to room temperature

9. Once the shell is room temperature, fill the tart and decorate the top with strawberries and blueberries

10.  Chill in the refrigerator for a couple hours

That's it!

I hope everyone has a fun and safe 4th of July!

-amy gat

Summer Drink Recipes

Peach Tea

Ingredients:

3 cups water

2 bags black tea

1/4 cup sugar

5 ounces Goya peach nectar

1. In a large sauce pan, bring water to a boil.  Once it reaches a boil, remove from heat.

2. Steep the tea in the hot water for 3-5 minutes

3.  Remove tea bags and add sugar to the tea

4. Add peach nectar to the sweetened tea

5. Chill the tea for a few hours until it is ready to drink

Strawberry Lemonade

Ingredients:
1/2 cup lemon juice
3 cups water
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup strawberry syrup**

Strawberry Syrup Ingredients:
1 cup diced strawberries
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup water

1. Prepare the strawberry syrup by combining strawberries, sugar, and water and boiling for 15 minutes.  Strain the solids from the syrup.  Let cool.
2.  In a separate container, mix lemon juice, water, and sugar
3. Add the cooled strawberry syrup.  You can use as much or as little as you want.  I like to use all of it, but that might be too much for some people)
4.  Let the strawberry lemonade chill in the fridge for at least a couple hours.


Watermelon Freeze

Ingredients:

2 cups frozen cubed watermelon

1 cup water (or enough water to blend)

1/4 of a medium frozen banana

1 tablespoon turbanado (or to taste)

1. Blend all of the ingredients together until the desired consistency is reached

Healthy Snacks & Healthy Alternatives

Whenever a new semester rolls around I tend to promise myself that I'm going to try to eat healthier and exercise more often.  So in honor of my new health kick, I thought I'd do a blog post about the healthy snacks that I like to eat. Hopefully this gives you ideas for snacks that are both healthy and delicious.

Veggies and Greek Yogurt Dip:
I love eating celery and carrots, but eating them without something to dip them in is really hard for me.  Vegetable dips tend to have a lot of calories because of all of the sour cream and mayo that is in them, but there is a healthier alternative...

I like to combine Hidden Valley Dip mix (it comes in a packet) with 0% plain Greek yogurt.  I usually buy a 6oz cup of yogurt and mix it with about 1/5th of the ranch mix packet, but you can use more or less ranch depending on what you like.  Hidden Valley also has a few flavors to choose from so if you're not a fan of plain ranch they have Fiesta Ranch, Dill, etc.

This combination is still creamy and flavorful, but without all of the calories of a regular veggie dip.  One package of 0% greek yogurt has 100 calories in it.  You can also use this as a salad dressing if mixed with a splash of skim milk.

 Trisciuts with Cheese and Pepperoni:
Here's a twist on crackers and cheese that is healthier and to me, more filling...

I like to use Triscuits Thin Crisps because I feel like they fill me up more than a normal cracker.  I usually buy the parmesan garlic flavor because I've never been one to buy "original."
Laughing Cow cheeses are so good!  I would totally recommend these because one wedge is 35 calories but it is so creamy and delicious and you can buy them in a good amount of different flavors.  Laughing cow cheese wedges are also really versatile...i use them in pasta dishes and as a spread on sandwiches instead of a slice of cheese.
Hormel Turkey Pepperoni is also a good alternative to regular pepperoni.  It has 70% less fat and you can have 17 slices for only 70 calories.  To be completely honest, I think Hormel Turkey Pepperoni tastes just as good as regular pepperoni.

Special K Products:
Special K products are somethings that I am sort of rediscovering and loving.  I used to eat the cereal bars all the time and I don't know why I ever stopped.  They have less calories than a granola bar and in my opinion they taste better.  I love Special K cereal bars because they're really convenient especially for those who just like to get up and go.  I usually just eat these on the bus on my way to campus.   My favorite flavor is raspberry cheesecake.
Special K Cracker Chips are a really great alternative to regular potato chips.  The serving is 27 chips which is more than enough for me and in 27 chips, there are only 110 calories.  When comparing these to other types of chips, you can eat more while consuming less calories (which makes Cracker Chips a winner in my book)...and I almost forgot to mention...they taste really good too!

Teavana's Raspberry Riot Lemon Mate with German Rock Sugar:

I love Teavana teas.  They can be pricey for teas, but I feel like they are worth it.  The Raspberry Riot Lemon Mate is a great alternative to super sugary raspberry lemonades.  This is good served hot or over ice and it has very few calories (4 i think) if you drink it without rock sugar.  The rock sugar (also from Teavana) is a good sweetener to use in teas because it is more natural than regular sugar and it also has only 25 calories per teaspoon.