Cooking It Up Bio – Jennifer Cote

With a musician husband, Jennifer's enjoyed all genres of music, initially into gospel music by association (dad is a big fan). Jennifer lives in Pinole, California with husband Tom and son Tyler. Also a grandmother with another son and daughter-in-law, the whole family is active at Community Alliance Church in Richmond.

Running their own eatery, The New Deli, for over 21 years, Tom and Jennifer have spent much time in the kitchen, honing skills and coming up with favorite recipes for their patrons. "From The Land Of Milk And Honey" is the fruit of Jennifer's labor; a cookbook/devotional full of great recipes, scripture, and insight into daily living as a Christian. 

”Cooking In The House” is a monthly column focusing on cuisine, inspiring the home cook with cooking tips and more.

Jennifer welcomes your comments and suggestions, and you can write her at fromthelandofmilkandhoney@hotmail.com

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I ran into a friend at the grocery store recently; we were both getting party foods for the upcoming holiday. But what a contrast! He was stocking up on chips and dips, and I had a cartload of fresh fruit. He admitted he wasn't going for "healthy" at this point. I suppose much of America thinks it can be satisfied with the sodas and junk food typically found at parties, but I was thinking of how great the seasonal fruit was going to taste. I knew it'd be refreshing and full of flavor.

When I got home, I'd received an interesting email from a friend, showing how many sugar cubes of sugar were in each of our commonly-ingested foods (coffee drinks, soft drinks, cereals, candy bars, etc.). You don't want to know! The email also showed how much sugar-equivalent was in natural foods: Bananas, apples, strawberries, corn, carrots.

A news article also came out recently, about how the high-fructose corn syrup found in most soft drinks has been linked to obesity. So let's just say I've been properly inspired to share my favorite drink recipes with you this month. Particularly during the summer months, lighter foods seem to provide more energy, and one of my favorite treats is a fruit smoothie. Frozen bananas work perfectly; smoothie experts know that the frozen banana yields a superior texture, thick and creamy (compared to unfrozen banana).

Coconut is another great smoothie ingredient. A good quality frozen coconut cream can often be found at Asian-style markets, free of preservatives and additives. But, I also found an excellent source online for a coconut cream concentrate. (Check my website for more about that.) In my favorite "Coconut Date Shake", I can get all the richness and flavor from the coconut and cashews, and forego the addition of dairy products. This can be helpful for the lactose-intolerant folk out there, and the cashews provide some of the essential oils our bodies need.

Another great beverage is a simple punch recipe that can be thrown together in minutes. My younger guests can even take charge of refreshments, making the punch themselves. I'm all for teaching the kids young, how to help out in the kitchen! And with just two or three ingredients, it doesn't get any easier. We add ice cream to it when we're feeling more decadent, but it's still a treat to just mix the carbonated soda water and frozen raspberry juice concentrate together.

One of my healthier young friends was leery about trying the punch recipe. She must've seen the same email as me! But she was pretty excited to find out it was just sweetened with fruit juice concentrate. Yes, fruit does have fruit sugar in it, but at least it has the natural vitamins to go with it, and natural flavors as well. I hope you, too, can enjoy some healthy refreshing as we head into summer.

Coconut Date Shake

Perfect for staying healthy on-the-go: A smoothie with no processed juices added.

Ingredients:

• 1-2 c. frozen banana pieces (freeze as many as you want, for future use)
• Handful of raw cashews
• 1-2 TBS. or so of coconut cream (more if using coconut milk)
• small handful dates, pitted
• cold water as needed, for blending

Ahead of time, prepare bananas. Peel, slice through them, and lay out on a tray that's covered with an inside-out zip-loc bag, or other thicker plastic bag. (Plastic wrap is too thin and can break apart and stick to the frozen bananas). Freeze bananas, then store in the zip-loc bag, using as needed.

For the smoothie, mix all of the above until smooth in a blender.

Raspberry Punch Recipe

It's great to have a simple, refreshing punch recipe on hand when feeding a crowd. This healthy, non-alcoholic punch recipe still tastes great. Change it up by using different frozen juice concentrates, although the raspberry is most everyone's favorite.. Serves 6-8, but multiplies easily.

Ingredients:

• 1 liter of soda water (unsweetened, carbonated water)
• 2 cans frozen white grape/ raspberry juice concentrate (100% juice)
• Optional: 1 pint ice cream

Simply add the frozen fruit juice concentrate to a punch bowl, pour in the soda water, and top with some ice cream, if desired.

For a super-fizzy, layered effect, make individual servings. Add a tablespoon or two of the fruit juice concentrate to each glass, add a scoop of ice cream, and then pour the soda water over the top. Like a natural-style root beer float!

Jennifer Cote, with husband Tom, opened The New Deli in Pinole, CA in 1985. Her cookbook, "From the Land of Milk and Honey", is filled with New Deli favorite recipes, plus scripture and insight into Christian living. Find more info at: www.PCCuisine.com; email Jennifer at getrecipes@hotmail.com. 

Enjoy more recipes in Jennifer Cote's cookbook/devotional, From the Land of Milk and Honey, from Winepress Publishing.

Purchase hard-to-find items, helpful cooking tools, whole food ingredients, and gourmet items online at Jen's shop at www.pccuisine.com. A catering menu and a lunch menu can also be viewed at the website. Find more info at: PCCuisine.com; email Jennifer at getrecipes@hotmail.com.