Zucchini Fritters

finished fritters

I used to make these a lot, and then stopped because my household (= my partner) was getting sick of zucchini. This summer, though, I have been craving them again and couldn't find my original recipe, so I used this one instead.

fritter batter before frying

Notes:

• Make sure you squeeze enough water out of the zucchini before mixing in, otherwise the patties will not stick together.
  

Verdict: Just as delicious as I remember. A great way to use up a lot of zucchini, and they are pretty healthy, too. I like serving them with something acidic (fresh tomato, plain yogurt, a squeeze of lemon juice). They also make a great filling for a pita sandwich with the aforementioned acidic ingredients.

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RECIPE: Easy Zucchini Fritters (Natasha's Kitchen)

Greek Salad Dressing

This is another thing I make so infrequently that I always forget which recipe I used the last time I made it. I didn't take a photo of it but wanted to record that I tried this one.

Verdict: I must have liked it if I had it saved on my phone for this long!

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RECIPE: Greek Salad Dressing (food.com)

Painkiller Cocktail

I tried this because I wanted something with similar flavors to the Vacation Juice, but without needing a blender. I wanted to be able to bring it with us to a patio hangout with some friends that live across town.

Notes:

• I used Bacardi Black for the dark rum.
• I made my own cream of coconut using this recipe. 
• It's really easy to mix up a bunch of it to bring to a party. Mix everything but the ice together, and keep it in the fridge. When ready to serve, pour into glasses over ice. Four servings fit into a quart sized glass jar.
  

Verdict: It is on the heavy side because of the fruit juices and cream of coconut, and I think the black rum makes the alcoholic nature of it quite pronounced, but it is not especially sweet, and it's fruity and tasty. I would consider making it again if I was in the mood for a tropical drink without a bunch of sugar or artificial colors.

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RECIPE: Painkiller Cocktail

Coffee Jelly

With my skittishness about gelatinous textures and unusual things mixed in (at least from an American standpoint), coffee jelly was one of those things I saw a lot in Japan when it was hot out but I never really got up the courage to try. Then a friend of mine kept going on about how good it was, so I have really been wanting to try it. But in the US, at least if you're not in a major city with Japanese or other Asian dessert options readily available, it's something that you'll have to make yourself if you want it.

Verdict: This recipe set too hard for my liking (the texture was dense) and didn't taste enough like coffee for my liking either. I want to try again with a different recipe, because I really want to like this stuff and I do believe that there are versions of it that I would like. (I also want to make an iced latte with coffee jelly in the bottom sometime. *heart eyes* Or if you really want to go ham, put it in Dalgona/whipped coffee.) Here are some others I could try:

• Coffee Jelly (Just One Cookbook)
• Coffee Jelly (The Spruce Eats)
• Coffee Jelly (Binging with Babish)
  

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RECIPE: Coffee Jelly (Japanese Cooking 101)

Bourbon Peach Smash

My neighbor generously gave me a bag full of nice peaches recently, and this is one of the things I decided to make with them.

Verdict: It was pleasant, and I even like shrub type drinks, but I wouldn't go out of my way to make it again. I like fruity drinks, but if there's actual fruit in the drink I like to consume it, and it was hard to eat the fruit out of this one.

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RECIPE: Bourbon Peach Smash (Smitten Kitchen)

Thai Beef Salad

I have always loved getting this from Thai restaurants. I don't normally have the right kind of beef for this in the house, but today I did, as well as enough other fresh vegetables to make it work. Spoon Fork Heart has some nice Thai cooking videos. The video for this recipe is here.

Notes:

• I used brown sugar instead of palm sugar.
  
• I made a number of substitutions in the vegetables to use up what I had (ugh pandemic). Probably not very authentic, but still tasty.
  

Verdict: I loved it and would definitely make it again, especially with the proper ingredients. The dressing is super good.

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RECIPE: Thai Beef Salad, Bangkok Style (Spoon Fork Heart)

Strawberry Shortcake Biscuits

Strawberry shortcake was a popular summer dessert in our house because my mom likes to pick strawberries (mid-late June where we live). You can make it with cake or with biscuits. My family is on Team Biscuit. (Though I won't turn away a cake-based one. :)) I used to eat it without the strawberries. I still remember the giant biscuits my mom made in a 9" round pan when I was little, but after I was a bit older she started making drop biscuits. One of the first things I learned to bake were strawberry shortcake biscuits with Bisquick mix. I have been hunting for a good recipe that doesn't use that but is still quick and easy.

Verdict: This is still not QUITE what I am after but it is quite good for the amount of time and effort I'm willing to put in. These are best the day they're made, or the next day after.

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RECIPE: Biscuit Strawberry Shortcake (Taste of Home)