Nutella is one of those condiments I always have around the house; I alternate between periods of eating copious amounts of it, putting it on everything, and proclaiming it’s the best thing ever.
And then there are those other times when I’m indifferent to it, and it languishes in the cupboard for months.
Despite what the commercials suggest, I’ve never thought of it as healthy or good for me, it’s definitely not a ‘health food’ – all you have to do is look at the ingredients.

I’ve often thought about making my own; with roasted hazelnuts, cocoa powder, coconut milk and sugar – I’m a little hesitant it wouldn’t turn out as creamy, smooth and chocolaty.

Nevertheless, it’s okay to indulge now and then…

I recently discovered another use for Nutella – making hot chocolate, now why didn’t I think of that?
It’s a twist on the classic hot chocolate; a warm hot chocolaty drink with subtle hints of hazelnut.
It’s quite heavenly!

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“Spring is coming!” the old woman at the market tells me.
She inches closer and I smile in agreement; we’re picking through a cart of oranges.
“I love oranges, they’re always so plentiful in winter” I try to make small talk.
“You know what else is coming?” she asks, “Valentine’s Day” she says, tapping on the oranges.
“What, oranges for Valentine’s day?” I’m intrigued.
That’s when she tells me about ‘winter’s sunshine’, a tangy citrusy drink her husband makes especially for her.
For years, he would make it on the weekends with breakfast, which they had in bed.
“I used to get the cold a lot when we were first married” she explains.
It’s perhaps the sweetest thing I’ve heard in a while; she tells me she’s been married for a very long time, so I ask her what her secret is.
“It’s love, silly! And a little patience but mostly love, that’s the secret to any long and happy companionship”

The old woman and I both grab a couple of oranges, lemons and limes; I thank her for the recipe and bid her a fond goodbye.
For the next several weekends leading up to Valentine’s Day I test out her recipe, I make modifications – more lemons, lime only, sub maple syrup for honey, blood orange and grapefruit (which is a winner), but I like the simplicity of the original recipe.
I would sip the drink often thinking of the old woman, and enduring love; the kind that lasts decades… that quiet lifelong friendship.
I want to hear her stories, perhaps there’s a lesson there; on love beyond the heady passion and heartache.
Indeed, spring is coming!

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I’m not a big fan of lemonade; I can take it or leave – and most of the time I leave it.
Yet, every summer I fall in love with the idea of lemonade, when I imagine a beach house, a lounge chair and hot, salty summer days, there’s always a glistening pitcher of lemonade.
This long weekend I’m thinking of a cottage by the sea on the Sunshine Coast, my mom is coming too – and I see a lounge chair.
The forecast looks great; perfectly warm, light breezy sunny days, and deep blue skies with fluffy white shifting clouds.
It’s like a fairytale come true; surely, we must have lemonade while there!

A refreshing hibiscus lemonade that’s tangy, tart and sweet.
I’ve practiced since the start of summer and it’s almost perfected
I usually buy dried hibiscus flower for tea to mix with henna which I use to condition my hair, I decided to find culinary uses for the hibiscus since it’s chock full of vitamin C and has other health properties (I’m too lazy to look them up right now).
You’d remember that I tried a hibiscus drink once and liked it; this lemonade is a twist on Agua de Jamaica (Hibiscus Tea).

It’s pretty straightforward; I use simple syrup as sweetener, juice some lemons, make the hibiscus tea and just mix a pitcher at a time.

Here’s what need to get and do:
Hibiscus Tea

• 1 cup dried hibiscus flower
• 2 cups water

Directions

1. Combine water and hibiscus flowers in a small saucepan over medium-high heat.
2. Bring to a boil, Let cool, strain tea into a pitcher, discarding flowers.
3. Refrigerate until very cold.

Simple Syrup
This very simple and awesome simple syrup recipe is from Bon App. It’s perfect for use in homemade beverages, I used turbinado sugar (because that all I had at home).

• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup water

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat sugar and water in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until sugar is dissolved.
2. Remove pan from heat, let cool, and transfer to a jar.
3. Cover and store in refrigerator for up to 1 month.

Juice of 4 Lemons;
Water; and
A pinch of salt

So we’re really eyeballing things here…
Pour a cup of hibiscus tea in a large pitcher, and add about half of the lemon juice, stir in about a cup or so of water and then add enough simple syrup to taste.
Add a pinch of salt.
Taste and add water or simple syrup until desired sweetness and or tartness is reached.
Garnish with lemon slices and serve

And there you have it; a cold healthy deliciously perfect accompaniment to your summer beach house lounging.

I’m not a coffee drinker but I just had to try coffee from a siphon coffee maker

The coffee I had was Guatemalan beans roasted by 49th Parallel.

The coffee turned out smooth, crisp and less bitter.

It was probably the best cup of coffee I’ve ever had, but that’s not saying much since I’m not a huge coffee drinker.

The coolest part was watching the coffee brewing; It’s like a chemistry project.

I tried this drink out of sheer curiosity after passing it a couple of times in the drinks aisle. The packaging and the bright red liquid is appealing; it’s simple yet manages to stand out.

This is the first hibiscus fizzy/pop/soda drink I’ve seen. With its health properties and natural red colour, I’ve always wondered why the hibiscus flower isn’t used more in food production.

I just became a fan of hibiscus myself quite recently – I have a bag of the dried flowers which I use for tea infusions and henna mixes.

As much as I love hibiscus, I didn’t hold out much hope for this drink, has anyone noticed how all these healthy-good-for-you drinks taste the same? They’re almost all bland, tastes watery with little or no flavour.

But this Ooba drink was different; it has a rich succulent taste, I liked that it didn’t taste flowery. I tried the orange flavour, it tastes nice and sweet, and you can tell it has sugar in it (no one’s trying to trick you). It tastes exactly like soda or how you wish soda tasted, except this is supposed to be good for you – it’s a good source of vitamin C and hibiscus has heart healthy benefits. It’s a great mixer in adult beverages too.

I bought my first bottle at Whole Foods then I found out that London Drugs carries it too. It retails for about $2.50CAD, but it does go on sale frequently at London Drugs. It comes in six flavours but I’ve only tried the original and orange so far.