Lekker: Maple Bourbon Pumpkin Cake

My last blog post was about the amazingly simple Salted Butter Apple Galette, which I love because it's an alternative to pie, because I don't like pie SO SUE ME. For Thanksgiving dessert this year, then, I opted to make this Maple Bourbon Pumpkin Cake. I picked this because bourbon, and because I didn't want a painfully sweet saccharine dessert. This strikes the perfect balance between sweet (the glaze and the maple candied pecans) and boozy-spiced-fall-ness, and was a hit at my table. (Especially when served with vanilla ice cream.)

 

I like to envision this method of decorating as all the pecans coming to worship at the pecan Altar of Candied Wonder in the middle.

It doesn't really matter which bourbon you decide to use. Maker's Mark is my do-or-die favourite, but I am poor now and cannot afford that so I was good ol' Jack for me. Most of it bakes off though, so honestly it doesn't make any difference.

So, let's get baking!

Maple Bourbon Pumpkin Cake 
serves 8
 
What You Need

For the cake:

2 3/4 cups all purpose flour
1 T baking powder
1 t pumpkin pie spice
3/4 t salt

1 1/2 cups firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/3 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
2 eggs
1 t vanilla extract

1 cup cooked pumpkin (Use the tinned stuff like I did, since I had leftovers from making one of my all-time favourite soups, this Pumpkin Soup)
3/4 cup whole milk

1/3 cup bourbon of your choice

For the glaze:

2 cups confectioner's sugar, sifted after measuring

2 T half-and-half

1 T melted unsalted butter

1 1/2 T bourbon

1 t vanilla extract

For the maple glazed pecans:

Shocking that you would need pecans and maple syrup, right?

1/2 cup pecan halves

2 T pure maple syrup

1/2 t cinnamon

What You Do
1.  First things first, in a small bowl mix together the pecans, maple syrup, and cinnamon really well. These babies are gonna soak in that goodness while you're mixing up the cake. Give it a stir every once in awhile to make sure the syrup gets into allllll the nooks & crannies.

2. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F and grease two 8-inch round cake pans. (I suppose this cake could also be done in a Bundt pan or some other loaf pan, or as cupcakes, but I don't know the cooking times and what have you for that.)  In a medium sized mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice and salt. Whisk it well, since I'm saving you the hassle of actually sifting that flour separately to aerate it!

3. In another larger mixing bowl, beat the butter with an electric mixer until light yellow and fluffy. Add the brown sugar, and beat again until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and mix well. See: light and fluffy. (Get the picture?) Then add your pumpkin and vanilla. It might look a little grainy and weird after you add the pumpkin, but don't try to overbeat it just to get rid of that. It's fine.

4. With your mixer on low, add half the flour mixture to the wet batter. Mix well. Add the milk, and mix well. Add the other half of the flour, and ___ ____. Finally, dump in the bourbon and mix shittily and lazily well-ish.

5. Pour the batter evenly into your pans, and bake at 350 for about 20-ish minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove the pans and set on top of wire cooling racks for about 10 minutes (this gives the cake time to contract from the sides of the pan) and then flip out onto the racks to finish cooling.

6. *While* those babies are cooling, and your oven is still at 350, it's time to do the pecans! Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and dump your maple coated pecans on there. Bake for 5 minutes, then remove and toss, and bake for 5 minutes more. That's all it should take for them to go all nicely dark brown and smell amazing. Feel free to taste test one.

7. Since that only took 10 minutes and your cakes are probably still cooling, you can mix up your glaze now and give it time to set up. Tangent: I have a love-hate relationship with glazes. They are easy because they literally involve just dumping everything together and stirring until smooth (so...do that), BUT. Since glazes have a more liquid consistency that frosting, you kind of just dribble it down over the top of the cake and hope that it will come dripping down the sides attractively. But if you want those attractive little drips, then you can't pour too much glaze on...WHICH MEANS THERE ISN'T ENOUGH GLAZEY GOODNESS ON THE DAMN CAKE! And I won't stand for that. So what you should do is schmear a decent amount on the inside of your two 8-inch layers as a filling, and *then* content yourself with dribbling the glaze over the top. If you want to put something else or nothing at all in the middle, then here's what I suggest: do one layer of slow glaze dribbling. Stop. Leave it alone for about 15 minutes, giving it time to set up. Then come back and do a second layer. It still won't give you a ton of glaze on the sides, but there's more on the top and whatever, I suppose that works.

8. I honestly don't even remember where we were now. Oh right, okay so you made the glaze. Once the cakes are cool, stack them on a cake plate and glaze accordingly as discussed/ranted about above. Decorate with the pecans as you wish. Done!

It would have been nice if I had remembered to take a photo of the *inside* once we had cut a slice, but no. Of course not. FOR THE RECORD, though, it's a lovely dusty dark orange.

Recipe originally inspired by this one by Bakerella.

Liquor: The Classic Gin Martini

My tastes tend to skew towards savory rather than sweet (how many dessert recipes have you seen here?) but lately that's been refined very specifically to acidic tastes: pickles, mustard, vinegars, and olives. Olives, olives, OLIVES! Right now I think I have about six different jars sitting in my fridge because I'm obsessed with trying everything new and delicious and wonderful that I can get my hands on. The only ones I haven't liked so far are the bleu cheese stuffed ones, which was a terrible disappointment to my cheese loving soul. However, those ones sit in a juice that is thick and syrupy, almost slimy, and I don't know if it's because of the cheese or what, but it's gross, and you should keep it the hell away from me and my martini.

Martini! Yes, truly my FAVOURITE way to enjoy some olives. What's that? You already know how to make a classic martini? 

 Yes, I did just make that specifically for this purpose. I am Batman.

Usually you know I let you guys do whateverthehell you want, but on this I say no. Vodka martinis are great, and popular, and this and that and the other thing, but a traditional martini is made with gin and I will not hear another damn thing about it.

NOW, there is considerable debate as to whether a martini should be shaken or stirred. A traditional gin martini should be stirred, not shaken, as according to my research shaking can "bruise the gin". I don't know about this. My gin has never complained and if it does, well, it had it coming, amirite?  But after all my caterwauling about traditional and "classic" this and that, I have to say I like my martinis absolutely ice cold and that just can't be accomplished by stirring.

