it's been another productive week over here at newfoodtuesdayz. lot's of teaching and cooking and just getting shit done. if you have some time, check out our new collaboration page to find out how to work with the newfoodtuesdayz team (me and wes). 

this weekend, i am having a little pop up bake sale at one of the studios i teach at. if you live in orange county and are looking to support local businesses and small artisans, please come check out the craft fair at kaya yoga remedy in huntington beach, this saturday from 1-4.
after testing plenty of full flavor, gluten free and vegan treats, i'm spending all #friyay baking. and drinking. duh. 

when you are your only real employee, you get to drink on the job. 

today i wanted something fun and bright to pick me up as i work well into the evening. plus, with all the germs roaming around right now, i need to pump up my vitamin c intake. 

i had these really cool sweet limes i found at my local produce store (there is a bunch of really cool citrus in season at the produce markets right now). they had the sweetness of an orange, but the flavor of a lime. and because the lime is so sweet, much less sugar is necessary to sweeten this tasty cocktail. 

casco bay sparkling limeade
serves: 1 cocktail
prep time: 2 minutes
active time: 1 minute
total time: 3 minutes
ingredients: 2 oz citron vodka. 1 oz sweet lime juice. 1 oz lemon juice. 1 oz simple syrup. splash of cranberry juice. .25 cup club soda. 2 cups ice, divided. channel knife to make lime peal garnish. collins or tulip glass. 

using the channel knife, hook it into the lime peal and gently slide it the diameter of the lime to create your curls. 

in a pint glass with half the ice, combine the vodka, juices and simple syrup. 

strain into a glass with the remaining ice.

top with desired amount of club soda. 

garnish with lime twist and enjoy. 

xo, a 

casco bay sparkling limeade
serves: 1 cocktail
prep time: 2 minutes
active time: 1 minute
total time: 3 minutes
ingredients: 2 oz citron vodka. 1 oz sweet lime juice. 1 oz lemon juice. 1 oz simple syrup. splash of cranberry juice. .25 cup club soda. 2 cups ice, divided. channel knife to make lime peal garnish. collins or tulip glass.
using the channel knife, hook it into the lime peal and gently slide it the diameter of the lime to create your curls.
in a pint glass with half the ice, combine the vodka, juices and simple syrup.
strain into a glass with the remaining ice.
top with desired amount of club soda.
garnish with lime twist and enjoy. 

while i may now look like a culinary goddess. oh wait, that is only in my own mind? ok, well while i may not be a culinary goddess, at this state in the game i know a thing or two.

when i started cooking and writing six years ago, there wasn't really a game plan. i just did it. no real reason other than, why not? i didn't expect that it would result in falling in love with food and feeding people, or that i would inadvertanley teach myself how to cook. and i had no clue it would ultimately result in a career change.

but what i do know, is that i wish i didn't have to learn SO MUCH by trial and fire. sure, blogs were giving me recipes and the various mainstream food outlets offered hundreds of takes on the same damn thing. but no one was giving me telling me that if i smashed the garlic the skin would come right off. of that if i'm making something that's being blended there is no reason to waste a bunch of time mincing garlic. i wish someone had given me all the tips and trick that made me look and feel like a pro in the kitchen. you know, that gourmet at home shit.

o i'm brining you garlic 101. the things i WISH i had known when i was embarking on my cooking journey. maybe you know them, maybe you don't. it is always good to brush up on your skills. after all, we are always learning. 

garlic 101:
on the left is a head of garlic. on the right are five cloves of garlic. a head of garlic is made up of a bunch of cloves of garlic. not going to lie, if i'm going to be using a lot of garlic, i buy pealed garlic. i keep both on hand in my kitchen at all times. sometimes you need to roast a whole head of garlic, or stuff some up the backend of the bird, but keeping the pealed stuff on hand can really cut down on your time. 

one of the first mind blowing tip i learned in the kitchen was how to quickly peal garlic. i use a TON of garlic. sometimes, you can't get your hands on pealed garlic. and when you are pealing 20 cloves a time, it can be tedious.
to smash your garlic, you will want to use the thickest part of either a chef's knife (top) or santoku knife (bottom). 

place the thick part of the blade on a garlic clove. using the heal of your palm, press the knife into the garlic until you feel it smash beneath you. if you are feeling a little frustrated, you could also whack it with your fist (but be a bit more careful here). 

remove the knife and gently remove the crushed skin. 

if a recipe calls for roughly chopped, just chop up your crushed garlic. 

if you need to slice a clove, keep the clove as whole as possible when smashing.

to mince, just keep going on your roughly chopped. 

there you go. a bunch of things you needed to know about. now i bet you are wondering what to do with all your garlic. 

i love to keep garlic oil on hand. it lasts for a few days and is the base for many great dressings, marinades or croutons.

combine 5 cloves of garlic with .25 cup olive oil. 

store for up three to four days. 

xo, a