Calamansi Juice

With people around me being sick like my husband, I've been trying so hard not to get infected, but to my dismay, I woke up this morning with a mild sore throat! I can't blame my husband for this yet since I left the window open last night and it was quite chilly this morning! So, I'm thinking the cold draft must've caused my sore throat. Oh well, I'm just crossing my fingers that this is not going to be a full-blown viral infection, and if it does, spare me a box of tissues!

Luckily, my friend, Alma from Florida sent my Mom and I a boxful of fresh Calamansi straight from her friend's backyard! How sweet of her to think of us and her thoughtfulness came in handy today!

Calamansi is a type of citrus fruit that are most commonly found in Southeast Asia. Growing up in the Philippines, these tiny citrus jewels are abundant in most households. Both of my Grandmothers have bushes of Calamansi in their backyards that we enjoy all year 'round. We use it as a condiment for cooking, marinades, baking or for simply making juices. There's nothing like drinking a freshly squeezed Calamansi juice, especially in a hot summer day or if you are not feeling too well! Not only they are high in Vitamin C like any other citrus fruits, but it taste quite different among its counterparts. Ultra-sour! My Lola Dida from Bicol used to call it Limonsito, meaning baby lemons!

Calamansi is a cross between a lime and a lemon with the sweet scent of tangerines, and a little smaller in size as a key lime! Living in a colder climate like Pennsylvania, Calamansi is unheard of. Sure we can buy them frozen in select Asian stores in small concentrated packets, juice drinks in tetrapacks/bottles, and etc., there's even a soda pop made with Calamansi, but it's still not the same as drinking the fresh ones!

I grew a Calamansi bush that was given to me by a friend of mine once, but it died even before it can bear its fruits. A cold draft by the window was the culprit of its demise. It was so disappointing! So, this morning as I squeezed each Calamansi for my juice, I saved the skins for a homemade simmering pot of potpourri and the seeds for you know what?!? Hope I can grow them into a lively bush someday. It might take a while for it to grow into a big bush, but I'm taking my chances once again!

And as for my husband, I made him a glass of Calamansi juice when he got home from work. It was his first freshly squeezed Calamansi juice and he loves it. We even ate one and watched our faces squirm from its sourness! We puckered right up! Hehehe

P.S. To my dear, Alma, thanks for the wonderful bounty! We're enjoying them very much. I miss you, girl <3

Ingredients:

5 to 7 Calamansi

Water

1 to 2 tsp of Sugar

Directions:

Cut calamansi in half, squeeze each halves in a glass with strainer. Add sugar and stir well until sugar crystals are dissolved. Fill the glass with water and ice cubes. What a refreshing drink!