ALSO it's how James Bond orders his martinis and if you can't take advice from James Bond then I guess we're all screwed. I read somewhere once a theory that James Bond was so sophisticated that he would have known that stirring is the more common way to serve a gin martini, but that in his wisdom of being a spy and being in charge of poisons, guns, motor vehicles, etc, he always limited himself to one martini, and had it shaken so that more of the ice would melt, thus diluting the drink a bit more. This logic makes complete sense to me and lines up pretty well with what we see in the movies. He also drank vodka martinis, which are ALWAYS served shaken, not stirred, so maybe the dude just got confused. Whatever.

Besides, how else do you expect him to close the deal with [insert Bond girl here] if he has more than one drink? 

It's unfortunate that I don't own proper martini glasses, as the stem is necessary to keep the drink cold as we discussed in Boozing on a Budget. It's also regrettable that I wound up with small ice slivers in this martini. What can I say, my strainer was in the dishwasher!

Classic Gin Martini
makes 1, preferably for James Bond

What You Need

2.5 ounces gin (We are led to believe in 1953's Casino Royale that Bond drinks Gordon's gin. I used my current experimental favourite, Plymouth, because I am not fancy enough to have two bottles of gin in my house at once.)

0.5 ounces dry white vermouth (Martini & Rossi is the most famous and widely used brand) 
1 or 3 olives, to garnish. That's obviously what started this whole blog post, but a classic martini can also be served with a twist of lemon peel instead. Why either one or three? Because two just looks weird and too symmetrical, and even numbered olives in a martini is supposed to be bad luck.

What You Do

1. Combine the gin and vermouth in a cocktail shaker over lots of ice and shake for 30 seconds.

2. Strain (double strain with a second strainer to catch any ice shards that might be left) into a martini glass and serve with three olives.

If you want to try your hand at making a a proper classic gin martini, instead of shaking in the shaker simply stir gently with a wooden spoon until combined and proceed to step 2. By all means have at it, but if James Bond can break tradition and enjoy an ice cold martini then so can I.

If I am feeling extra debaucherous (possibly not a word) I like to make it a dirty martini by adding half an ounce of olive juice, right from the jar to the gin and vermouth before you shake. Enjoy, you dirty little birds!

PS. I am OBVIOUSLY KIDDING about the gin joke, you can put your pitchforks down.

Liquor: Grapefruit Rosemary Diamond Fizz

IIIIIIIIII have just discovered my new favourite morning drink! This is the MOST fun, because I think mimosas and Bloody Marys, while awesome, are totally played out. I get bored easily. When you're hosting a nice fancy brunch, you want to be able to offer something unique!

Alternatively this drink is classy and snazzy enough for an elegant evening dinner, perhaps with fish or a salad since it involves a light, dry prosecco. That's why it's called a diamond fizz instead of a regular gin fizz--prosecco/champagne trumps regular club soda or tonic water here. Cuz we fancy. Fancy doesn't have to cost an arm and a leg, though--I picked up a bottle of Penny Stamp Prosecco at my local World Market for $7. When it costs less than a bottle of wine, you don't have to wait for a special occasion to break out the bubbles. A Thursday will do. Thursdays are great. Thursdays are Friday Eve, the pre-weekend. DO IT!

Oh! And I have to share this COOLEST OF COOL gadget I also found at World Market, the Rabbit Champagne Sealer. This little doo-dad expands to fit champagne and wine bottles of pretty much any size so that it doesn't go flat in the fridge until your next opportunity to drink. And it really works! How cool is that!

I am such a simple child.

I've gotten so used to using garnishes on drinks as an accompaniment, but champagne based drinks really don't require it and the shape of the glass doesn't reeeeeally lend itself to such. So it doesn't LOOK terribly fancy, and my photography sucks, but trust me--it's light, bubbly, delicious, and not too sweet.

What You Need
makes 1 bubbly cocktail

1 tablespoon of our previously made rosemary simple syrup
2 ounces fresh squeezed grapefruit juice (I had some tucked away from my most recent batch of Grapefruit Crushes)
1 ounce gin
Champagne or Prosecco, to top off

What You Do
1. In a cocktail shaker filled with ice, shake the rosemary simple syrup, grapefruit juice, and gin together for 30 seconds until the mixer is frosty. Pour into a champagne flute and top off with prosecco or champagne.

Liquor: Cucumber Mint Gin

Back again with the booze! Yeeeaaahhhhh....I've been drinking my dinner most nights this week but also, ALSO! I'm moving back to Florida in three weeks and I need to eat my way out of the leftovers in the freezer, because evidently there is always some part of my mind that assumes that the zombie apocalypse is right around the corner, and god forbid I don't have enough gumbo and Italian Lemon Chicken and Orzo Soup on hand to get through it all.

In the meantime, I'm using GIN to get through all of THIS!

This past week my dearest Lilypad regaled me with a description of a drink she enjoyed in DC, something with cucumber and mint and gin. Since I have recently reignited my love affair with gin, I couldn't wait to reproduce it. I suppose this would be more apropos for all my Florida friends who are basking in the warmth of the sun and sand (SOON! Soon I will be with you, my people!) because it's light and utterly refreshing and delicious. Here, here it's just snow. Snow, snow, snow, and more forking snow, endless white bullshit. I'm back to being angry about winter.

In the meantime, mix this up and pretend you're relaxing on a warm porch swing somewhere in the South. That's what I'm doing. Cheers!

In correlation with yesterday's highly educational blog post on how to mix drinks when you are broke, this is a drink served without ice, and therefore SHOULD be in a stemmed glass. But, you can totally serve this with ice, if you want to. If it's actually warm enough to warrant a need for ice, where you are. (PS, GFY.)

Cucumber Mint Martini
serves 1

 What You Need
~3 inches cucumber, peeled and diced
2 fresh mint leaves
1/4 of a lime
2 ounces gin (I'm currently experimenting with Plymouth)
1 dash bitters (optional)
tonic water, to top off

What You Do
1. Throw your diced cucumber in the bottom of a cocktail shaker. Put the mint leaves in your hand, and clap. (This releases some of the fragrance and essential oils and also makes you look cool.) Add them to the shaker along with the juice of 1/4 of a lime, and the bitters. Muddle really really really well with a muddler or a wooden spoon. Add the gin and tons of ice and shake hard for 30 seconds. Strain into a cocktail glass and top off with tonic water (you'll want a bit of that sweetness to round it out.) Serve with a fresh cucumber garnish.

