July-aholic

I loooove pumpkins and Halloween, but July and the BBQing festivities are a close second in my heart. Here's what I made for July 4th.

White Sangria

I was only recently introduced to Sangria by a friend of mine, and now I'm hooked! Here was my no-recipe white sangria.

White Sangria

1 bottle white wine (I used Sauvignon Blanc)

1 each orange, lemon, lime, de-seeded and sliced into rounds

5-6 fresh strawberries washed, hulled, and split

1-2 oz lychee vodka

2 cans Hansen's Mandarin Lime soda

Combine the citrus, vodka, and wine. Let sit overnight. Just before serving, add the soda and strawberries. Serve. Drink.

It was a bit sweet, but I like sweet, so that was okay with me.

My dessert contribution for July 4th was an American staple - Oreos.

Homemade Oreo cookies gussied up to all 'Merican. I didn't change the ingredients one bit, but I did roll the dough in my hands before putting it on the cookie sheet. Observe:

Left: rolled into a ball and set on the sheet Right: dropped and flattened (per the directions)

I like the way the rolled cookies look better - the smooth top seems more Oreo-like.

It was totally gratuitous, but a little melted white chocolate, some blue nonpareils, and a happy red heart - they were all ready for a party!

I hope to post more soon. I got a SodaSteam and it's rocking my flip-flops right now with this heat. I've made a few soda syrups, but nothing worth sharing yet. I'm also gearing up for - what else? - pumpkin dinner! I've got lots of ideas so far. Like pumpkin brownies, pumpkin gelatin (but I already made pumpkin panna cotta once)...basically I never like to repeat myself.