Butterbeer

My baby sister had a birthday and we celebrated at our house with all of my siblings.  My sister is a huge Harry Potter fan so to go with her requested dinner of fish and chips, we surprised her with homemade butterbeer (the popular drink in the Harry Potter books).  This is so simple and ended up actually being quite tasty - not just a novelty!

1 liter cream soda
1 C heavy whipping cream
1/2 C butterscotch topping

Pour the soda into a 9"x13" baking pan.
Place the pan in the freezer.  Every 30-45 minutes break up the freezing cream soda until it become a slush.  My cream soda was chilled so this only took about 1 hour but if the cream soda is room temperature, it could take up to 3 hours.
Whip the whipping cream until it has a foamy/frothy texture (not light and fluffy like you would use on desserts).
Mix in the butterscotch topping (you can use more or less according to taste).
Top glasses of cream soda with the whipped topping.
If you want, mix the topping in with the cream soda - it tastes great either way!

*This recipe was adapted from various recipes I found floating around on the internet.

Fresh-Squeezed Lemonade

I grew up in Northern California where fresh produce abounds and really does taste better!  Fresh fruit straight from the tree, ground, bush, or farmer's market beats produce shipped across the country or world anyday!
My parents have a stunning backyard full of fresh produce they grow each year.  One of my favorites is the lemon tree.  Their tree produces giant, juicy, yellow balls of goodness!  Every year I do what I can to get as many lemons to my house 750 miles away that I can.
This homemade lemonade is delicious (and nothing screams "It's Summertime!" like a cold glass of lemonade), whether you grew the lemons yourself or not.  It is a totally flexible recipe - adjust according to your taste and level of desired sweetness!

3-4 lemons
1 lime (optional)
1 C sugar
1 C boiling water
3 C cold water
1-2 lemons/limes sliced, for garnish (optional)

Juice the lemons and lime into a bowl.  Remove any seeds that may try to sneak in!
Combine the boiling water and sugar in a serving pitcher or bowl.
Add the lemon juice and cold water.
Adjust the lemonade to your specific tastes.
Refrigerate until time to serve.
(If you want to serve without refrigerating, eliminate 1 C of cold water and replace with ice cubes - you will still need to adjust to taste.)