Lagniappe: Boozing On A Budget, Part 1

The actual FULL title of today's post is "Boozing on a Budget: Everything You Need to Have a Perfectly Well-Stocked Cocktail Bar to Get You Through The Week and Life in General" but that seemed a bit excessive.

Let's talk about cocktails! We talk about them all the time here, don't we? I like to drink. I come from a family of Europeans raised in Latin America, and we have a GRAND old time with a great whiskey or aged rum. It's in my blood. No seriously, I'm pretty sure that at any given time there is a measurable amount of alcohol in my blood somehow, someway.

To my future employers: HAHAHA! I was just kidding about that last line, of course. Move along.

Now I do love a great wine, red or white, with my personal favourites being Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinot Noir, and Sauvignon Blanc and unoaked Chardonnay, respectively. Wine is my go-to when I am legitimately stressed out and just want to unwind after a long day. Cocktails though, liquors, with their myriad of accompanying bitters, mixers, garnishes, infusions, and variations--it's an absolute PLAYGROUND for me, just as much as food is! In fact, I've got some blackberry vodka infusing on my countertop as we speak that I hope to play around with for a tangerine spritzer cocktail.

The problem is, I have no money. Boo, hiss! LIQUOR COMPANIES, PLEASE SEND ME FREE ALCOHOL! I will write about you in this most winning fashion, and you will thank me. Though my liver might not.

Until that happens (or I marry for money, whichever comes first), here's how I mix things up on a budget:

Essential Items for Cocktailing: Equipment
That's a word. I'm making it happen.


Cocktail Shaker: Whelp, I guess I fail at my own list because I don't even really have one of these. Bear and I have a cheap stainless steel one in our house that I suspect is some sort of "drinking governor" type device, because it will only let me make one drink before the metal expands to the point where I can't pry the lid off to make a second one. I DO NOT APPRECIATE BEING JUDGED ON MY DRINKING HABITS BY AN INANIMATE OBJECT. So I use a to-go coffee cup! It's metal and it has a small opening to strain out the ice. Make do, bitches.

 Yeah...I'll probably be upgrading here soon. THIS ISN'T EVEN MINE omfg why haven't my roommates kicked me out yet.

Jigger: A jigger is a double-ended shot glass, usually 2 ounces on one end and 1 ounce on the other. You can just use a regular shot glass, of course, but make sure you know exactly how much it measures. There's no real standard, so you could be pouring anywhere from 0.75 ounce to 2 ounces without realising it. For years I wondered why all my friends complained that my drinks were too strong--as it turns out, before I got a jigger I was using a Marine Corps stamped shot glass that was a deceptive 2 ounces instead of 1. Whoops. (Marine Corps...shoulda known.) 

Muddler: Another fail. I'm doing well, aren't I? A muddler is a stainless steel rod with a ridged plastic end that is used to mash up ingredients at the bottom of a glass to release oils, juices, etc as in an Old Fashioned. I use a wooden spoon. *shrug*

Glassware: This is an obvious one, but if you're really on a budget you probably only have two basic types of glasses: drinking glasses and wine glasses. If you're trendy, possibly Mason jars as well. I'm lucky to live with someone who owns a set of rocks glasses for my whiskey on the rocks (where the name comes from, obvi), Old Fashioneds, and most of the cocktails you see on this blog. We recently acquired some stemless wine glasses that I've been using as a slightly more elegant option but I'm going to have to leave both of these behind when I move next month.

It actually PAINS me a great deal that I don't have the correct set of glasses for all the drinks I want to make, because a truly classy, well-stocked cocktail bar would have the following:

• Champagne flutes: for any cocktail that involves champagne or prosecco. The tall, slim shape allows the bubbles to emit in long thin streams and keeps them concentrated for longer. 
• Coupes: this is probably what you envision when you think of Gatsby! Coupes are used to make a champagne tower at wedding receptions (but has anyone ACTUALLY seen that at wedding reception?!) but fell out of favour fairly quickly because the wide surface area of the mouth makes the champers lose its carbonation more quickly.
• Martini glasses: after doing some research I realised that this is actually technically called a "cocktail glass"; it became known as the martini glass after its most popular usage. However, the general idea of a martini glass revolves around the stem; in this you serve any drink that is meant to be enjoyed cold but not actually over ice, because the stem keeps the heat of your hand away from the drink. It always strikes me as finicky to drink that way though. Hmm.
• Rocks glasses: I call them"rocks glasses" because that's what I grew up hearing, but they're also called lowballs or Old Fashioned glasses, after their most famous (and delicious!) contents. It's a short tumbler with a thick base often used to serve drinks "on the rocks" or any drink that involves muddling of things on the bottom. A good, classic, clear glass rocks glass with a spot of Maker's Mark in it, floating around an ice sphere, is a damn beautiful site!
• Collins glass: A tall, slim glass, the Collins glass is used to serve sippin' drinks with ice, things like Long Island Iced Teas and Whiskey Gingers, things that people drink in the South on the porch in the summer while the condensation slips down your hand. Perfection!

Y-Peeler: Like a regular vegetable peeler, but shaped like a Y. This is used to take peels of citrus fruit, usually orange or lemon, as a garnish for sophisticated cocktails. You CAN use a paring knife as well, but I find a y-peeler to be more controlled and precise. They *are* harder to find, though. 

There are also several other odds and ends for a nicely stoked bar like a strainer, a citrus squeezer, matches or a lighter to ignite citrus peels and their essential oils, a set of tongs to match an ice bucket, etc.  Ain't nobody got time (or space) for that, though.

In the absence of a rich Saudi husband, I plan to hit up some thrift stores (or my father's house--head's up Dad!) to find unique "solos" of all of those to build up my hodge-podge collection, but lemme tell you--a Carlos O'Brien tastes just as delicious in a rocks glass as it does out of a wine glass or a Mason jar or a coffee mug. I'm just saying. It's nice to be able to enjoy a cocktail in the most perfect, refined way possible, but don't let yourself get so hung up on the details that you no longer enjoy it. :)

Coming up next, the fun stuff: booze!

