Kitchen Window Newsletter
Target Date:  06-21-12
Title:  Healthy & Hydrated 

Subject Line:  
Stay Hydrated and Healthy this Summer! 

Facebook and/or Twitter Words: 

You are what you drink! Yikes! Looking for some healthier alternatives or simply some variation in how you stay hydrated this summer? Plenty of ideas for doing just that in our latest newsletter!

OR,

Have your read the labels lately on your favorite juices or beverages? Freshly made alternatives can change up the liquid portion of your diet for the better!

OR,

Stay hydrated and healthy this summer with homemade soda and juices that renew and refresh! We get you started in our latest newsletter!

In This Issue:

Beguiling Bubbles
RECIPE: Sparkling Watermelon Soda
Fizz Technology
How Sweet It Is!
RECIPE: Cantaloupe Clementine Soda
   <Hydration Helpers>
Join the Juice Trend
  <Horizontal Product Presentations: Hurom, VitaMix, Omega, etc.>
   <More Hydration Helpers>
RECIPE: Strawberry Cream Soda
Cookbook Review

INTRO TEXT   

Change up the liquid portion of your diet for the better, and immerse yourself in the simple pleasures of freshly made juices. Add the invigorating sensation of carbonation to the mix, and prepare to discover a new "favorite" way to stay hydrated.  IN THIS ISSUE, we broaden your beverage choices with an exploration of homemade soda and juices that provide plenty of thirst-quenching pleasure in a healthier, fresher way.

Beguiling Bubbles

Staying Hydrated?
Our bodies are approximately 60% water. After oxygen to breathe, we need water more than food in order to stay alive and functioning well. Our liquid personality is responsible for blood flow, staying cool, smooth motions, and staying in physiological balance. We lose about 8 cups of water each day with normal daily activities, and need to regularly replenish this loss daily just to stay alive. Even mild dehydration can slow us down, or cause our bodies to operate less optimally. Given that water is such a basic need, it’s no wonder that humans have been exploring liquid refreshment for ages.

Carbonation Chemistry
Sparkling bubbles have intrigued us for centuries. Tiny bubbles tickle our tongues and appetites whether from natural geological sources, brewed yeast versions, or mechanically infused gases.  
Carbonation occurs when carbon dioxide gas (CO2) is dissolved in liquid and kept under pressure. When the pressure is released, the carbon dioxide gas is freed in a stream of tiny bubbles eager to escape. Some of the carbon dioxide gas reacts with water (H2O) to form carbonic acid (H2CO3). This weakly acidic formulation further tantalizes our palate and makes the tiny bubbles even more desirable. 

Soda or Pop?
The process for infusing bubbles into liquid and capturing the effervescence in a bottle dates back to 1772. Since then, a booming industry has arisen. Today, carbonated beverages comprise a large portion of the $40 billion non-alcoholic beverage industry. Soda trends and fads through the years have become immortalized as cultural icons – Grape NeHi, Orange Crush, and A&W Root Beer. Whether you call these fizzy drinks, soda, or pop, depends upon where you live:

Map of the U.S.  – Soda or Pop; Diagram courtesy of Storey Publishing, Homemade Soda by Andrew Schloss, p. 67

Sparkling Watermelon Soda

Nothing says summer like watermelon! It’s a thirst quencher with it’s high water content and pleasing flavor. Adding some sparkle to the juice turns the bright pink elixir into something even more special and refreshing. Low in calories, naturally colorful, it’s a healthy, alternative beverage that more than satisfies any thirst with its freshness and summer flavor.

Recipes from Homemade Soda, 200 Recipes for Making and Using by Andrew Schloss. Copyright 2011. Published Storey Publishing, North Adams, MA. Reprinted with permission of the publisher. All rights reserved.

Serve this soda extremely cold for maximum pleasure. Chill the watermelon in the refrigerator or in a tub of ice prior to juicing. Or, chill the juice well prior to enjoying, and serve over a generous helping of ice.

Add sugar to your watermelon soda and freeze it in an ice cream maker for an enjoyable granita on a hot summer’s day. The added sugar prevents the juice from getting too hard with prolonged freezing. Or, freeze the strained watermelon juice as ice cubes for use with the Sparkling Watermelon Soda, or with a contrasting beverage such as lemonade.

