I have been considering “summer” – a concept that these
days is defined in meteorological and calendar terms. As a kid, summer began the
moment the last bell rang at school!
Certainly, if you ask 100 people what summer means to
them, you may get upwards of 60 different answers. To many the obvious answer
is outside grilling.
My summer memories are focused on things that aren’t
culinary because I grew up in a tropical island (it felt like summer
year-round). The moment I returned to the mainland and was suddenly held
hostage by the winter months, summer took a new impetus.
As a little kid, I used to love going to the backyard
and picking a dozen lemons and limes for lemonade. There are other memories
that feel like a silky embrace of a giant glass jar of maví steeping and
fermenting in the sun. Of course, I am not sure how easy it may be to find
mauby tree bark to make your own. (Trinis and Dominicans make commercial
versions available in some areas.)
I also have memories of lazy evenings drinking sangria,
or wine, under a trellis of sweetheart roses. And there were the myriad ways I asserted
my weirdness by being a little anarchist that refused to drink beverages as
they were meant to (combining lemonade and ginger ale, for one). You can always
get full of micheladas
to refresh yourself!
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| Did you know June 9th is National Iced Tea Day? NPR did... |
There was the creative iced tea period. My take was that
adding juices and even fruit to change the taste slightly and keep iced tea fun
was brilliant – though back then some of my friends did not agree. Snapple
proved them wrong in so many varieties! Some of them, I am certain, buy the
really expensive varieties that come in fancily decorated bottles.
These people are no longer my friends…
Moreover, I’m pretty sure I invented the classic Arnold
Palmer when I was about six.
It will always be better to make your own than to buy it
prepackaged – because you should always control the ingredients that go into it
and cut down on the sugar and salt content of most processed beverages.
The best part is enjoying the seasonal fruits available
in summer, and any excuse to visit a farmer’s market is always a good one.
Of course, as an adult you also get the distinct
pleasure of adding all sorts of boozy accompaniments to your summer
refreshments from bourbon to vodka. Remember, though, that these are meant to
refresh you in the heat of summer, so if you use booze be clear about it.
Go over to the Pinterest board of summer
refreshments and use these suggestions to give summer a new meaning – which
will engage your taste buds, your olfactory system, and create memories with a
menu.