Liquor: Rosemary Gin Rickey

Two cocktails in a row, woot woot! Yeeeaaaaaah buddy, I've been breaking out of my wine-only rut and am back to experimenting with the cocktail shaker. I think I got stuck in between ginger flavours and tequila for awhile, so I'm excited to have something new to present to you: a Rosemary Gin Rickey, from photographer Elizabeth Morrow. You can find the original recipe here.

Rosemary is a tricky ingredient, for me. It can be overwhelming at times, a strange combination of woody and floral fragrance and taste. I was intrigued to give this a try, and let me tell you, I am a full-on fan. The rosemary simple syrup is just subtle enough to that you only get a TASTE of rosemary, and the garnish of fresh rosemary provides the perfect whiff as you sip. As I noted before with the Pimm's Cup, in many cases, a cocktail garnish is NOT optional!!! A garnish serves the very important purpose of stimulating your sense of smell, which is of course closely tied to your sense of taste and part of the whole experience of a cocktail. A garnish is a complement to the drink. USE IT. 

Serve like so for effect, but of course, drop that baby tree into your drink before taking your first sip. I can't believe I actually have to tell people that, but there you go.

First, you must make the Rosemary Simple Syrup.

What You Need

makes 1 cup of simple syrup; scale as necessary

1 cup white granulated sugar

1 cup filtered water

4 sprigs fresh rosemary

What You Do

1. Making any simple syrup has the same (simple, hah) process: combine 1 part filtered water to 1 part sugar (usually white granulated) plus your flavouirng agent. You may recall we've used one before with before with the smashing Lemon Ginger Martini, with the original recipe being explained in the Carlos O'Brien. So all you do here is combine the ingredients in a small pot and bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring often to make sure the sugar doesn't burn or stick to the bottom of the pan. Let it boil for 1 minute such that the sugar is completely dissolved, then cover and remove from the heat. Let steep for 30 minutes, drain out the rosemary sprigs, and store in the fridge in an airtight container.

I absolutely adored the light, baby-spring-green colour the simple syrup wound up having (not evident in the photo above, unfortunately). You also eat with your eyes, after all! Onwards we go.

Rosemary Gin Rickey
makes 1 drink

What You Need
1 ounce rosemary simple syrup
1 ounce freshly squeezed lime juice
1.5 ounces gin
club soda (I always prefer tonic water) to top off
spring of rosemary + white granulated sugar for garnish

What You Do
1. In a cocktail shaker over lots of ice, combine the first three ingredients. Shake for 30 seconds until the shaker is frosty. Pour into a highball glass over ice and top off with bubbles to your desired strength. Moisten a sprig of rosemary with water and roll around in some white sugar to give it that pretty, frosted look.

Oh, and hint hint--this would be a fantastically complementary pre-dinner cocktail for that Short Rib Ragu.

Liquor: The Dirty Drunk Girl Scout

I'm not exactly sure what to call this drink. Most of you will recognise it as the Dirty Girl Scout, but that involves Creme de Menthe and Bailey's Irish Cream, neither of which I happened to have on Sunday. What's a girl to do when she's determined to drink her dessert? Improvise! (Drunkenness is the mother of invention, right? That's how the saying goes?) That's why THIS little recipe calls for similar but different ingredients and I get to switch up the title. Figures that it becomes even more inappropriate that way, but whatever.

Beware: this drink is SWEET, much sweeter than I will ever be. These days I just want my Maker's Mark on the rocks, but when you're craving dessert and are fresh out of Thin Mints or anything else that's minty and chocolately and indulgent and delicious...well, this kind of thing happens. Join me, ladies. Your PMS will thank me later.

It's almost like a grown up milkshake? That's awesome. If you want to be fancy you can garnish with a sprig of mint, which I also, sadly, did not have on hand. Foodie problems yo.

What You Need
makes 1 cocktail

2 ounces vodka
1.5 ounces white chocolate liqueur  (I used Godiva)
1 ounce peppermint schnapps (I used what I had leftover from Christmas, but I was told by my buddy Monkey Boy to definitely try it with Rumple Minze next time for an extra kick. Meow.)
1 ounce Kahlua

What You Do

1. Easy, peasy, pudding & pie. Shake all in a cocktail shaker over ice for 30 seconds and serve, again over ice. Garnish with fresh mint if you wish, or a cookie on the side if you are REALLY suffering.


You may notice that's not your average ice cube floating there. In fact, a few weeks ago the folks over at Arctic Chill asked me if they could send me some free stuff to test , and of course the only sane answer to that question is "HELL YES!" They sent me a four-pack of these badass Ice Ball Makers and I've been messing around with them ever since. They're round, BPA-free (or so they say; I couldn't find mention of this anywhere on the box...something to think about, Arctic Chill!) silicon moulds that look like this:

 

All you do is connect the two pieces together and fill with water. Water expands as it freezes, of course, so the two pieces separate a bit but nothing crazy, and out easily pops an ice ball like this:

They melt so much slower than regular ice cubes, making them perfect for drinks on the rocks (my roommate Bear raves over these for his whiskey on the rocks) or drinks you want to keep cold without diluting terribly, just like the Dirty Girl Scout. No one likes watery cream drinks. At $20 for a 4-pack from Amazon I think they're definitely a worthy investment for your liquor cabinet. I'm going to be experimenting with them in the spring, filling them with water that's been boiled and cooled to yield a clear ice ball instead of a murky one, and possibly studding them with frozen fruit or edible flowers. You know, girly shit.

Cheers!

Liquor: Lemon Ginger Martini

So I have this really pathetic little game going on with myself right now, where I give myself a blue star (literally just a star scribbled in blue ink) on my wall calendar for every day I don't drink this month. There's no incentive for doing this; I've not promised myself anything, am not rewarding myself in any way, and have not been commanded to do so by any sort of rehabilitation programme. I have no idea why I play these games with myself.

Today is February 19, and I have 7 blue stars.

Don't you judge me. It's largely because of this drink! The Lemon Ginger Martini.

Easy-peasey lemon-squeezy.

