Saturday, August 28, 2021

Rosemary Watermelon Lemonade from @MysteryMacRae

 


This lemonade is gorgeous and absolutely delicious! And, thanks to Mia's recipe for lavender simple syrup, I know that I've been making rosemary simple syrup without realizing it. Cool! 

I came across the recipe when I was writing the opening scenes of Last Wool and Testament, book 1 in the Haunted Yarn Shop Mysteries. At the wake for Ivy McClellan, late owner of the yarn shop, everyone is wearing something Ivy knitted or wove, or something made from the wool she spun or dyed. And all the food contains rosemary for remembrance, including an olive oil and rosemary cake with dark chocolate. So good! I'll post a recipe for that on MLK sometime this fall when it isn't too hot and muggy to bake. You can also find the cake and the lemonade recipes in the book.

 I’ve tried two methods for making the lemonade and have come to prefer the second. I’ll include both, though. The first uses a regular blender. The second uses an immersion blender and a soup kettle.

 

Rosemary Watermelon Lemonade

(adapted from Allrecipes.com)

  


Ingredients:

2 cups water

3/4 cup white sugar (sometimes I use brown sugar)

1 sprig rosemary leaves, chopped (I’m never quite sure what’s meant by “a sprig.” I try to use at least two tablespoons of chopped leaves.)

2 cups lemon juice

12 cups seedless watermelon either cubed or scooped

 

 Method 1

 


Bring the water and sugar to a boil in a small saucepan over high heat. Stir in the rosemary and set aside to steep for 1 hour.

 Strain the rosemary syrup into a blender. Add a third of the lemon juice and a third of the watermelon. Cover, and puree until smooth. Pour into a pitcher.

Puree another third of the lemon juice and watermelon. Add to the pitcher and repeat with the last of the lemon juice and watermelon.

 Stir the lemonade before serving. Hold your glass to the light and marvel at the beautiful color.

 

Method 2

 Bring the water and sugar to a boil in a small saucepan over high heat. Stir in the rosemary and set aside to steep for 1 hour.

 


Put scooped or cubed watermelon into large soup kettle.




Strain the rosemary syrup into kettle with watermelon. 




Add the lemon juice. Blend with the immersion blender until smooth. Pour into a pitcher.

 

Stir the lemonade before serving. Hold your glass to the light and marvel at the beautiful color.

 


 About Last Wool and Testament book 1 in the Haunted Yarn Shop mysteries 

 


Kath Rutledge is about to learn the true meaning of TGIF—Thank Goodness It’s Fiber . . . 

That’s the name of the group of fiber and needlework artists founded by Ivy McClellan, Kath’s beloved grandmother. Though Ivy has recently passed on, the members still meet regularly at her fiber and fabric shop, The Weaver’s Cat, which Kath has now inherited. But that’s only the first in a series of surprises when Kath returns to the small town of Blue Plum, Tennessee, to settle her grandmother’s affairs.

There’s been a murder, and it turns out her grandmother was the prime suspect. Before she can begin to clear Ivy’s name, Kath encounters a looming presence in the form of a gloomy ghost. It turns out the specter has just as much interest in solving the murder as Kath. So, with a little help from the members of TGIF—and a stubborn spirit from beyond—she sets out to unravel the clues and hook the real killer . . .

Available in paperback, e-book, and audio from your locally owned independent bookstores, Barnes & Noble, and Amazon. Or ask for it at your public library. 






The Boston Globe says Molly MacRae writes “murder with a dose of drollery.” She’s the author of the award-winning, national bestselling Haunted Yarn Shop Mysteries and the Highland Bookshop Mysteries. As Margaret Welch, she writes books for Annie’s Fiction. Her short stories have appeared in Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine since 1990 and she’s a winner of the Sherwood Anderson Award for Short Fiction. Visit Molly on Facebook and Pinterest and connect with her on Twitter  or Instagram.

 

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