This Wednesday I’m happy to introduce you to Jessie Kaufman, photographer extraordinaire and food blogger friend, author of the blog Living Mostly Meatless. Jessie will tell you more about herself below, but I just want to direct you to check out her blog, Facebook page, photography site, and definitely follow her on Twitter @jessiekphoto. Whether you’re searching for meatless meal inspiration or looking to buy a new camera lens, Jessie will surely guide you the right way! Now, over to Jessie!

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Hey There,
I’m Jessie from Living Mostly Meatless and I’m honored to be guest posting here today. Cooking with Books is one of my favorite blogs, and Marnely is one of the sweetest people on earth. I just love her. (I love you too Jessie! -M)

A little about me: I’m a professional food & features photojournalist and freelance photographer living in the Chicago suburbs. I work with local newspapers and contribute to Getty Images. As you can likely tell from my blog name, I don’t eat a lot of meat, so if you’re curious about maybe trying a Meatless Monday come visit my blog for some inspiration. My favorite meatless meal to date is my Poblano Enchiladas. There are some recipes for you meat lovers though, like my Peruvian Chicken.

For this post I wanted to share something near and dear to me. The first time I had this drink I was on my honeymoon. I asked a lady at the spa how to make it and when we came home I walked a few blocks to the Mexican grocery store, bought some dried hibiscus, and it’s been a staple in our house ever since. It is really is good and refreshing, but my favorite part is that hibiscus is so good for you.

This recipe is an agua fresca. Literally translated: fresh water, agua fresca’s are Mexico’s version of fruit punch. They all start with one ingredient. It can be seeds, fruits, or in this case, flowers. They are then steeped sort of like a tea in boiling water, sugar, and sometimes added spices. If you’ve ever visited Mexico it’s likely that you’ve seen stands where people are selling their versions of agua fresca. Tamarind is another favorite.

Hibiscus Agua Fresca

Print Recipe
agua web

Ingredients

  • 2 cups dried hibiscus flowers
  • 6 cups of water
  • ½ cup raw sugar or splenda
  • 2 cinnamon sticks
  • lemon wedge to garnish

Instructions

  • Rinse the hibiscus and add it to a pot with your water. Add cinnamon sticks and sugar.
  • While stirring, bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from heat.
  • Once cool enough, pour into a pitcher and refrigerate until chilled. It can also be immediately poured over ice. Garnish with lemon.

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9 Comments

  1. Jessie ROCKS!! Her photography inspires me:-) What a gorgeous drink, I still have not had hibiscus yet….on my to do list:-) Hugs, Terra

  2. Fantastic photos! I would have never thought to photographing that dark red drink against a black background but it is visually stunning!