Homemade Ginger Ale!!

Homemade ginger ale!!  How great does that sound??  Okay, so I definitely did not come up with this recipe on my own.  I got this directly from my new favorite book “Make the Bread, Buy the Butter” by Jennifer Reese.  Seriously, I LOVE this book!  It’s more than just a cookbook or how-to book, it’s also full of great stories from the author’s life…like the good and the bad of raising chickens and goats in her family’s suburban backyard.  Including a highly entertaining attempt at raising their own Thanksgiving turkey(s).  The book is funny and witty, and SO informative.  Reese gives an overview of many common foods we buy all the time (Oreos, cream cheese, mustard...over 120 recipes!).  Reese breaks each item down by cost and hassle to determine whether you should buy it or make it (hence, the title of the book), and then gives a recipe or two or three.

Buy this book!!

Ginger ale seemed to call to me.  We don’t drink soda very often at our house, but when we do it’s almost always ginger ale.  The thought of making it myself with all-natural ingredients was extremely appealing, and this is a great recipe.  That being said, I didn’t quite follow the recipe, but I should have, and next time I will.  What did I do differently?  Well, I used active dry yeast instead of instant because that’s what I had in the house.  I didn’t have a lemon, but I did have lemon juice…so it’s very possible I didn’t even come close to adding the correct amount.  And I skimped a little on the ginger because I was being lazy and tired of grating it.  I definitely should have added more ginger, it’s such a great flavor!!  Oh, and by the way, Reese's verdict is “make it.”  She compares Canada Dry at about $1.79 for a 2-liter bottle and the homemade version at about $1.59.  DO NOT go and try to compare this to some cheap shit, generic ginger ale because that stuff sucks ass…it doesn’t even have ginger in it!  Now make some of this, mix it with a little dark rum and have yourself a fabulous dark 'n' stormy!

Ginger Ale

Props to Terrapin

Ingredients

1 lemon

2 tbsp finely grated fresh ginger (~2” chunk)

1 cup sugar

¼ tsp instant yeast

cold tap water

Empty 2-liter plastic bottle with a screw-on cap to put it all in

Instructions

1) Place funnel in the mouth of 2-liter bottle.  Juice the lemon and strain the juice in the bottle.

2) Add the ginger, sugar and yeast.  It’s okay if some is stuck to the funnel, the water will flush it out.  Pour in enough water to fill the bottle and cap tightly.

3) Gently shake to mix up all the sediment (ginger, sugar, yeast).  Press on the bottle, you’ll notice there’s a little give.

4) Let the bottle sit at room temperature for about 24 hours.  You’ll know the soda is done when you press on the bottle again and there’s no give.  Put the bottle in the fridge, and as soon as it’s cold, it’s ready to drink!  If you don't want the ginger "pulp," strain it into a glass to drink.
*Open the bottle with care, it may be very bubbly.  Finish off within a few days, as it will lose its effervescence.

enjoy!

~ j

Irish Cream

When it starts getting chilly outside and the stores are full of holiday cheer, I always feel like that's the perfect time for Irish cream.  And I really like to make it myself, because I can tweak all the ingredients to my own personal preferences...for instance, I put more whiskey in it than I'm admitting to here in this recipe.  I made 2 jars (yes, jars...I live in Kentucky now, so a Mason jar just felt appropriate for my booze), one of them with a peppermint twist on the original.  I didn't use the blender this time, because The Beeb was sleeping and she's not a big fan of the blender sounds.

I dunno', how would you pose a jar of booze?

Ingredients

1 cup heavy cream

1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk

1 2/3 cup Irish whiskey

1/3 cup cold coffee

1/4 cup chocolate syrup (I like Hershey’s Special Dark syrup)

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp almond extract (OR ½ tsp mint extract)

Instructions

1)  Put all the ingredients in a blender and blend.

2)  Chill, serve over ice, slurp!

OR, you can do it the Kentucky way:

1)  Put all the ingredients in a Mason jar and shake vigorously.  Step 2 remains the same.

enjoy!

 ~ j