Fizz Technology Comes Home
Home carbonation systems bring fizz to water, juice, or whatever your beverage might be. Earlier home systems were limited in size, and lacked capability for delivering adequate fizz. Now with SodaStream soda makers, the infusion of tiny bubbles is an easy, no-hassle way to enjoy sparkling beverages. 

How They Work
SodaStream soda makers operate mechanically – no electricity needed. A special water bottle, designed to withstand pressure, screws tightly onto the soda maker. A CO2 cartridge fits in the back of the unit. By pressing and releasing a lever, the CO2 gas is forced, under pressure, into the liquid. Tightly capped, the CO2 gas stays dissolved in the liquid until opened. The colder the water, the greater the fizz it accepts.

Fizz your Favorite Flavors
Add fizzy water to your own base concoction, or use SodaStream’s concentrated flavor bases to make your own soda – regular or diet sodas, energy drinks, teas, or flavored waters – they feature over 60 flavor varieties.

Advantages of Home Carbonation
•	No lugging of heavy soda bottles from the store.
•	No storage space for bottles of soda required.
•	No empty bottles to return or recycle
•	Less expensive soda beverages.

SodaStream – Home Soda Makers

How Sweet It Is – Is Up to You!
Another advantage of homemade sodas and fresh juices is the ability to regulate the amount of sweetness in your drinks. The natural sugars of fruit alone often provide enough sweetness for a very tasty, and refreshing drink. Should your beverage require a dose of sweetener, you get to choose what type of sweetener, and just how much to use. Natural sweeteners such as honey or agave syrup, add a hint of flavor along with their sweetness. Herbal sweeteners such as stevia, pack a powerful punch of “sweet” in just a few drops, in fact, 300 times the sweetness of sugar!

Classic Simple Syrup
A natural base for many homemade beverages, simple syrup may be made and kept refrigerated for up to 2 months. Bring equal parts water and sugar to a boil and stir as the sugar dissolves. Cool and refrigerate. Use as needed for iced tea, lemonade, or other beverages. 

Cantaloupe Clementine Soda
Melon and citrus pair up in this clever soda mmixture. The cantaloupe dominates the flavor profile, while the citrus adds brightness and tang. The naturally bright orange color captured our eyes and palate all at once. We used an entire melon for our batch and kept the extras in the refrigerator as a concentrate for the next day. 

Recipes from Homemade Soda, 200 Recipes for Making and Using by Andrew Schloss. Copyright 2011. Published Storey Publishing, North Adams, MA. Reprinted with permission of the publisher. All rights reserved.

Experiment with an easy variation of this melon refresher by using honeydew melon and fresh lime juice.

Join the Juice Trend!

With admonitions to eat more fruits and vegetables coming from every direction, actually getting your daily quota of 5 servings of vegetables and 3 servings of fruit may be a challenge. Juicing fruits and veggies makes achieving this nutritional target easier to accomplish.

Read the Labels – You’ll Want to Make Your Own!
What passes as “juice” in the grocery store aisle is often sugar water and not much fruit or vegetable. Even the more expensive 100% juices are primarily apple or grape juice from concentrate with splashes of other fruits added for color and marketing pizzazz.

Fresh Juice = Nutritional Powerhouse
To reap full nutritional value, start with real food, fresh or frozen, and extract its juicy goodness. Brightly colored fruits and vegetables hold great amounts of nutrition. 

•	Juice’s anti-oxidant components capture free radicals that float about in our bodies wreaking potential havoc and taxing our immune systems. 
•	The plant fiber provided in fresh juices is necessary for a healthy body, assists in slowing digestion, and offers a sensation of fullness.
•	The natural sweetness of fruits and vegetables satisfies without the density of refined sugary drinks. 

Keep it Fresh!
Fresh juice retains many healthy enzymes and nutrients in their natural state compared with juices that have been heated and pasteurized. Juicing fruits and vegetables maximizes your fresh produce purchase – use carrots and their tops, beets and their greens, apples and their peels, even strawberries and their green tops! When fresh is not available, frozen fruits and vegetables are a good substitute; they are picked at the peak of harvest, and minimally processed. 

