Cool Summer Treats

Summer is near and when the weather gets hot, we start looking for ways to cool down. We know that ice cream cones and lemonade get all the love, but here are a few variations to bring you out of the summertime rut.

Peanut Butter/Banana Smoothie

This smoothie is great for an energizing breakfast or when you need something to tide you over until dinner. Take a banana, a spoonful of peanut butter, honey, some ice, and your milk of choice (whole, skim, soy, almond, or rice) and blend until your smoothie reaches the desired consistency. For a creamier smoothie, use two bananas. You can also do without the ice if you freeze the bananas overnight.

Grape-Nuts Ice Cream

Instead of adding sugary sprinkles to your ice cream, try adding Grape-Nuts cereal for a crunchy, nutty texture. Mix Grape-Nuts cereal into a bowl of vanilla ice cream and stir until the cereal is evenly distributed. (I prefer Bryers natural vanilla ice cream because it's not super sweet and doesn't have so many extra ingredients like other ice creams.)

Affogato

Ice cream (usually vanilla) topped with a shot of espresso or strong coffee. Affogato comes from the Italian word meaning "drowned". The full name is "affogato al cafe" or "drowned in coffee" as you are effectively drowning your ice cream in coffee. For extra indulgence (and caffeine!) you can use chocolate or coffee-flavored ice cream instead of vanilla.

Espresso Soda

Only two ingredients are needed, espresso and seltzer water. Pour two shots of espresso into a glass of seltzer water and voila! Drink straight or add sugar to suit your tastes. For a little extra kick you can even add a splash of vanilla syrup.

Sparkling Juices/Italian Soda

Mix equal parts of your favorite fruit juice and seltzer water for a refreshing, less sweet alternative to plain fruit juice. For an Italian soda, mix sparkling water with a few pumps of flavored syrup such as peach, mango, or coconut for a cool thirst quencher.

Green Tea Lemonade

A twist on the Arnold Palmer. Mix equal parts of iced green tea and lemonade for a lighter version of this traditional drink. If you want to get even more creative, add a slash of seltzer water for a tongue-tingling twist!

Strawberry Lemonade

Mix ¼ strawberry puree with ¾ lemonade for a heavenly beverage. You can make strawberry lemonade by the glass or by the pitcher. If you have the time you can puree the strawberries yourself or you can just buy strawberry puree if you're feeling lazy.

Old School Ice Cube Popsicles

Everybody's mom has probably made these at some point and they don't have to be limited to five-year-olds. Take an empty ice cube tray and fill with your favorite juice or artificially-flavored juice beverage. Cover the tray in Saran Wrap, stick a toothpick in each cube and let 'em freeze. After several hours you will have a glorious popsicle with a toothpick handle. Enjoy it the way you did when you were a child!