Known as the signature drink of the region, a tall glass of iced tea in the South goes with just about every event- church suppers, family meals, ladies luncheons, and it’s just perfect for porch sitting on a sizzling summer day.

Southern Sweet Tea

                                                                                    Ingredients

2 cups water                                                                                                                                                                   3 regular size tea bags or 1 family size (Lipton recommended)                                                                       1/2 cup granulated sugar                                                                                                                                            2 cups cold water

Directions                                                                                                                                                                    1.  Place 2 cups water in small saucepan or tea kettle and bring to a boil.                                                                                                                  2.  Turn off heat, add tea bags and steep for 3 to 5 minutes.  Remove tea bags and discard.                                                                                      3.  Add sugar, stirring until dissolved.  Pour into pitcher.                                                                                   4.  Add 2 cups cold water and stir; cool completely.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.  Serve over ice and if desired, with a slice of lemon.                                                                                                                             Yield:  4 cups

Combine 1/2 cup granulated sugar with the finely grated zest of 1/2 lemon.  Let sit at room temperature until slightly dry, about 1 hour.  Spread sugar mixture on a small plate.  Moisten the rim of glasses with a lemon wedge, then dip in sugar mixture before filling with ice cubes and iced tea.

Great for picnics and family reunions, homemade limeade is the perfect summer beverage.  Freeze it for frozen pops or slushies.  Recipe can be halved.

REFRESHING LIMEADE

Ingredients                                                                                                                                                            2 tablespoons fresh lime zest                                                                                                                                 1 1/2 quarts fresh squeezed lime juice (approximately 20 juicy limes)                                                                                                                       3 3/4 cups granulated sugar                                                                                                                                       6 quarts cold water

Directions                                                                                                                                                                   1.  Add all ingredients to a 2 gallon container and stir until sugar is dissolved.  (You can make a simple syrup by heating the sugar with an equal amount of water, stirring until sugar dissolves.  Cool completely.)                                                                                                                                                                  2. Chill thoroughly before serving over ice with lime slices.                                                                        Yield: 2 gallons

Hot Southern summers are perfect for refreshing infused water.

Ingredients                                                                                                                                                                     1 Granny Smith apple, cored and seeded, thinly sliced into rounds                                                                   1 medium cucumber, thinly sliced                                                                                                                            4 to 6 sprigs fresh mint                                                                                                                                                1 gallon water

Directions                                                                                                                                                                      1.  Place all ingredients in a gallon container                                                                                                         2.  Refrigerate for at least 1 hour before enjoying

I love to keep this water in the refrigerator all summer.  Sometimes, I change and put berries in the water.

I’m not the biggest indulger of alcoholic drinks, but when summertime hits, all I want to do is sit on a shady porch or under a tree, with a good book and a deliciously iced boozy drink in hand.  These are a some of my go-tos:

Watermelon Spritzer

Ingredients                                                                                                                                                                    8 cups seeded and cubed watermelon                                                                                                                      1 cup good vodka  (I prefer Grey Goose)                                                                                                               1/2 cup fresh squeezed lime juice                                                                                                                          1/4 to 1/2 cup granulated sugar                                                                                                                                Ice cubes                                                                                                                                                               Lemon-lime soda

Directions                                                                                                                                                                   1.  Place watermelon in the container of a food processor or blender and process until smooth.  Pour through a fine wire-mesh strainer and discard solids.                                                                                         2.  Stir in vodka, lime juice and sugar.  Chill until ready to serve.                                                                       3.  Pour over ice in a tall glass three-quarters full and top with lemon-lime soda.  Gently stir.  Garnish with a watermelon spear and lime slices.                                                                                                                                                 Yield: 8 cups

Pepper Jelly Margarita

Kick back with this potent yet smooth Mexican cocktail that’s the perfect balance of tangy, spicy and sweet.

For a festive look, zest the lime and add to the salt before dipping the rims of the glasses.  Store salt rimmed glasses in the fridge or freezer for up to an hour before serving.

To coat the rim of a glass: cover the surface of a small plate with a shallow layer of rimming salt or sugar (a cocktail rimmer is a great tool to use instead).  Moisten the outside edge of the glass rim with a wedge of citrus.  Holding the rim down at an angle, slowly rotate the outside edge through the coating ingredient, taking care not to get the coating inside the glass.  Gently shake off any excess coating.

Ingredients                                                                                                                                                           1 cup white tequila                                                                                                                                                         1 cup fresh squeezed lime juice                                                                                                                                 1/2 cup orange liqueur (Cointreau recommended)                                                                                               1/3 cup confectioners’ sugar                                                                                                                                      1/4 cup green pepper jelly

Directions                                                                                                                                                                       1.  Stir all ingredients together in a pitcher until sugar and jelly is dissolved.                                                                                                      2.  Fill a cocktail shaker with ice cubes and pour desired amount of mixture into cocktail shaker.  Cover with lid, and shake.  Serve immediately.                                                                                                             Yield: 3 cups

COOK’S NOTES:  Always add the sparkly ingredient last to keep the carbonation as fresh as possible.  Give the concoction a gentle stir to mix the flavors without overdoing the bubbles.

It’s not just for looks – garnishing adds fragrance and flavor to any cocktail.  Go beyond lemons and limes, and use fruit, vegetables and fresh herbs.

