Today my phone showed me a weather forecast of 42oC. It is insanely hot and humid outside. So how do we deal with such extreme weather? Well, I feel like hitting the pool or playing under a fresh water tube well. And if these are not possible, it’s definitely time for some icy chilled margaritas to quench the never ending thirst. So, what to drink?

The only good thing available this time of year is a variety of fruits. From June to August we are blessed with delicious and delightful fruits. Every other week a new fruit pops up at the market. Take for instance red and black plums; so juicy and fresh, they’re hard to resist. At times, you end up getting overripe plums, which then need to be used immediately, and well, you can’t just eat them. Why not then make these a part of a Plum Margarita, and make your summers blissful?

Ingredients:

  • Plums – 4 to 6 (sliced)
  • Sugar – ¼ cup (or as desired)
  • Water – ½ cup
  • Ice cubes – as desired
  • Mint Leaves – 3 to 5 leaves
  • 7up – as required
  • Preparation time : 5 minutes
  • Cooking time : 5 minutes
  • Number of servings (yield) : 2

Instructions:

  1. Place plums, with skin still on, in a small saucepan with water and sugar
  2. Bring to a boil and let it simmer for 6–8 minutes until the fruit is very soft
  3. You may now easily remove the plum seeds. The liquid will take the color from the plums
  4. Let it cool for a few minutes, then blend it all with mint leaves and ice cubes. Blend until completely smooth
  5. Pour the juice into glasses: fill three quarter of the glass with the juice and top the remaining with 7up
  6. Garnish with mint leaves or lemon wedges and serve chilled

Fatima Ali

I am trained to be an IT professional. I served National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST) for six years after graduating from the same university. As long as I can remember, cooking good food has been my passion and it makes me happy. My cooking lessons were a bit unusual though. Back in the day when digital did not mean much, my father would record cooking shows (knorr ka kitchen, kaukab khuwaja and Zee Khana Khazana – Chef Sanjeev Kapoor) for me to watch endless times later on, before trying the recipes out. I would make brownies and cold cake almost every day while my mother was asleep. This was my way of surprising her every evening. My mother cooks amazing food too and I have tried many of the recipes written in her recipe book. I draw inspiration from a number of chefs from televised cooking shows such as Late Chef Farah, Chef Rahat, Chef Mehboob, BBC Food, Masala TV, Chef Shai, Chef Sharmeen, Master Chef Australia and my ultimate favorite Chef Shireen Anwer. I would not be as good a cook I am now without passive guidance from each one of these.