Homemade Ginger Ale

Temperatures around here have already hit 90 degrees, which is kinda insane (in my opinion) when you've barely entered May. When it gets that hot we all head for something to cool us down, and so I wanted to share this recipe with you.

I don't know about you, but too often I hear a LOT of what NOT to eat or drink, which leaves me feeling like there is little left that is "ok" to eat or drink. We all know sodas are bad. We now here how fruit juices are bad as well, likely because most of them only vaguely resemble true fruit juice anymore. Water is ok, but there's a lot of yabbering about filtered v. tap. Milk is good. Well golly then, I'm left with two options. Not fun. So, I was very happy to find recipes for drinks when browsing through my new favorite cookbook, Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon.

~Homemade Ginger Ale, sitting in between a bottle of homebrew and a jug of homemade cherry ginger lemonade. Can you see the ginger at the bottom of the jug?~

The recipe for Ginger Ale can be found on page 586 of her book. It makes 2 quarts and is very yummy! It has the nice bite of ginger that is too often lacking in drinks that claim to be made of ginger. If you're not used to real ginger (I wasn't) it might take a little getting used to, but it is worth it. Here is how I made it.

Homemade Ginger Ale - from Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon

3/4 cup ginger, peeled & finely chopped or grated
1/2 cup fresh lime juice
1/4- 1/2 cup organic sugar
2 teaspoons sea salt
2 quarts water

~ I heated some of the water with the sugar to make a simple syrup before adding it to the jar. I also threw the ginger in and let it go for a bit in the pot with the simple syrup. Since I was using a glass jar, I made sure to run some hot water through it first to ensure it would break.
I added the lime juice & salt directly to the jar and then poured the simple syrup (slightly cooled down) into the jar & then filled it on up with water.
~ According to the book, once you've filled up the jar you "stir well & cover tightly. Leave at room temperature for 2 - 3 days before transferring to the refrigerator. This will keep several months well chilled.
To serve, strain into a glass. Ginger ale may be mixed with carbonated water and it is best sipped warm rather than gulped down cold."

I'll admit, when I first drank this it was with ice and it was slightly gulped down. The ginger ale had not yet made it to the fridge and the kitchen was deathly hot. It was still good though. Likely next time I won't add the ice and I will sip on it rather than glug it.
Ginger is also really good for aiding the digestion process, so this isn't a bad drink to have with your dinner. It also helps calm stomachs, so there is another bonus to it.
Was it maybe a little more expensive than buying a 2 liter of ginger ale soda? Yes. Is it worth it? Without a doubt or any hesitance, yes.
Bring on Summer.

Inside & Outside Cheeseburgers

My mother claims to not be a cook at all, but this is one of my earliest memories of her cooking. The earliest is cookies cooling on the chopping block in our kitchen - but what kid doesn't remember that first?? I think she made these about the time I was in first grade. They were awesome then, and they're just as awesome now.


the burger, ready for cheese

"Inside & Outside" Cheeseburgers:

We started with 1/4 lb (roughly) of hamburger per burger. Our meat comes from a local farm and is organically, pasture-raised. This is real meat.
For these burgers, I first mixed in some spices with the meat. For the kids and myself, I used some organic garlic powder (although some freshly roasted garlic, or just garlic cloves would've rocked even more). For Justin, I made one burger with chili powder, garlic powder, and chipotle pepper; and then the second one with garlic powder and some HOT! HOT!! Pepper Flakes.
The Inside: make a well in the center of the burger, and fill it with cheese. I used just some general marble, shredded cheese here. You could go fancy and use blue cheese, feta cheese, or grate yourself up some homemade raw milk cheese. But the general shredded stuff works well too. ~ For extra flavors: add some spices to the center with the cheese. I also added a little bit of ketchup to the boys' burgers.


filled with cheese, ready to be closed-up

Next: close-up the burger around the cheese. This really isn't that difficult at all. If you do have trouble at first, don't fret. By the second or third burger, you should easily have the hang of it.
Cook Em: We grilled ours on a nice hot grill outside. It's the essence of summer cooking isn't it?? No grill, don't worry, you can pan-cook these babies and still get delicious results. ~ Here's the trick to making sure they don't shrink up on you: before you put them on the grill, indent the center with your thumb a little bit. This is a little tricky because the cheese is inside, so make sure not to mess that up. Just a nice, small indention will do.
A second or two before you're ready to pull them off the grill, add a slice or two of cheese on top. American cheese is perfect because of how well it melts, but again, you can make it personal and use another type. Just beware that some cheeses don't melt so well.
Have your buns, extra toppings, and a big appetite ready. These are destined to be crowd pleasers, and are sure to be remembered!!

PS ~ thanks Mom!