Honey melon and banana smoothie

Summer is (almost) in full bloom in Berlin - forget one or two days or hours of heavy rains as today, and finding the best ways for a healthy hydration is one of the many questions of the day. Yesterday, I decided to be out of any smoothie books and prepare my own, unique smoothie, using the available ingredients in my fridge (efficiently using and combining leftovers and food is one of my latest objective, as I realized I am wasting a lot of stuff because not always thinking about how to create new recipes or meals). Here is my experience. It serves two and the preparation time is maximum 10 minutes.

 Ingredients:
1 and a half medium-sized banana. If you want a more creamy effect, you can use two.
2 teaspoons of Veganz coconut flowers sweetener
1/2 medium sized honey melon
175 cold water
Directions:
Cut the banana into little rounds
Scoop the seeds of the melon and cut it into cubes
Add all the ingredients in the blender and mix for around 3-4 minutes at medium speed

Here we are! The smoothie has a lot of natural sweetness - both banana and honey melon do have plenty of sweet. If you keep it in the fridge for half an hour, it is even get fresher. You can have it in the afternoon, while sitting in the balcony wrapped in the warm rays of the sun, or any time when you need a fresh drink for a healthy, happier day!

Getting ready for the summer with a glass of Limoncino

With my curious nature to try something new at least every day, one of the promises I made to myself for this year is to have more new drinks, particularly cocktails. But as it happened in the case of food, I always need some inspiration for getting through the right taste. 

For my birthday, I tried for the first time Limoncino, a drink which can be a good refreshment for the hot days of the warm season. Not being a big lover of white wine, I am quite uneducated when it comes to mixing it with other drinks or ingredients. In this case though, it was an easy combination, with the taste keeping in line with the wine's. The fresh lemon slices bring more perfume and develop the original taste, while the ice creates a refreshing chilling effect. 

The recipe is very simple and can be done at home easily.
Ingredients:
White wine, sparkling wine, prosecco or champagne - the more sparkles, the better
Ice cubes - around 4-5
Lemon slices
Directions:
Fill half a glass with the alcoholic drink
Add the ice cubes and the lemon slices. If you want more lemon taste, you can squize half a lemon and add the zest too.
Mix a bit the ingredients to melt together
That's all! Sip it slowly while listening to some relaxing music, or reading a book or planning your next getaway.

Enjoy!