Homemade Lime Cordial (Just 2 ingredients!)

When the heat of summer finally hits, I know it’s cordial time. Specifically, lime cordial, a tart and refreshing mixer that’s perfect for summertime sipping. Rose’s is the most well known brand of lime cordial, but this homemade version is even better, with a punchy lime flavor and a perfectly balanced sweetness.

This no-cook recipe is ridiculously easy, all you need is sugar, limes, and a little bit of time and patience and you’ll have the makings for one excellent cocktail: just add gin (or pisco, or rum, or club soda).

I first attempted making my own lime cordial because I wanted to make the perfect gin Gimlet.

There are lots of variations on the Gimlet floating around, some calling for fresh lime juice and simple syrup, which is a great combination, but should really be called a sour rather than a gimlet. Don’t get me wrong, I love sours (like this raspberry lime sour) but to make a proper gimlet, you really need lime cordial.

Most Gimlet recipes call for Rose’s Lime Cordial, a commercially available lime cordial that has artificial sweeteners and colors and a more processed lime flavor that I don’t love, so I figured, why not try to make my own?

I’ll tell you, once I tried my homemade lime cordial in a gimlet, I will never again buy the bottled stuff, especially considering just how easy it turned out to be to make myself.

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Toasted Coconut Sugar Cookies

Coconut lovers, this one’s for you: these toasted coconut sugar cookies are soft, chewy, and coconutty to the max, packed with a triple dose of coconut flavor (in the form of coconut oil, coconut extract, and shredded coconut to finish it off).

These superbly soft coconut sugar cookies come together in a jiffy, with near-instant satisfaction, no chilling required (and you don’t even need an electric mixer, either!)

This recipe was created in partnership with Amoretti (use coupon code LOVEANDOLIVEOILFREESHIP for free shipping on your order!) All opinions expressed here are my own.

I’ll admit that when I first heard that Amoretti’s July flavor of the month was coconut, I was a bit stumped.

Coconut desserts have never been my favorite (the fact I accidentally just typed ‘coconot‘ instead of ‘coconut‘ just then is proof of that fact). I love coconut in savory applications (like coconut shrimp and red curry), but in sweet ones? Normally I’d say no thank you and move on to something chocolate.

But these cookies, y’all. These cookies seriously surprised me, with a sweet and satisfying coconut flavor that was more than enjoyable even for a coconut-skeptic like myself. They’re soft and chewy on the inside with a delicate crunch on the outside.

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Homemade Fresh Fruit Freeze Pops

These summery fresh fruit freeze pops are made with pectin for a less icy, more pleasing mouthfeel; they’re essentially a quick freezer jam in popsicle form!

The beauty of this recipe is its unique consistency, but also its versatility—I’ve used strawberries, blueberries, and peaches here, but you can use pretty much any fruit you want (the sky is the limit!)

The freezer provides ample opportunities to preserve seasonal fruit for later, and these freezer jam pops do exactly that in a way that’s both fun to eat and as tasty as (or tastier than!) biting into a juicy ripe peach or strawberry or blueberry or any fruit, really.

Whether you call them freeze pops, otter pops, flavor ice, icy poles, freezies (hiya, Canada pals!) or Zooper Doopers (hello Aussie mates!) one thing is for sure: these refreshing summer treats are sure to beat the heat.

While fresh fruit popsicle recipes abound, this recipe has a uniquely pleasing texture that comes from a (not so) secret ingredient: pectin. The pectin makes the pops smoother, less icy, and softer to bite. With just a little bit of sugar plus a lemon juice and citric acid to make the flavors even brighter, you have yourself one perfect summer treat.

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