How I come to learn about tamarind paste was through a pad Thai recipe I have been using for several years now. It is used mostly for its sourness. I came to like the flavor it adds but quite not sure how to utilize this paste into recipes I put together with what I have at hand.

Never noticed the recipe for tamarind drink written on the jar until one day I learned from Işıl that you can make a drink out of the tamarind fruit. Quite easy to make, and very tasty if you are into slightly sour drinks.

Turns out this drink is known in parts of Turkey, too. And quite popular in Mexico, along with the horchata, jamaica (hibiscus flower) and watermelon juice. If you want to try it home, you can stop by a Mexican, Indian or Asian store to get tamarind and follow this recipe, or just go for the tamarind paste and mix it with warm water to dissolve, strain and mix sugar to taste.

• abut 2 oz (50 gr) tamarind
• 1 qt (lt) of water
• 1 cup (or to taste) sugar

Soak the tamarind in water for 7 - 8 hours in a glass jar or stainless steel pot. Add sugar, boil for 10 - 15 mins. Strain through fine sieve, refrigerate and enjoy cool!

Pavlova (other than being a last name) is nothing but a huge meringue topped with whipped cream and fresh fruit. Following the recipe I always wanted to try from the Domestic Goddess Nigella, it ended up being a real nice choice for our summer evening bbq. Its name is attributed to ballet dancer Anna Pavlova.
For the recipe, the only think I can say is: it is very easy to make! Even though my meringue has not kept its shape it didn’t matter; once you top off with the whipped cream, everything is concealed. I think the only thing I omitted from the recipe was the chocolate shavings on top but put more berries instead.

Just make sure to use extra caution not to mix any egg yolks into whites, and use a very clean metal/glass dish. These, as far as I know, are the basic requirements for a whipping the egg whites. Using a mixer is most recommended unless you think you can whip up 6 egg whites.

My friend commented that if I were to add blueberries along with the raspberries it’d be very patriotic. Well, here you go. It is your chance decorate your food with your flag’s colors in the upcoming July 4th! I know I have used my flag’s in this dessert ;)

Thank you Elise for the raspberry shopping alert! ;)