This drink recipe comes entirely from my friend Lilypad, who is just so tres chic it's no surprise at all that she would come up with such a sophisticated drink. I love it because it's not too sweet, and so refreshing I know this is going to become my signature summer drink. With over a foot of snow piled up outside, clearly I am already pretending it is summer! I think it's about time I switch back to liquor from wine and beer, too, in trying to make smarter caloric decisions--so you can expect cocktail recipes to pop up more often, especially "skinny" ones. Cos summer IS coming. Thank god.

Lemon Ginger Martini
makes 1 martini

What You Need
2 ounces gin (BECAUSE YES, ACTUAL TRUE MARTINIS ARE MADE WITH GIN, NOT WITH VODKA) As you can see I used Tanqueray, but usually Bombay Sapphire is my go-to. Lilypad, because she maintains only the most exquisite taste, likes Junipero, which I must say I quite like.
1 ounce freshly squeezed and strained lemon juice (I forbid you to bastardise this simple deliciousness with the bottled stuff!)
0.5 ounce (or 1 ounce if you like things sweeter) ginger simple syrup, recipe here

What You Do
1. Did I or did I not say easy-peasey lemon-squeezy? Shake all over ice in a cocktail shaker for 30 seconds and strain into a martini glass. Garnish with a lemon slice.

Liquor: The Carlos O'Brien

Last weekend or thereabouts, right when I started the Facebook page for this little blog, my good friend Sara Say-So asked me for a cocktail recommendation for a small dinner party she was throwing with her new husband Evan. (Can I just say, it is still so freaky to me that my friends from high school are now all doing the rounds of getting married and having babies, made ludicrous by the fact that I was actually divorced at 21, made even MORE ironic by the fact that Say-So's husband is my ex-husband's cousin...and I used to date Say-So's older brother back in high school...and Say-So and Evan got married in Barcelona, where my ex-husband and I went on holiday before getting married. IT'S A TEENY TINY WORLD Y'ALL.)

Of course in order to make any sort of recommendation on what to drink, I needed to know what they were eating, too. When she said fish, only two real things popped into mind--a Moscato for Thai or Asian inspired fish, or tequila for any sort of Caribbean/Latin American preparation. All of this was highly ironic given that I was in an aquarium at the time, but I digress.

Tequila it is! And what a fine choice indeed, given that I've been obsessed with Jose Cuervo Silver ever since I had a well-intentioned Nacho Night with some friends that ended with the usual debauchery--and woke up clear as a bell and awesome the next morning. I can't explain this devil magic, but I'm sticking with it! Tequila and lime is the quintessential combination, of course, but keeping in mind my current my love affair with the earthy spiciness of ginger, here's what I came up with:

The Carlos O'Brien: named by and created for the inspirational couple. I'm expecting an invite to the next dinner party you guys! :)

The Carlos O'Brien
makes 1 drink

What You Need
3 ounces white tequila, Jose Cuervo Silver preferably
2 ounces freshly squeezed lime juice
2.5 ounces ginger simple syrup (Requiring 1 cup white sugar, 1 cup water and 1 large piece of ginger, about 10 inches long; recipe follows.)
Club soda, to top off

What You Do
1. First things first, we gotta make the ginger simple syrup. Peel your piece of ginger and slice it up into a bunch of thin little rounds; the more surface area available the more ginger infusion we can eke out. In a small pot, combine the water, sugar and ginger pieces and bring to a low boil. Reduce, then simmer gently uncovered for 20-30 minutes until the syrup has thickened and turned a beautiful amber colour. Remove from heat and cool, straining out the ginger. It'll keep in the fridge for about a month.

Thin it out with a bit of water if you find it thickening too much in the fridge.

2. OK, drink mixing time! It's all pretty easy from here; just squeeze the limes through a strainer, and in a cocktail shaker filled with ice combine the lime juice, tequila, and ginger simple syrup. Shake for about 30 seconds and strain into a glass over ice. Top with club soda to taste, and serve with a lime wedge garnish. Ta dah!

Liquor: The Weasley

One of my goals for this year is to figure out how to add some coding and widgets and gidgets and whatever to this blog so that people can Pin recipes directly to their Pinterest boards and e-mail certain entries to their friends, etc. Unfortunately I seem to have magically forgotten everything I learned when I built my first few websites--I blame vodka induced amnesia (and lack of recent practice!). Or...in the theme of today's entry, did someone Obliviate me?

What's the perfect drink for staring at HTML coding until your eyes cross? ALCOHOL! But more specifically, whiskey, since that's what I like to drink these days. And because I am on a ginger kick as of late (that started with the ginger infused broth of whiffy wonder in my Thai Chicken Noodle Soup) and also because I am a HUGE geek, I present to you...

THE WEASLEY. 

 In my mind, of the 'Fred & George' variety.

You've seen this kind of thing from me before.

My thought process: "Hmmm...whiskey....firewhiskey...and ginger, like THE quintessential gingers...but if it's going to be like firewhiskey it should also have a tiny bit of a spicy kick to it...but still sweet...and of course, it should also be HOT. Because, obviously."

Just a head's up, this recipe does require a wee bit of advance planning as you should let the whiskey infuse with the ginger for a night or two. The longer you let it go the more ginger flavour you'll get, but I wouldn't let it infuse past two nights.

The Weasley
this recipe makes two drinks; I split it up so that each would have a different whiskey


What You Need
Whiskey, about 1/2 cup per drink, brand of your choice: for one drink I used Jack's Tennessee Honey since I figured the sweetness would be offset with the ginger and lemon and spice, and I was right. I used Maker's Mark in the second drink and that was also lovely. Obviously, you don't have to do two different brands; just pick one and go with it!
1 medium piece of fresh ginger, about 4-5" (Fresh ginger packs quite a punch, so if you're not familiar with it, take a little lick/taste of the raw peeled ginger so you can get a feel for it and then decide how much you want.)
1 lemon
4 dashes ground ginger, so 2 per drink

2 pinches (and I seriously do mean a PINCH) red cayenne pepper, so 1 per drink (optional, really, since ginger can be pretty spicy, though it's a different kind of spice)
Smidge of honey, optional, to taste (if you're not using Jack's Tennessee Honey)
Club soda or tonic water, optional, to top off (I don't enjoy whiskey neat)

What You Do
1. So, here we go! First, carefully peel your fresh ginger root with a vegetable peeler or by using a spoon to scrape off the skin. Ugly thing, isn't it? But spicy and fresh and sharp and lovely. Dice it up into small pieces (you can see one floating in my drink, above) and make sure to trim off some of the rough, stringy outer edges. Toss it into your whiskey of choice, about 1 cup or so in a Mason jar, and let it infuse for 1 or 2 nights.

