For those yearning to keep the spirit of summer alive, there’s nothing like getting family and friends together to celebrate those lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer.
Choose your favorite fried chicken recipe, your favorite potato salad, grilled corn on the cob, and a beet tower with goat cheese and a sprig of rosemary and you’ve got a tantalizing meal. Welcome the crowd with platters of hors-d’oeuvres. To add pizzazz, offer hibiscus coolers, which Chef Jackie describes as “always a hit.”
Hibiscus Cooler
Ingredients:
10 individual bags herbal hibiscus tea
1 cup sugar
1 cup water
Club soda
Lime slices
Directions:
In a sauce pan, add water, sugar and tea bags. Bring to a boil and cook until sugar is dissolved. Reduce the heat to medium low and simmer the syrup for 5 minutes.
Remove tea bags from the pan and allow the syrup to cool.
Rub the rim of a margarita glass, or glass of your choosing, with lime juice and dip in sugar. Let dry, then add ice, club soda and 1/4 cup of the hibiscus syrup.
Stir and enjoy.
