sipping summer { alcohol-free strawberry sangria }

I know, I know... I've been away for too long.
Please forgive me, for these last months have mostly been a whiteout when it comes to the kitchen.
From nothing-worth-mentioning lunches in a rush at any small eating place around the uni - or even at the studio whilst staring at models or plans - to going out for dinner or just-a-beer-with-bread-or-fries - because we're all always running out of time but still feel the need to stop and connect with other human beings -, cooking worth blogging about has been aside for a while, and my pans have holded pasta with vegetables around 50% of the time, the remaining share being hold by water for tea. As I've mentioned before, I get way too bored and demotivated cooking and eating by myself. Breakfast, lunch, dinner and snack time have been mixed up on a wholewheat-bread-with-quark-and-smoked-salmon bliss, which I share with my favourite series' characters, seldom not going for seconds - both on the smoked salmon and on the episodes.
Plus, my Iphone camera is somewhat broken and I have no other camera I can use on a regular basis, which takes blogging to a whole new level of impossibility.
However, this is something very important to me that has been missing in my life, and I think I would like to have it back. So I will anyway try to keep it going - an excuse for having guests more often! -, I still have a few recipes unpublished and I was also able to gather a few brand new ones already... Let's see how it goes (:
Thank you for being there all the time, thank you so much for you support and a special thanks to all the people who, even though not knowing me so well, personally encouraged me to come back.

Sangria de Morangos
(sem álcool)

- 300g de morangos, lavados e sem pé

- sumo de 5 laranjas

- 250ml de água com gás, fresca

- 150ml de água, fresca

- 80g de açúcar

- 20g de açúcar mascavado

- gelo q.b.

- 1/2 laranja, cortada em fatias finas
- folhas de hortelã

Num blender, reduzir os morangos a puré com o açúcar, reservando quatro ou cinco,

Misturar a água e o sumo de laranja com o puré de morango,

Numa jarra de vidro grande, colocar o gelo, os restantes morangos cortados em metades, as fatias de laranja e a hortelã,

Deitar o sumo na jarra, misturar tudo e servir.

Strawberry Sangria
(alcohol-free version)

- 300g strawberries, rinsed and cut tops

- 5 oranges juice

- 250ml sparkling water, cold

- 150ml water, cold

- 80g sugar

- 20g light brown sugar

- ice

- 1/2 orange, thinly sliced
- mint leaves

In a blender, process the strawberries with the sugar, leaving four or five aside,

Mix the water and orange juice in the strawberry puree,

Cut the remaining strawberries in halves and place in a big glass jar with the ice and mint leaves,

Pour the juice over, mix and serve.