Monday, July 6, 2009

Ginger Pear Mint Elixer

This was inspired by a smoothie cookbook I recently found, rather dated, but which has far more interesting combinations than usual (forget the banana orange strawberry surprise, this book uses everything from tapioca to quinoa to figs). This my adaptation of one recipe that was based on ginger and pear:

Ginger Pear Mint Elixer

3 canned no-sugar pear halves
Ginger Juice
Mint Leaves
Almond Milk
Club Soda
Sweetener

In my bullet blender cup, I filled it half with ice, and then 3 pear halves, two mint leaves from my own garden, a splash of ginger juice (or you could use ginger powder or fresh ginger), a splash of almond milk, and topped it off with club soda. I added 2-3 drops of sucralose no-calorie sweetener, and blended.



Very refreshing and cool on a hot summer day. Ginger and pear are soothing to the stomach and digestion. Of course I think this would be much improved by using Asti Spumanti or champagne in place of the club soda, but that would detract from the so-called restorative factor.

That's my ground floor kitchen window. It faces a parking lot and the lot's water hose is under my window. I don't like lookie loos so I swirled clear glass paint on it for privacy, but still lets the light through. Looks pretty darn cool, I think.