Orange-Bergamot Lemonade Soda

It’s August 21. What are you doing these days? Is it still summer holiday, or are you preparing for the fall? For me, it’s not a terribly significant day but it does mark my return to the beautiful island of Cyprus. I can’t wait to go to the beach and have a frappe. But first the usual drill of unpacking & settling into the flat again.

My list of things “to-do” when I came back to Cyprus this time is long. I want to launch a website, cook, finish my book and exercise. Yup, exercise is on my to-do list. Me: “Mom I’ve gained weight. I think it was because I ate 18 cupcakes in 4 days” Mom: “Stop baking” Me: “But, Mom I have to bake for my blog.” Mom: “Well then exercise”. Moms are always right, eh?

How do you know when you’ve gotten too chubby? Is it: (a) when your sister pokes you and makes pillsbury-dough boy sounds (b) when your doctor tells you need to exercise or (c) when your “fat” pants don’t fit anymore. In my case, it was all three.  My unpacking task makes for easy-kitchen cooking this week.

So I combined the lemon-bergamot-orange squash I had in my fridge (made earlier this year when bergamot was in season) with some ice-cold club soda to help cool me off. It’s very sweet and refreshing. And the hint of bergamot is a reminder that I am living in the beautiful Mediterranean. If you want to make traditional Cypriot lemonade, you can find the recipe here.