Decorative ice cubes are easy to make and add both color and flavor.  Filtered or bottled water will produce the clearest cubes.

*Citrus Cubes:  Using a paring knife, peel and segment lemons or any other small citrus fruit.  Place the segments in ice cube trays, leaving a little of each segment exposed, then fill with water and freeze.  Use with drinks that include lemon or other citrus juices.

*Zest Cubes:  Cut long, thin shreds of lime, lemon or orange zest or a mixture.  Arrange a few shreds of zest in ice cube trays, then fill with water and freeze.  Use in margaritas or other citrus-accented drinks.

*Melon Cubes:  Scoop balls of watermelon, cantaloupe or other melon.  Place the balls in ice cube trays, then fill with water and freeze.  Use in tropical-themed drinks or in drinks made with melon or melon-flavored liquer.

My family has a tradition of always coming together for Sunday lunch and this has been the norm for as long as I can remember.  When I was growing up in Alabama, Sunday lunch was either at my Granny’s or at our house.  After we moved to Mississippi, Mother continued the tradition and cooked lunch every Sunday.  After she passed away, my sister-in-law, Cindy and I take turns.  It isn’t always fancy or a big meal but it’s the being together that’s important.

Sometimes the simplest meals are the most scrumptious, the ones that evoke memories of the soul- warming fare enjoyed around Mother’s table.  The recipes might have been fairly basic, but the flavors were positively heaven sent.

“My tastes are simple: I am easily satisfied with the best.” Winston Churchill

This past Sunday was my turn to cook and I turned to some old family favorites: roast beef, creamed potatoes with gravy, fresh green beans, stuffed eggs, fresh sliced tomatoes and cucumbers.  For dessert, the fresh peach and blueberry pie I posted earlier.  Of course, no southern lunch would be complete without cornbread and sweet tea, the staple of every good southern meal.

Southern sweet tea is pure pleasure in a glass – black tea, sugar and water.  I like my tea sweet with lots of lemon.  General rule of thumb is 1 tea bag and 1 tablespoon of sugar per cup of water.  I use Lipton most of the time, but Luzianne is another great brand.  You can be fancy if you want — and by all means, feel free — but good old-fashioned honest-to-God Southern sweet tea is made with one of those 99% of the time. Boil desired amount of water in an appropriately sized pot.  Remove pot from heat and toss in your tea bag(s).  Steep for 5 to 10 minutes for medium brew or 15 to 20 minutes for strong brew.  Remove tea bag(s) and sweeten it while it’s hot, stirring until it all dissolves.  Chill it until it’s cold.  Serve over ice with a wedge of lemon on the side.

So let’s talk a little bit about green beans.  I cook mine the old southern way with smoked pork necks, water and salt.  Many Americans associate green beans with a holiday casserole or canned, mushy side dishes.  But, if you’re lucky, you get to taste these crispy, juicy delights at their finest mid-summer peak.

The green beans referred to in Southern nomenclature are pole green beans, bunch beans and half runners.  Pole green beans, or flat beans, are 6 to 8-inches long and 3/4-inch wide, often referred to as Kentucky Wonder, my all time favorite.  they require diligent stringing and are tougher than other green beans.  Traditionally cooked long and slow with the peas inside being larger and more prominent.  Boy, could my Granny cook a mean pot of these!  Bunch beans are the typical green beans found in the grocery store, commonly known as Blue Lake.  Half runners are about 4-inches long and 1/3-inch wide with the peas inside barely visible.  My family never cuts the ends of the green beans; we always snap both ends, referred to as “tipping and tailing”.

Now that you probably know more about green beans than you really wanted to know, let’s talk about cornbread.  Good old southern cornbread, not that sweet cake-like thing the north calls cornbread and eats for breakfast.

When making cornbread, you must use a cast-iron skillet, muffin tin or stick pan.  The cast-iron gives you the crisp crust that we southerners enjoy so much.  Crisp on the outside and moist on the inside.  To my family, you must use bacon drippings (grease – the rendered fat left over after cooking bacon.  No true Southern kitchen is complete without it stowed away.  we use it for all kinds of things but especially to season vegetables and making cornbread) to season your skillet and your bread.  One easy recipe is as follows:

SOUTHERN CORNBREAD

Ingredients                                                                                                                                                      1/4 cup bacon drippings                                                                                                                                              2 cups self-rising cornmeal mix                                                                                                                              1/2 teaspoon baking soda                                                                                                                                           2 large eggs, lightly beaten                                                                                                                                          1 1/2  cups buttermilk

Directions

1.  Preheat oven to 425 degrees                                                                                                                                 2.  Pour bacon drippings in a 9-inch cast-iron skillet and heat for 5 minutes in the oven                                                                                         3.  Combine cornmeal mix and baking soda together and make a well in the center                                                                                                  4.  Mix eggs and buttermilk together                                                                                                                          5.  Add buttermilk mixture to dry ingredients, stirring just until moistened                                                                                                        6.  Pour hot drippings into batter, whisking to blend                                                                                               7.  Pour into preheated skillet and bake for 27 minutes or until golden brown                                                                                                     8.  Turn onto a wire rack to cool slightly before putting on a serving plate

Just remember that food should always be welcoming.  I tend to cook things that are mostly uncomplicated yet rooted in tradition and full of flavor.  Cooking should be fun and enjoyable!