August | 2012 | Drink - Play - Love

Monthly Archives: August 2012

Drink of the Week: Passion Basil Breeze

Posted on August 3, 2012 | Leave a comment

On principal I am usually against cocktails with the word “breeze” in their name, but I make an exception for this one. A friend made this lovely sip for me a couple weeks ago after scouring the Internet looking for a cocktail recipe that replicated a drink she ordered — and loved — in Halifax years ago. The result of her Google search: a Passion Basil Breeze.

It makes a fantastic August long weekend patio drink. I like it because it combines two ingredients I don’t often see in cocktails: passion fruit juice and basil. Pour in some rum and lime juice and it’s a garden party. Sweet and tart, with just a hint of basil and bite of rum, it hits all the right notes for a Dog Days summer evening. Enjoy!

Basil from the garden makes this long-weekend sip even better.

Passion Basil Breeze

4 large basil leaves, plus 1 sprig for garnish
1 oz fresh lime juice, plus lime wedge for garnish
2 tbsp. brown sugar simple syrup
1-1/2 oz light rum
1-1/2 oz passion fruit juice
Top club soda

In a highball glass, lightly muddle (bruise only) the basil over some crushed ice. Add the lime juice, simple syrup, rum and passion fruit juice. Stir with a bar spoon to bring up the basil from the bottom. Add more crushed ice, then top with soda water. Garnish with a basil sprig.

Hiking with kids in Calgary: Waterfall Valley

Posted on August 1, 2012 | Leave a comment

One of the perks of training to climb a giant mountain is the joy of discovering cool day hikes in Calgary. Such was my delight when a web search revealed a kid-friendly trail in the community of Silver Springs called Waterfall Valley.

A gentle descent into a coulee is fun for kiddos.

Located in Bowmont Park, the path is an easy one-kilometre trail that descends gently between wildflower-studded hillsides, meanders through a lovely grove of aspen trees and parallels a little stream (that bubbles up from various springs in the vicinity) before dead-ending at the Bow River. There, a “waterfall” rushes down a hill to join the river.

The waterfall at trail’s end.

My kids loved how the trail alternated between dirt path and elevated boardwalk. Avery ran ahead searching for the garter snakes that inhabit the coulee, while Bennett was content to spot bees landing on the many blooming wildflowers including yellow potentillas and orange black-eyed Susans. The highlight for both was the waterfall by the river. The only downside? You have to retrace your steps back up the coulee (yay, some real training for me!) to return to your car, a fact that can irritate young children.

You’d never know you were in the city.

There’s ample parking at the trailhead and interpretive signage that explains how the area formed. The walk takes about 20 minutes each way, but if you pack a snack to enjoy at the river overlook plan to spend about an hour round-trip.