Limonada de Coco Image Used Under Creative Commons License From lacesteria.co

My Citizens, we are now mid-way through July and the heat and humidity of the season can become truly oppressive! The epitome of Cool (the always-frosty TFD!) seeks to offer blessed libations upon you to aid and assist in your Summer activities in the most chill way imaginable! This delicious drink from Northern Colombia, known as Limonada de Coco, combines barely-sweetened coconut milk with fresh lime juice to fit the bill perfectly, and with a unique TFD twist guaranteed to slake your most profound thirst!

Since this is from the ancestral home of one of my favorite gemstones, we shall focus on the history of that most glorious of green gems – the Colombian Emerald!

Emeralds are green precious gemstones that are mined in various geological settings and are minerals in the beryl group of silicates. For more than 4,000 years, emeralds have been among the most valuable of all jewels on Earth.

Colombia, located on the continent of South America, is the country that mines and produces the most emeralds for the global market – it is estimated that Colombia accounts for 70-90% of the world’s emerald market. The Colombian departments of Boyacá and Cundinamarca, both in the Eastern Ranges of the Colombian Andes, are the locations where most of the emerald mining takes place.

While commercial grade emeralds are quite plentiful, fine and extra fine quality emeralds are extremely rare. Colombian emeralds over 50 carats in weight can cost much more than diamonds of the same size.

Although the Colombian emerald trade has a rich history that dates as far back as the pre-Columbian era, the increase in worldwide demand for the industry of the gemstones in the early 20th century has led prices for emeralds to nearly double on the global market. Until 2016, the Colombian emerald trade was at the center of Colombia’s civil conflict, which has plagued the country since the 1950s.

For thousands of years, emeralds have been mined and considered one of the world’s most valuable jewels. The first ever recorded emeralds date back to ancient Egypt, where they were particularly admired by Queen Cleopatra.

In addition to their aesthetic value, emeralds were highly valued in ancient times because they were believed to increase intelligence, protect marriages, ease childbirth, and thought to enable its possessor the power of predicting future events.

An ancient Colombian legend exists of two immortal human beings, a man and a woman—named Fura and Tena—created by the Muisca god Are in order to populate the earth. The only stipulation by Are was that these two human beings had to remain faithful to each other in order to retain their eternal youth. Fura, the woman, however, did not remain faithful.

As a consequence, their immortality was taken away from them. Both soon aged rapidly, and they eventually died. Are later took pity on the unfortunate beings and turned them into two crags protected from storms and serpents and in whose depths Fura’s tears became emeralds.

Today, the Fura and Tena peaks, rising approximately 840 and 500 meters, respectively, above the valley of the Minero River, are the official guardians of Colombia’s emerald zone. They are located roughly 30 km north of the mines of Muzo, the location of the largest emerald mines in Colombia.

Historians believe the indigenous Indians of Colombia mastered the art of mining as early as 500 AD. But Spanish Conquistadors are the ones who are credited with discovering and marketing globally what we now call Colombian emeralds.

Colombia, during pre-colonial times, was occupied by Muzo indigenous people, who were overpowered by Spain in the mid 1500s.

It took Spain five decades to overpower the Muzo Indians who occupied this entire mining area. Once in control, the Spanish forced this native, indigenous population to work the mining fields that it previously held for many centuries.

Monarchs and the gem-loving royalty in India, Turkey, and Persia eventually sought the New World treasures once the gems arrived in Europe.

These new emerald owners expanded their private collections with spectacular artifacts bedazzled with emeralds between 1600 and 1820, the time frame of Spain’s control over the Colombian mines. After Colombia’s independence from Spain in 1819, the new government and other private mining companies assumed mining operations.

Over the course of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, these mines were periodically shut down numerous times because of political situations within the country.

If you want to learn what the best Colombian emeralds look like and how they mesmerize the senses, watch this video!

I call this the “Colombian Emerald” version of limonada because the limes that are used glow like the jewel of the same name – and I am a poet at heart (and also a published poet to boot – read my haiku poems here).

This is not the first limeade recipe I’ve posted – this Indian-spiced limeade has that distinction. Limonada de coco is a deliciously tropical limeade variant beloved throughout South America!

My version of limonada de coco includes a hint of vanilla sugar for added flavor complexity – you can buy it here.

I also include some freshly-grated nutmeg, which is found only in the Caribbean islands of Colombia – I love it in this recipe! Lastly, some mint leaves for garnish and you have my preferred version of this drink!

This is my preferred brand of coconut milk in this recipe.

Lastly, while this drink is traditionally served without alcohol, if you choose to sneak some rum into the final product, I’ll keep my virtual eyes closed on your “blasphemy”. 😉

Battle on – the Generalissimo

Southern Cooler Image Used Under Creative Commons License From spiceandtea.com

Citizens, if there is one thing that the Carpetbagger known as TFD has learned from his Southern in-laws, it is this: southerners REALLY know how to concoct refreshing drinks for hot days!

However, while my DNA may be 99.99% Eastern European Jewish (via NYC) according to 23andme, my soul is assuredly reborn south of the Mason-Dixon Line!

As such, allow the admirer of the Antebellum that is your Citizen Prime to share my latest thirst-quenching creation with you!

I believe it will find favor with all of you, Northerner or Southerner alike. 🙂 Should you choose to spike this with a little (or a lot) of Woodford Reserve Double Oaked for an adult beverage punch (#punintended), I most certainly salute your alcohol decision!

Speaking of punch – did you know that the term punch refers to a wide assortment of drinks, both non-alcoholic and alcoholic, generally containing fruit or fruit juice. The drink was introduced from India to the United Kingdom in the early seventeenth century, and from there its use spread to other countries. Punch is typically served at parties in large, wide bowls, known as punch bowls.

The word punch is actually a loanword from the Sanskrit पञ्च (pañca), meaning “five”, as the drink was originally made with five ingredients: alcohol, sugar, lemon, water, and tea or spices.

The drink was brought to England from India by sailors and employees of the British East India Company in the early 17th century. From there it was introduced into other European countries. When served communally, the drink is expected to be of a lower alcohol content than a typical cocktail.

The term punch was first recorded in British documents in 1632. At the time, most punches were of the wassail type made with a wine or brandy base. But around 1655, Jamaican rum came into use, and the “modern” punch emerged. By 1671, documents make references to punch houses.

Non-alcoholic varieties of punch, which are especially given to children as well as adults who do not drink alcohol, typically include a mix of some fruit drink such as juice, water, and a sweetener like sugar.

A drink closely associated with Kentucky and other Southern states, sweet bourbon punch is made with sweet tea (a signature drink of the South), citrus flavors and bourbon whiskey. Bourbon is named for Bourbon County, Kentucky, and each year during the Kentucky Derby, recipes for bourbon punch abound.

Whether boozy or virgin, my cooler will become your new go-to thirst quencher in the heat of Summer – of that, I can assure you!

Battle on – the Generalissimo