La Cocina de Leslie: Guavas

Showing posts with label Guavas. Show all posts

Delicious and aromatic homemade guava jam with a hint of cinnamon.

Homemade Guava Jam - lacocinadeleslie.com

Spring has finally sprung in our small town and I am craving all things bright and cheery like fresh strawberries, mangoes, and guavas. Especially guavas! Now that the weather is starting to heat up, big breakfasts aren't that appealing to me. (For now.) Just give me a bowl of oatmeal and a couple slices of toast with Homemade Guava Jam and I'm a happy camper. (Along with a big cup of coffee or Café con Leche.)

08 April 2016

Mermelada de Guayaba (Guava Jam)

Bite-size pieces of apples and oranges in a cinnamon infused sangria made with red wine, whiskey, and orange liqueur.

Because I hope we'll all have plenty of reasons to celebrate throughout the year the first recipe I'm sharing in 2016 is my favorite Red Wine Sangria. This fruity sangria has a little bit of everything like fresh apples and oranges, cinnamon, apple juice, orange juice, a splash of lime juice, red wine (of course!), whiskey, and orange liqueur. It packs quite a punch, especially if you forget to add the club soda. (I may or may not be speaking from experience.) For this particular sangria I used whiskey, but you can also use tequila, rum, brandy or vodka. All of which make for a delicious sangria. This is my go-to cocktail to make for family get-togethers because it's super easy to make and it's a definite crowd pleaser.

05 January 2016

Red Wine Sangria

Aguas Frescas are a refreshing beverage traditionally served at lunch or dinner. But did you know that Aguas Frescas can also be served at breakfast? One of my favorite aguas frescas to serve with our morning meal is Agua de Guayaba (Guava). The distinct flavor of the guavas wakes you right up. And guavas are an excellent source of vitamic C. Talk about a great way to start the day!

Agua Fresca de Guayaba - lacocinadeleslie.com

18 July 2011

Agua de Guayaba (Guava Agua Fresca)

Do I have a special treat for you today!

Yesterday I spent the morning at my suegra's house helping her prepare one of our favorite warm weather treats: Nieve Raspada!

Nieve raspada is the Mexican version of the snow cone. But instead of using bottled sugary, high fructose syrups, we make our own almibar (syrup) with real fruit and sugar. They're not as thick, but oh so delicious and packed with lots of natural flavor.

The almibares that I will be sharing with you today are Fresa de leche (Creamy Strawberry), Tamarindo (Tamarind), and Guayaba (Guava). And as the warm weather continues, I'll be sharing even more almibares like Strawberry, Limón (lime), Piña (pineapple), Vanilla, Coconut, and my personal favorite Jamaica (hibiscus flower).

Making Nieve Raspada is very easy to do. The first thing you will need is ice. Crushing a few ice cubes in a blender will work just fine. But if you want a more authentic raspado and you happen to have a handy-dandy cepillo (ice shaver), make your own block of ice by freezing a 10x3-inch (or larger) baking pan filled with water. Or you could do what we do and order a 1/4 block of ice from you local ice shop.

Before you start to shave the ice, be sure to place a kitchen towel underneath, to prevent the block of ice from slipping.

Scrape the cepillo in a forward motion over the block of ice.

The inside of the cepillo will be filled with shaved ice.

Place it in a cup and top with your favorie almíbar.

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And now for the best part...the almíbar (syrup)!

Almibar de Tamarindo (Tamarind syrup)

Ingredients:

1 pound Tamarind Pods (peeled)
3 cups water
6 cups sugar

Directions:
Place the tamarind pods, water and sugar in a large saucepan.

Simmer over medium heat until the tamarind pods are cooked and tender. Using a potato masher or the back of a spoon, crush the tamarind pods lightly. Remove the tamarind seeds with a spoon.

Let almibar de tamarindo cool to room temperature. Serve over crushed ice or refrigerate until ready to use. Enjoy!!!

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Almibar de Guayaba (Guava Syrup)

Ingredients:

1-1/2 pounds guavas (cut in quarters)
2 cups water
6 cups sugar

Directions:
Fill a medium saucepan with the guavas, water and sugar.

Cook over medium heat until mixture thickens.

Let cool to room temperature. Pour desired amount of almibar de guayaba over crushed ice or refrigerate until ready to use. Enjoy!!!

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Almibar de Fresa de Leche (Creamy Strawberry Syrup)

Ingredients:

4 cups milk
2 pounds strawberries (stems removed)
1 cup water
5 cups sugar
lime zest (optional)

Directions:

In a 2quart saucepan, heat the milk over medium-high heat until very hot. Set aside and let cool to room temperature. (You could skip this step, but you run the risk of the milk curdling when adding to the strawberry mixture.)

Fill a medium saucepan with the strawberries, water, sugar and lime zest. Cook over medium heat until mixture thickens.

Remove the strawberries from heat and let cool slightly. Add enough milk (2 to 4 cups) to the strawberry mixture to reach desired consistency. Pour desired amount of almibar de fresa de leche over crushed ice. Enjoy!!!

*Keep all almibares refrigerated when not in use.

16 April 2011

We All Scream for Mexican Ice Cream!

Another one of my favorite Fall fruits are guayabas (guavas). Guavas are a delicious fruit with an intense aroma. Just having them in my kitchen makes the whole house smell absolutely yummy.

But if you really want your house to smell good, especially for the holidays, then I recommend making guava-sauce. It's like applesauce, but made with guavas instead. You can use guava-sauce in cakes, muffins, danishes and empanadas.

*Guavas are rich in Vitamin C. One guava contains 4 times the amount of Vitamin C as an orange. (Thank you, Wikipedia!)

Guavasauce

Ingredients:

2 pounds guavas
1/4 cup water
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions:
Cut guavas in half cross-wise.

With a small spoon or melon baller, scoop out the guava seeds. Don't throw them away! Store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator to use in another recipe, I will share in the next couple of days. (Guava seeds are edible, but I prefer my guavasauce without seeds.)

Place the guavas in a 2qt. saucepan. Add the sugar, cinnamon and water. (The cinnamon really enhances the guava flavor.)

Cook the guavas over medium heat for 20 minutes, or until the guavas are very tender. Use a potato masher to break up the guayaba into little pieces. If you don't like a chunky guava-sauce, puree with an immersion blender, food processor or blender.