I assure you, that waiting time only happened because a) I got too busy to mess around with cocktails and b) I found a bottle of wine I forgot I had in the meantime.

2. So two days have passed and you're back; or, alternatively, a few hours have passed and you're impatient. Whatever. Strain out the whiskey or just fish the ginger pieces out and pour into two glasses. Slice the lemon into quarters and squeeze one quarter into each drink. Add two dashes of ground ginger to each drink, plus the pinch of cayenne pepper if you're brave, and the honey if you want. The nice thing about this recipe is that you can mess around with the proportions to basically whateverthehell you want depending on what you like--sweet, sour, spicy, whatever. This is your party.

3. Microwave for about a minute each until piping hot and smelling utterly boozy and wonderful. Top off with club soda, if desired, garnish with the leftover lemon and maybe a piece of ginger if you want, (I thoroughly enjoyed chewing on a couple of the pieces of ginger whilst drinking) and let the honey-whiskey-spicy-lemony-gingery goodness warm you from the inside out.

Warm you from the pain of losing Fred.

*sob*

Cheers, mates.

Liquor: Halloween Candy Corn Martini

I started this little project about a week ago, but because I can't count (apparently), by posting today I'm not giving YOU enough time to try this recipe yourself. Seriously, I fail so hard. The only reason why this takes 5-7 days is because you're doing your own infusion of candy corn vodka--MAYBE you could find a version in a liquor store? I mean, it's seasonal and god knows they flavour vodka with EVERYTHING these days (maple syrup, anyone? how 'bout butter? Swedish fish?). It was super easy to make, though, so if you have any extra candy corn left over from Halloween this week, do have at it! (The candy corn alone was difficult to find; for some reason I had to go to three different stores to find it and even then I almost had to fight this woman off for the last bag. Lady, I WILL have my candy corn vodka--this is not amateur hour!)

If you don't like vodka, you probably shouldn't make this. And we also probably shouldn't be friends. Now, if you don't like candy corn, well...I was worried that I would wind up with a sludgy sickly sweet mess, but I was wrong! The vodka absorbs the buttery taste of candy corn plus the iridescent orange colour, but leaves a lot of the tooth-aching sweetness behind. It really was very mild.

To make the candy corn infused vodka you'll need 2 parts vodka (I used Absolut) to 1 part candy corn; so, 2 cups of vodka and 1 cup of candy corn. I wasn't sure I would like it, though, and I'm the only vodka drinker in the house, so I halved it to 1 cup of vodka and 1/2 cup of candy corn. Throw into a clean Mason jar and stow away in a cool dark place for 5 days.

Bonus: doubles as a Halloween decoration. Sort of. If you're reaching.

When your five days of infusion are up, it's time to strain the vodka. Look! All the candy corn disappeared! 

Dudes, it was SO GROSS looking the first day--the candy corn had dissolved into these ghostly, floating tendrils of white that looked like snot floating in the vodka. 

Never fear. Shake up the jar, and then strain it through cheesecloth (fold over a few times to make it a tighter strain) into another glass or bowl. I found the easiest way to do this was to rubber band the cheesecloth around the mouth of a drinking glass and pour the vodka slowly through that. The cheesecloth caught everything and left only clear orange vodka behind. Presto!
 

Cheers to Mondays, cheers to candy corn, cheers to being holiday-specific drunk!

Candy Corn Martinis

makes 1 decently sized martini

What You Need

1 1/2 ounces candy corn vodka

3/4 ounce vanilla vodka (I used Absolut Vanilla)

1/2 ounce white vermouth

3 dashes Angosturra bitters

What You Do

Shake over ice in a cocktail shaker and serve.

Look, I failed on multiple levels with this little project, because I had intended to line the rim of the glass with Pop Rocks all cute-like. But do you think the four different stores I went to had Pop Rocks? NO! Do you think the fifth store had RED STRAWBERRY Pop Rocks? Of course. Because, that's what Mondays are just like.

I finally got home and thought OK, I'll make a compromise and edge it in green decorating sugar that I have on hand. So I open the drawer and--hahahahahahaha. I only have red sugar left. At that point I decided I just wanted to get the damn vodka inside me as soon as possible, so I chopped a candy corn in half and quit at life for the night.

Liquor: Pumpkin Juice!

It's Halloween, so of course everything is pumpkin EVERYTHING right now! However, the inspiration for this particular recipe actually comes from my nearest and dearest favourite fantasy series...Harry Potter. These are the books that opened the world of fantasy, magic and make-believe to me, that provided me--as a geeky, gangly, unpopular and painfully awkward 11-year-old--another world to disappear into when mine was so unbearable.

I am only slightly less awkward and gangly as a 23-year-old and about eleventy-billion times more geeky (hello Hunger Games, Star Wars, Game of Thrones, and Batman...) and I still love Harry Potter as much as I did at the first turn of the first page. And since it's Halloween, the movies have been playing on ABC Family every weekend and I've been loving every minute. :)

Pumpkin juice is a beverage often enjoyed by Harry, Ron, and Hermione and in my current inundation with pumpkins, I decided to give it a whirl. I know it *sounds* weird, but I assure you it is delicious, refreshing, interesting, and definitely worth a shot! Now of course...the kiddos enjoy this straight up, but I discovered that it's even MORE delightful with a splash of Maker's Mark over ice. My girl friend Tiny Bird preferred it with some Gosling's dark spiced rum, and Lilypad liked it with brandy. (Drinking it in her Hermione Granger Halloween costume, natch.)

