Non-Alcoholic Drinks for St. Patrick's Day

At the annual St. Patrick Day's party at the office or somewhere else, it is kind to avoid awkward situations when a host provides non-alcoholic drinks for nondrinkers. Not everyone drinks and this is a for variety of reasons.

It might be health - some individuals are allergic to alcohol or become ill no matter how little of it they consume, or have had a very bad experience with it, or are alcoholics that have committed to not drinking. Some folks may refuse to drink simply to make a point of not being influenced by a crowd enjoining them to do so (stubborn, aren't they?).

Others may refrain from drinking, because a friend or relative died from alcoholism, or was killed in an accident with a drunk driver. Whatever the reason, these people may be accommodated with good-tasting non-alcoholic beverages without a commotion being made over the "tea totalers" at the party.

One acqaintaince of mine would attend parties, order a glass of juice or club soda or even ginger ale. and stick a fruit garnish in it so people would stop asking him why he did not drink. Come to think of it, in five years we worked together, he never told me, either.

To me, green means food and is not a color to wear. I just don't much like it in clothing, but I do admire it in foods and beverages. It has my greatest respects in the world of cuisine.

"Green food" may conjure up nightmares of monster salads to some individuals that were forced into eating mushy salads and mushier canned green peas as children. Or the menace of canned spinach, which should be outlawed. Popeye might still enjoy it straight from the can, but the contents simply cannot be the same item as that fresh green spinach in the market. In the can, it is processed rope.

"Green food" can also speak to sustainability. A number of Hubbers write about the gardens that they produce every year, sharing useful and fun tips with the rest of us here and in the world. I love gardens.

Here, green food will be a list of non-alcoholic beverages that are green in color and delicious. You can add beverage alcohol to any of them, if you wish -- Although, I've never tried alcohol in Sage Tea...

You can make your own lemonade or purchase frozen, and add greed vegetable coloring to it, or you can make this healthy de-tox drink if you have a juicer.

Ingredients for 2 Drinks

• 1 head of romaine lettuce
• 6 stalks of kale
• 2 sweet apples, like Fuji
• 1 whole lemon (if organic, you need not peel it)
• 2 Tablespoons fresh ginger, or to taste

Process the vegetables and fruit in a juicer and serve.

Limeade Concetrate - store in your refrigerator, or freeze for up to 3 months.

• 1 Cup of lime juice (the juice of 6 fresh limes)
• 1.5 Cups sugar and 1.5 cups water ( I use spring water), heated to dissolve sugar into a simple syrup.
• Mix together well, or refigerate both juice and syrup separately and mix when needed.

Limeade

To make limeade, use 1 Cup of the concentrate and 1 Cups water. If too tart, add one more 1/2 Cup water to the mix.

TIP: Before juicing 6 limes, roll them on countertop while applying some downward pressure to begin to break down the inner membranes. This will make juicing easier. Cut rolled limes in half crosswise, hold cut side up and squeeze juice into a bowl, thereby keeping seeds in the rind. If you want to get rid of the pulp, strain the juice. 

Ingredients for 6 drinks in iced tea or highball glasses.

• 1 cup well-packed sprigs of fresh parsley
• 1/2 teaspoon grated lime zest
• 1 Cup cold water (I use spring water)
• 1/2 Cup lime juice
• 1/2 Cup sugar
• Club soda
• Lime slices for garnish

Instructions

• Put all of the above ingredients, except the soda, into a blender.
  Cover and puree contents for 60 seconds.
• Strain the blender puree through a sieve into a glass or other transparent pitchur.
• Fill tall serving glasses 1/3 full of cracked ice and serve the beverage over and above the ice slightly (divide among the 6 glasses), adding club soda to fill the glasses.
• Garnish with a slice of lime on the rim of the glass.

Simjple green tea, hot or iced, will look green, but this recipe offers a different flavor.

You will need

• 2 teaspoons loose black tea (if you can find loose white tea, use it for a greener coloring - open up two white tea bags)
• 8 dried sage leaves
• Sugar or honey

Instructions

• Place 6 cups water into a pot and bring to the boil.
• Next, remove pot from the heat, add tea and sage leaves.
• Cover the pot with its lid and wrap a tea towel around the pan. Set it on the counter 10 minutes to steep the tea.
• Strain the beverage into a teapot and serve hot, with sugar or honey on the side; or pour unto tall glass that are 1/2 filled with cracked ice and garnish with a piece of fruit on a party pik (offer sweeteners to guests).

Another Use for Green Teas - Green Tea Eggs

Boil some eggs, cool them, and crack their shells all around without removing them. It's fine if you removed small parts of the shell here and there. Place the eggs into a wide mouthed jar of strong-brewed green tea, cover, and refrigerate overnight or for 24 hours. The peeled eggs will display green marbled designs and have the flavors of the tea.

Black tea and orange pekoe teas are fine for this as well. The eggs make an interesting party food.

Serves 8

Blend the following ingredients in a blender and serve.

• 1.5 Cups Orange Juice
• 4 Scoops lime sherbet
• 2 ripe bananas, peeled and chunked
• 6 Tablespoons chopped mint
• 4 kiwifruits, peeled and halved
• 2 Cups crushed ice

In a blender, combine the following ingredients and blend for 2 milk shakes

• 4 scoops mint chocolate chip ice cream
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 drop of peppermint extract

Pour into glasses with a sprig of mint and or whipped cream garnish.

Add additional milk to the blender if a thinner shake is desired. You can also add some additional chocolate syrup if you like.