Shalane Smith-Needham- Summer's here and we are looking forward to the upcoming holiday weekend. Joining me to talk about some fun refreshing recipes to enjoy during the hot summer months ahead is USU extension agent from Weaver county Teresa Hunsaker.
First, tell us about your homemade version of lemonade concentrate.
Teresa Hunsaker- Oh, you know what this is so refreshing. So the very first thing that you're going to do is take two cups of sugar and one and a half cups of water and heat those over medium heat in a saucepan and make this nice sweet syrup for it.
I'll remove that from the heat then, add two and a fourth cups of lemon juice and two teaspoons of lemon zest. Then when I'm ready to mix it up, it's one to one.
You can make your own fruit variations of lemonade and all you need to do at the time you adding the lemon juice and the lemon zest, just add about one and a half cups of whatever pureed fruit that you want.
Then one other little quick trip is if in making my simple syrup, my sugar and water, I wanted to add mint leaves and have kind of a mint julep flair to it. I would put that right in with the water and the sugar heat that up and then strain off the mint and I've got a hint of mint, I know that rhymes, but to the strawberry or the plain lemonade concentrate.
I think you guys will love it and during this hot summer season, I think you'll just really have fun with your creations of lemonade concentrate.
SSN - Another recipe you have for us sounds interesting, coconut lime marinade for chicken.
TH- I must have had citrus on the brain, but it's a cup of cilantro, some chopped green onion, a cup of coconut milk, some olive oil, zest of lime and the juice of one large lime, some red curry paste or some curry powder, some grated ginger, red pepper flakes and a little bit of salt.
You just mix all of those up as a marinade and put your boneless skinless chicken breast in and then just reserve out some of that marinate so that you can kind of coat and base the chicken as it's grilling.
SSN- And last but not least, tell us about your refreshing coleslaw recipe.
TH- The reason that I like this coleslaw is that you kind of slaw several different cabbages and carrots. And you can even put in your napa cabbage or even some grated zucchini is wonderful in it but the reason that I also like this it is not a mayonnaise base.
SSN- Well I know I am looking forward to trying all of these recipes Teresa Hunsaker, USU Extension agent Weber County. Thanks for joining us and sharing your recipes with us today.
Lemonade Concentrate
2 cups sugar
2 ¼ cups lemon juice---fresh squeezed is best but can use bottled lemon juice
1 ½ cups water
2 tsp. lemon zest
Combine the sugar and water in a small saucepan set over medium-low heat.
Slowly bring the mixture to a boil, stirring occasionally, until sugar is completely dissolved. Remove from heat. Stir the lemon juice and zest into the sugar syrup. Set the concentrate aside to cool to room temperature.
Once cooled, homemade lemon concentrate may be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to two weeks, or frozen for a number of months.
Variations:
Strawberry Lemonade: 8-10 strawberries. Place strawberries in a blender; top with 2 tablespoons sugar. Pour ½ cup water over sugared strawberries. Blend until strawberries are a nice smooth puree. Add to the completed concentrate mixture.
Peach: 2 c fresh peaches, peeled and pitted, 2 TBS lemon juice, freshly squeezed, and 3 TBS honey. Place in a blender and blend until smooth. Add to concentrate mixture and freeze.
To reconstitute mix the concentrate with an equal amount of water, tonic, Sprite, etc. Enjoy.
Coconut Lime Marinade for Chicken
1 cup chopped fresh cilantro
½ cup chopped green onion
1 cup coconut milk (regular or low-fat)
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 lime, zested and juiced…about ¼ cup of juice
1 tablespoon red curry paste or 2 tsp curry powder
1 TBS fresh grated ginger
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
2 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breasts
Combine all ingredients in a small bowl. Remove and reserve 1/4 cup of the marinade for later.
Place chicken in a large plastic bag and add remaining marinade. Coat the chicken in the marinade then close the bag and let sit for at least 30 minutes. Or, refrigerate and marinate for 1-2 hours or up to 6-8 hours. Remove chicken from refrigerator at least 30 minutes before grilling. Preheat grill to medium heat.
Add marinated chicken to grill and cook over medium heat for 5-7 minutes per side, until cooked through. (Timing will depend on which cut of chicken you use and its thickness.)
Let the chicken rest for 5-10 minutes before slicing. Serve with reserved marinade drizzled over the chicken.
Refreshing Summer Coleslaw
For the slaw:
1/2 medium head of purple cabbage, shredded (about 3 cups shredded cabbage)
1/2 medium head of green cabbage, shredded (about 3 cups shredded cabbage)
1-2 heaping cups shredded carrots
½ cup grated zucchini
1 cup finely chopped cilantro
1 jalapeño, seeded and finely diced
1/2 cup green onion (green part only)
1/4 cup toasted sliced almonds (or sunflower seeds)
For the dressing:
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons pure maple syrup, depending how sweet you like your slaw, or honey, or agave, or sugar
1 clove garlic, finely minced
½ tsp Dijon style mustard
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper, optional
½ teaspoon salt
Freshly cracked black pepper
Combine all slaw ingredients in a large mixing bowl, except almonds. Stir and mix together well.
In a small mixing bowl combine ingredients for the dressing. Stir well and toss with the slaw mixture. Chill before serving. Top with toasted sliced almonds…or sunflower seeds.
Note: Celery seed and or caraway seed can also be added to the dressing if desired.