Pumpkin Juice
makes about 5 cups

What You Need
1 small pumpkin, known as a pie pumpkin in most stores OR 1 cup tinned pumpkin puree (100% pure puree, not pumpkin pie filling!)
2 cups apple juice (I used the freshly pressed Simply Apple brand, which is stored next to the refrigerated lemonades in your supermarket)
1 cup white grape juice
1 cup pineapple juice
Dash of ground ginger
Dash of cinnamon

Now, here's the thing. I'm currently on a kick about doing everything from scratch, so I made my own pumpkin puree. It was a fair amount of work, and it turned out smoother and a bit thinner in consistency and lighter in color than the kind you get from the tin. It takes time and a bit of patience, but no special skills. Feel free to make your life easier and just use one cup of the tinned stuff, skip to step 3, and we're good to go.

What You Do
1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Slice the pumpkin in half from pole to pole and scrape out the seeds and stringy bits. I found this to be easier after pricking it with a fork in several places and microwaving for 1 minute. Less likely have a knife slip and stab yourself this way. Unless there's something we need to talk about. Lay the halves facedown on a baking sheet and bake for 45 minutes to an hour or until very soft. (It made the whole house smell sweet and wonderful as the natural sugars in the flesh were rendered out!)

2. When the pumpkin is cool enough to handle, slip the skins off (they turned very leathery in the oven, very interesting) and discard. Using a fine mesh sieve and a rubber spatula, working in batches, force the pumpkin flesh through the sieve into a bowl. This was the most time consuming part, for me, because you really have to mash it through thoroughly, scraping as you go. Toss the pulpy mess left in the sieve. Stir your beautiful puree together (it has a natural tendency to separate from its juices) and measure out 1 cup.

 
3. In a pitcher, stir together all of the juices and the pumpkin, along with the spices, until the pumpkin is completely dissolved. Chill until very cold, and serve over ice after stirring once again. Spike as needed. :)

Thanks for everything, JK.

Liquor: Old Fashioned

I'm a little bit of an old-fashioned girl. There's something I really like about getting dressed up in a classy dress and heels, slicking on some red lipstick and going out for a drink with a devilishly handsome man in a suit. Vodka and gin are my usual go-tos, I'll admit--but there's something a bit...cliched (?) about sipping a martini in that scenario.

Whiskey, to the rescue!

I've never been a whiskey drinker, not since a rather *interesting* experience with Jack Daniels when I was 16. (Dad, just don't think about it. Trust me.) Since then I have discovered a propensity to date guys who drink whiskey, and lots of it--Jameson, Wild Turkey, Jack's Tennessee Honey, you name it--so I've been around it plenty. I just never wanted anything to do with it. Sorry, Ron Swanson.

This drink--the way *I* make it--is a game changer.

If you would like to know how to make a TRADITIONAL Old Fashioned, go to this website.

I said I was old fashioned, not traditional. "But fruit doesn't belong in a man's drink." Seriously, skive off with that chauvinistic bullfeathers. There's no such thing as a man's drink or a girlie drink, there are drinks and there are drinks and if you're gonna sit there with your nose in the air judging me for putting fruit in my whiskey--well--then you are more in need of this drink than I am, friend!

Here's how I make it. Play with it until you find a way that YOU like it.

 

Jacked Up, Fruity, Deliciously Addictive Old Fashioned

makes 1, but you'll want more

What You Need

1 large shot of whiskey of your choice (I'm a fan of Maker's Mark but I don't know Jack [hah] about whiskey, so use what you like. A blended whiskey like Jameson wouldn't make much sense here, but I can't WAIT to try this with Tennessee Honey.)

2-3 dashes Angosturra Bitters (no compromises here, though I prefer more like 5 dashes)

A couple of orange slices (I used a mandarin in the photo above because that's what I had, and of course, it was delicious.)

A few maraschino cherries, as few or as little as you like (Don't get that artificially dyed iridescent red garbage; do you even know how those are made? Go to the Cocktail/Mixers section of your grocery store and get the real kind.) 

1 teaspoon simple syrup; or a cube of sugar if you don't have any simple syrup and don't want to make your own. (Liquor stores sell bottled simple syrup if you're incredibly lazy like me. Just make sure you don't wind up with a flavoured one by accident.)

Club soda, to top off if you like. Like I said, I can't do straight whiskey no matter HOW much fruit I put in it, so I like this. (I literally just realized that I used tonic water last time. Oh well.)

What You Do

I just happen to already have Old Fashioned glasses, so--in the bottle of an old fashioned glass, muddle up the orange slices and the cherries with the bitters and simple syrup, using the end of a wooden spoon or whatever small blunt object you have around. You don't need to go all Hulk on it, just mash it up a bit o release some of the fruit juices. Add the whiskey and taste it. If you're like me it's goddamn delicious, but a little too strong, so add some club soda and some ice, if you like. Bada bing, bada boom, we're done here.

Liquor: Intense Dark & Stormy

This isn't a real post and it's certainly not my recipe, but it is a damn good drink I have to share. Well, see the thing is it's not really SHARING unless you live in New York and have access to the surprisingly wonderful perfection that is Barrow's Intense Ginger Liqueur. So basically it's just bragging. Even if you're my friend, I love this stuff so much that it's unlikely I'll share it with you. You'd have to be a reeeeeeeally really good friend. Like maybe if you gave me a kidney or something.

Maybe.

But I don't need a kidney right now (maybe a liver in a couple of years) so I guess you're just SOL!

Don't worry, though--I've already e-mailed the owner, Josh Morton, and begged and pleaded to find a way to get it somewhere in DC. This is a snobby city! There are plenty of snootin' fallutin' shops and bars/cocktail lounges that would stock this stuff. DAMMIT, JOSH, GET IT TOGETHER!

My Bonus Dad Harry gave me this half-bottle when I was up in New York recently, as he had picked it up on a weekend trip to Red Hook. I normally don't really care for ginger things (too spicy) and felt skeptical, but was immediately taken in by the freshness and vibrancy of the flavour. It's so hard to describe: it's smooth and slightly sweet without being cloying, tasting clear and vibrant and ginger-y without the punch in the face. I want to put it in everything (going to try the Intense Martini soon), but last night--in a dark and stormy mood myself--settled on the suggestion offered on the tag around the neck of the bottle: an Intense Dark and Stormy. Here's the recipe.

It hit the spot like you wouldn't believe, and I'm not even a dark rum fan after what happened a couple of years ago with my friend Monkey Boy--but that's another story.

