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    Food & DIY

    Strawberry & Mint Agua Fresca

    June 9, 2014
    Since it has been extremely hot these past few days, I thought that it would be a good idea to start sharing some of my favorite Summer recipes on the blog. The first recipe that I’m going to share with you is for a delicious Strawberry & Mint Agua Fresca, which is super easy to make. I have a soft spot in my heart for aguas frescas because they always remind me of my childhood Summers; my mother and my abuela (grandmother) often made different types of aguas frescas such as horchata and other various fruit drinks. Other than the childhood nostalgia that they ignite in me, what I also enjoy about aguas frescas is that they are always a great alternative to store-bought juices and soft drinks, since they are made with fresh ingredients. I really hope that you enjoy this recipe, and that you use it often this Summer!
    Strawberry & Mint Agua Fresca Recipe
    INGREDIENTS:
    3 1/2 cups of water
    1 1/2 cups of pure cane sugar
    2 16-ounce containers of fresh strawberries (chopped)
    Mint leaves (according to taste)
    1. Blend the chopped strawberries, pure cane sugar, and 1 1/2 cups of water.
    2. Leave the strawberry mixture in the blender, and slowly start blending in mint leaves according to taste. This mixture makes a strawberry and mint concentrate, which you can freeze and use to make agua fresca at a later time.
    3. Pour the strawberry and mint concentrate into a large pitcher, and stir in 2 cups of water.
    4. Serve over ice.
    Optional: If you’re really looking to cool off from the heat, you can also pour the agua fresca into popsicle molds for a delicious frozen treat.
    —————–
    I have to admit that I’m glad that I decided to post a recipe on the blog this week, because I definitely didn’t have the energy to get dressed and take outfit pictures this weekend. This past week of work just left me feeling drained and tired, so I spent most of my free time this weekend in my pajamas. All I accomplished was laying on my bed and binge-watching the second season of Orange is the New Black. I still have a few episodes left in the current season. However, I have decided that from now on, I will limit myself to an episode a week so that it feels more like a treat. It’s so hard to do that because this season is so good!
    Another reason that I’m trying to limit my television time is because I’ve let go of many of my hobbies, and I’ve made a habit of spending too much time in front of a computer. I don’t read as much as I used to anymore, and I also haven’t been keeping up with creative projects other than this blog. I need to make time to experience the world around me.
    xoxo
    Helen Grace
    Food & DIY

    Vegan Mixed Berry and Caramel Crumble

    May 19, 2014
    Even though I’m usually not a fan of sweets other than chocolate, recently I’ve had a major craving for pastries and baked goods. I think that I have Instagram and Pinterest to blame for my newfound sweet tooth, since I’m constantly being bombarded with pictures of delicious food over social media. Unfortunately, these days the weather in California is way too hot for me to even think about turning on the oven in my kitchen. In order to curve my craving for sweets, this weekend I decided to adapt a recipe for a Vegan Jewel Fruit Tart with Caramel Filling that I had made a while back for my friends’ New Year’s party. I love that this recipe is perfect for hot weather because it is super easy to make and your refrigerator takes the place of an oven.
    As you can probably tell from the title of this post, my adaptation didn’t turn out quite as I expected. As I was experimenting with making the crust, I realized that the mixture that I had made had a more crumbly texture than the one in the original recipe.  Since this blog is all about experimenting, instead of starting all over, I decided to keep the crust as is in order to see what I came up with. The result was this delicious Vegan Mixed Berry and Caramel Crumble that I now have the pleasure of sharing with you.
    VEGAN MIXED BERRY AND CARAMEL CRUMBLE
    INGREDIENTS:
    CRUST/CRUMBLE BASE
    2 cups of walnuts
    1/2 cup of shredded coconut
    1 and 1/2 cups of pitted dates
    CARAMEL MIXTURE
    1/4 cup of almond butter
    1/4 cup of maple syrup
    1/4 cup of melted coconut oil
    1/2 tsp of cinnamon
    1/2 tsp of vanilla extract
    TOPPING
    Fresh of frozen berries of your choice
    INSTRUCTIONS:
    1. Blend 2 cups of walnuts, 1/2 cup of shredded coconut, and 1 and 1/2 cups of pitted dates in a food processor until the mixture forms a paste-like texture.
    2. Pour the mixture unto a greased pan and press it against the bottom of the pan. Refrigerate this for 2 hours to allow the crumble base to harden.
    3. To make the caramel mixture, blend 1/4 cup of almond butter, 1/4 cup of maple syrup, 1/4 cup of coconut oil, 1/2 tsp of cinnamon and 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract until smooth. Then, pour the mixture over the walnut and date crust.
    4. When ready to serve, place fresh or frozen berries on top of the mixture (If you let the berries sit on top of the crumble base for too long, the mixture might get soggy). You can serve the berry crumble alone, or with a side of ice cream.
    I hope that you like this recipe and that you find time to make it at home. If you do decide to make this at home, please leave me a comment and let me know how it turns out.
    Sincerely,
    Helen Grace