making fizz and "stuff"

Thanks for all the great comments. I was surprised to hear about all the different types of drinks and snacks that everyone has at their Starbucks. And I was also happy to hear that, not everyone hangs out there. For me, I like them only because it is smoke-free, if I really had a choice, I know I wouldn't go there because they are quite pricey. In fact, they recently raised the price of their beans and drinks. 10 yen..but still.

Anyway, enough about Starbucks for now...In a recent post, I wrote that I was craving fizz and sugar. Since then, I have been trying to wean myself off of soda (since there is tons of sugar in it) and tried to make something as natural as possible.

On Thursday, at the supermarket, I debated over the lemons. They were selling 3 tiny lemons for 150 yen from the U.S. Versus 1 big lemon from Chile for 129 yen. I chose the 3 for 150 yen about US$1.50 and bought 2 bags. Then I squeezed the 6 lemons (about 1/2 cup lemon juice--not much juice as they were teeny) and added 2 cups of fizzy soda water. Then in a glass, I added ice and a teaspoon of blueberry honey.

I mixed it well to make sure that the honey dissolved. It was really refreshing and having it in the morning really wakes you and your tastebuds up! (You can adjust the sweetness if it is too tart, but we really liked it this way.) I am definitely making this again.

Did I say enough of Starbucks? Well, yesterday, I tried these blueberry-yogurt pancakes. Delicious, light and fluffy and on their "Wellness Selection" menu. I guess having yogurt in the pancakes make them "healthy", but I think it was counter-acted by the whipped butter...which I used the whole little container of (there is a butter shortage here, couldn't let it go to waste, could I?)

This year's summer has been really hot which may not be a good thing for us humans, but it has been a good thing for the veggies. They are HUGE! Take for example this eringi, (was about 6 inches long and 2 inches in diameter) usually they are skinnier and half this size.

I saw a television program once that said that Japan measures their produce by weight, them packages them for sale at about 100 to 150 grams per package, so most times they mix small veggies with big ones.

When I bought this (for 98 yen about US$.98), there was just this one inside, though I don't think it was 100 or 150 grams.

p.s. something is wrong with Blogger...I cannot access my blog to answer comments. Hope this gets fixed soon!