I'll keep you posted on my efforts to get this wonderfulness down to DC, and in the meantime, I'll be stocking up on my next trip up to New York.

Liquor: Thug Kitchen's "Endless Summer Gin & Tonic"

This isn't a real post and it certainly isn't my recipe. Today I'm sending you over to the awesomeness that is Thug Kitchen. If you're not easily offended, this dude writes hilarious, easy-to-follow non-pretentious vegan recipes for food that actually tastes good. I've made a couple of his things and while I'm not a vegan and don't stick to any sort of strict diet (life's waaaaay too short for that and you will have to pry my Brie cheese from my dead, cold hands) he's really got some GREAT stuff.

I hopped on there yesterday just to see what's new and saw this entry for an "Endless Summer Gin & Tonic." A couple of weeks ago I was panicking that fall was here and summer was finally over, but no! False alarm. It's been 93 degrees every day for the past 4 days and I'm reveling in my bonus days of summer.

This Blueberry Basil G&T really hit the spot last night when I decided to drink my dinner, and I happened to already have everything on hand. My blueberries were frozen (because I can't keep those bastards fresh and without mold for more than about 32 seconds) so they sank to the bottom of the glass, but I think fresh ones float. Don't matter--this was so fizzy, sweet and sour with a gorgeous refreshing colour that just made me smile.

 I don't have a picture of the finished drink. Well, I do, but it sucks. His photo is better, so go look at it if you want. Or, you could just make the thing yourself.

Bottoms up!

Liquor: Pimm's Cup

I love brunch, and I love day drinking, so it should be a surprise to no one that I love morning cocktails. There's just something about a light drink in the lazy morning that is the epitome of complete weekend indulgence and relaxation. I've been warned that I will find myself swept up in the melee of soccermomhood before I know it (SCARY!) so I'm making a good effort to enjoy this kind of life while I can.

Mimosas will always be my favourite and the go-to classic for most places, although my dear friend and often brunch partner Lilypad always goes for the gold with a Bloody Mary. This cocktail, though, is a wonderful alternative that many Americans aren't aware of: the Pimm's Cup. It's actually a very old cocktail that was historically enjoyed by the colonists (in fact I first discovered it on a fall trip to Colonial Williamsburg a few years ago) and by their erstwhile compatriots back in Britain for eons before that. The sweet, utterly refreshing taste is the perfect way to wake up on a beautiful lazy Sunday, but in fact you can drink it at any time of day, really, since the alcohol content is only 25%. Hell, you can throw it in a tumbler and call it iced tea if you want--don't let those other soccer moms judge you!

Pimm's Cup
makes 1 bomb-ass wake up cocktail. Sunflowers optional.

What You Need
Pimm's liqueur
Sprite or 7-Up
Sliced cucumber, for garnish (this is NOT optional!!!)

What You Do
Stack a tall glass with ice, and fill with Pimm's about a third of the way. Top off with Sprite or 7-Up, add a cucumber slice or two and one on the rim for garnish, and you're golden.

Seriously, the cucumber slice is not optional. The point of including one on the rim is so that every time you tip the glass up to take a sip, your nose takes a whiff of the cuke as an accompaniment to the flavours of the liqueur. There is science behind garnishes, people!

Liquor: Gin Rickey

This isn't a real recipe. I'm only posting it because it was so beautiful outside yesterday that I decided to take my book ("Z": A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald by Therese Anne Fowler) outside to the patio to read, and because it was a day ending in "y" I had plans to have a drink. In keeping with the theme of the Roaring 20's of the novel, it didn't take me long to decide on an absolute classic: a Gin Rickey.

Gin Rickey

What You Need
1.5 ounces gin (or 2 ounces if you're feeling wild; I like Bombay Sapphire)
juice of 1 freshly squeezed lime
club soda

What You Do
The proper way to serve this drink is in a tall Collins glass, which is a clear glass with tall straight sides and a thick bottom, but this is also supposed to be an easy, relaxed drink so you can make it in a Pyrex cup for all I care. Put in some ice, squeeze the lime really well over it and add the gin. Top off with fresh club soda and stir gently. I like to throw in a quarter of the squeezed lime because I like a little bit of the bitterness from the oils of the lime skin in the drink, but it's not necessary. You can garnish with a regular lime wedge or a couple of pretty lime slices if you're feelin' fancy. Go outside, sip, and enjoy.

Liquor: Grapefruit Crush

I really don't know WTF is going on right now, it's 90 degrees outside and football is on. Something is not right. I'm gonna go ahead and assume that it's still summer though because I'm not ready to pack away my wedges and white denim shorts yet, and THIS was the drink of my summer: a Grapefruit Crush. I discovered it on a girl's trip with my chickadees Tiny Bird and Lilypad to Annapolis, Maryland at O'Brien's Steakhouse. The bartender there was a barred lawyer, mixing drinks because it paid better than being an attorney, which caused no small amount of anxiety about my budding legal career...but the vodka fixed that.

O'Brien's original recipe calls for Finlandia grapefruit vodka shaken with fresh-squeezed grapefruit juice and topped off with Sprite. *I* could never find Finlandia and I forgot about the Sprite until just now, so this is my drink:

Grapefruit Crush
makes 1 refreshing drink

What You Need
Absolute Ruby Red Vodka (I keep mine in the freezer so it's always nice and cold)
1 fresh squeezed pink or red grapefruit, whatever you can find
Ice

What You Do
Throw some ice into a glass (crushed is cool if you've got it). Pour in some vodka, how much you want is probably in direct relation to how your day was. I usually use two shots' worth because I like my drinks strong. Squeeze the hell out of a grapefruit into the glass. Scrape the fruit against the side of the glass and get all that pulpy goodness in there. Don't worry about the seeds, they're just little baby thin white seeds and they won't bother you. You can fish them out I guess but don't make this weird, if you're so tightly wound that you have to do that then you DEFINITELY need this drink. Mix it all up with a long spoon and drink up, preferably giggling with girlfriends or at a pool somewhere. I like this drink because it's so simple you can still make more even if you're kinda drunk already. If you wanna get crazy you can add that Sprite for sweetness or fizz or whatever. I'm sure I'll try it that way next time if I can remember.

Cheers!