Colorful Combinations = Healthy Habits:
Cool Blue = Blueberries, Blackberries, Red Grapes
Great Green = Kiwi, Spinach, Green Grapes
Powerful Purple = Cherries, plums, Pomegranate, Beets
Yummy Yellow = Pineapple, Orange, Lemon
Awesome Orange = Carrots, Mango, Cantaloupe
Radical Red = Strawberry, Cherries, Raspberries

Juicing Mechanics

Juicing is a kitchen activity that once you try it, you will love it, and feel healthier for it. Fruits and vegetable are mostly water. Extracting juice from fruits and vegetables involves breaking down the cell walls, micro-sizing the plant’s particles, and isolating indigestible fiber.

Slow Juicing Contrary to its name, slow juicing doesn’t take a long time, but rather the juicer operates at lower revolutions per minute while extracting more juice faster than traditional juicers. This allows the machine and juice to stay cool while it operates, and cool juice has greater enzymatic qualities. 

The HUROM® Slow Juicer extracts more juice than most machines. It works like a mortar and pestle with masticating plates that crush, then press out the juices. It operates quietly producing the most juice from your fruits and vegetables, and even nuts! No sharp blades; built-in safety mechanisms.
 VitaMix Machines
Blend more health-filled fruits and vegetables into your family’s diet. VitaMIx machines are powerful kitchen tools with some serious power. They are several machines in one – a heavy-duty blender, a food processor, a grinder, and even a frozen drink maker. Transform whole, fresh foods into juices, grind grain into flour, create smoothies, hot soups, nut butters, icy drinks, frozen desserts – all with ease and consistency.

This powerful machine is meant for daily use and carries a 7+ year motor warranty. Choose from several different styles and models to best suit your needs. Made in the USA.

Omega Juicers
Omega has a long-standing reputation in the juicing arena. They feature juicers  that operate with centrifugal or masticating mechanisms. Each juicer is designed for heavy duty juicing while maximizing the highest yield from your produce. The Omega 1000 model operates through centrifugal action extracting 20-30% more juice than other juicers. Holds a 10 year warranty. 

Breville Juicers
BREVILLE HAS A LONG-STANDING reputation in the juicing arena. Each juicer is designed for heavy duty juicing while maximizing the highest yield from your produce. Large feed tubes for easy feeding of food into the machine. Quickly extracts juice faster than most machines.
Dishwasher-safe parts, removable for easy cleaning.

Strawberry Cream Soda
Drink your berries!  Early summer brings the best strawberries into our kitchens – they’re the most flavorful, the deepest red, and best of all, bountiful. This soda uses a puree of strawberries combined with milk as its base. Added seltzer lends its sparkle for a totally refreshing and healthy drink. It reminded us of strawberry ice cream with none of the heaviness present. Another healthy and flavorful liquid refreshment!

Recipes from Homemade Soda, 200 Recipes for Making and Using by Andrew Schloss. Copyright 2011. Published Storey Publishing, North Adams, MA. Reprinted with permission of the publisher. All rights reserved.

If you’re looking to accentuate the ice cream character of this beverage, (and ready to ignore the calories), substitute half-and-half for the milk. Or, simply plop a scoop of your favorite vanilla ice cream on top and turn this drink into an ice cream float.

COOKBOOK REVIEW:

Homemade Soda, 200 Recipes for Making and Using by Andrew Schloss. Copyright 2011. Published by Storey Publishing, North Adams, MA.

Mr. Schloss throws the doors open on what we might be missing with bottled liquids with a generous compendium of drinks made from scratch. They’re simple, satisfying, and generally healthier than what we too often grab out of habit off the shelf. An IACP award-winning author, Andrew Schloss explores liquid topics from fruit sodas and fizzy juices, to sparkling waters, root beer and cola brews, herbal concoctions, sparkling teas and coffees, shrubs and switchels (do you know what these are???), and finishes with cream sodas and floats. This book really opened our eyes and imaginations to some fantastic alternatives for quenching our thirst. As well, it’s a great inspiration source for getting kids engaged and enabled in the kitchen this summer – turns out, before juice boxes and pop bottles, soda and juice came real fruits and leaves and fresh water!

Closing:

Mix up your favorite juice, take it to the porch, sip, and sit a spell!