Category: food

Cocktail of the Week: Gimlet

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I spent the weekend in the hills above Santa Cruz, away from people, civilization, the internet and my mini bar. D had suggested last week that I make Snakebites for the weekly cocktail and I was fine with that. Today, D thought that perhaps Snakebites don’t count as a cocktail. I figured it two or more alcoholic beverages mixed together qualifies as a cocktail but she wasn’t so sure. Showing an excess of caution and not wanting to offend Ninkasi, Bacchus, Sucellus, Yi-ti or any other God of booze I scrambled together an actual cocktail!

The ingredients

Gimlet

  • Gin 1 1/2 oz.
  • Lime juice 1 oz.
  • Powdered sugar 1 tsp.

Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail or martini glass.

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Gimlets aren’t bad but if I had gin and limes lying around I’d probably have some tonic too… And I’d just make myself a Gin and Tonic before making one of these. If I DIDN’T though and I didn’t feel like going the three blocks to the store to get some I’d make these. I like gin and I like lime juice. There really isn’t anything not to like in a Gimlet. Simple, clean, refreshing. D said that they were a lot like a Lemon Drop but lime-y and I’d have to agree with that. This is also one of the few cocktails that hasn’t immediately knocked D flat-out… That’s a pretty big plus in my book. It’s nice to have a drink with your wife and not have her fall asleep immediately afterwards.

Why not have another picture?

One of the things I’ve noticed is how simple most of these recipes are. A shot glass of this and a shot glass of that stirred or shaken together and thrown in a cup. If you have the time or inclination throw a lime wedge in there as garnish and enjoy. This makes a lot of sense, cocktails have to be quick, a bartender has to make it and get it to the patron in under a minute if they can. Much like cooking before I tried it myself these things look a lot more intimidating and complex from the outside looking in. But, once you’re inside you sorta wonder what the deal was all along? Of course, now at fancy bars and restaurants you have bartenders concocting up drinks with four to eight(?) liquors in them over the course of five or more minutes… It sounds impressive to the uninformed but it really seems to defeat the purpose, it takes too long and the the taste is a mish-mash of too many things vying for your taste buds attention. You end up with a really pricey drink that isn’t all that great.

 

Cocktail of the Week: Pumpkin Patch

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Fall is here! That means either hot cocktails or appropriately Fall-ish cocktails. I was somewhat stumped as to what that entailed outside of hot toddies or Irish coffee until D reminded me that we’ve got this fabulous book, Fresh from the Market, that is full of seasonal recipes, including cocktails! I turned to the Fall section and looked over the cocktail recipes. This one stood out!

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Pumpkin Patch

  • 2 oz. Irish cream liquor
  • 1 1/2 oz. Vanilla Vodka
  • 1 oz. pumpkin syrup (we used a recipe from Annie’s Eats)
  • Freshly grated nutmeg

Combine Irish cream liquor, vodka, and pumpkin syrup in a cocktail shaker. Shake with ice and strain into martini glass. garnish with grated nutmeg.

2013-09-29 18.54.09-2As you can see from the picture of the we didn’t have fresh nutmeg so I ended up just sprinkling some of the spice over the drinks. Also, in the future D and I would like to take a stab at infusing vodka ourselves (vanilla, raspberry, pumpkin, etc.) but we just didn’t have time to do that this week before I made the cocktails… Maybe next time. Anyway, these cocktails taste amazing! Sweet, sugary, pumpkiny bliss! I’m not joking when I say this cocktail could take the place of dessert! I only made one for the each of us that we drank pre-dinner but both of us were immediately talking about making two more after dinner! By far the best cocktail I’ve made during this project.

If you’re looking for some seasonal fun with your cocktails you can’t go wrong with a Pumpkin Patch! If the rest of the seasonal cocktails I find are as good as this one I won’t end up pining for summer!

Cocktail of the Week: Mai Tai

2013-09-22 19.43.05We had a big rainstorm this weekend, the nights are cooler, and the days aren’t boiling. Summer is definitely on its way out! And to send it off in style I decided to make one last fruity, summery drink: the Mai Tai. Okay, I was actually scrambling to find some decent Martini glasses to make the classic martini in when D recommended we try a Mai Tai instead. It helped that we had most of what we needed for them anyway, I’m glad she recommended them!

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The ingredients

Mai Tai

  • 1 oz. dark rum
  • 1 oz. amaretto
  • 3 oz. orange juice
  • 3 oz. pineapple juice
  • grenadine

Fill glass with ice cubes, add rum and amaretto, add juices until glass is full, and finally add a splash of grenadine.

I'm having a hard time thinking of a better way to say goodbye to summer!
I’m having a hard time thinking of a better way to say goodbye to summer!

Turns out Mai Tais are a great way to say goodbye to Summer and welcome Fall! These were delicious. Fruity, sugary, and addictive! The amaretto and rum are the perfect complement to the orange and pineapple juices. Moving into Fall I’ll be making more warm drinks but on those cloudy days when I’m dreaming of blue skies and the sun I think a Mai Tai just might help me remember…

 

Summer Garden 2013: Wrapping Up

One day these heirlooms will turn red. One day
One day these heirlooms will turn red. One day

It’s been over a month since the last update. The garden was moving along quite well despite the weird weather we’ve been having. It’s been a weird mix of a little too hot or a little too cold for the squash, basil and beans. There’s also been a problem with white flies… But those were nothing compared to the problem we had when we forgot to put up the gate that keeps the dogs away from the garden during the day when we’re both at work.

Puppies! Yay!
Puppies! Yay!

The dogs, and I suspect the puppy, Millie, more so than Jake, got into the garden and tore out the melon, the okra, and the peppers. One of the okra plants and all the peppers were salvageable  – though all in some state of disrepair. This came at the worse time as these plants were just starting to produce and the stress of being dug up could only have retarded that… But, not much you can do! We replanted what we could and carried on. The jalapenos and tomatoes have been the best producers this year and D has even had enough peppers left over to make jalapeno jelly, spicy hummus, etc.

They taste goof in hummus, jellies, and sauces.
They taste good in hummus, jellies, and sauces.

Right now we’re in that odd phase between summer and fall. The days are still hot but the nights are cooling down. Half the leaves on the trees are browning. One day it’s cloudy and cool and you want to have tea in the morning and the next you need to have something cold to stay cool in the heat. For the garden this translates into our okra and squash being pretty much done but the tomatoes, basil, peppers, and eggplant still being happy enough to keep producing fruit. So, we’ve taken out what hasn’t been working and put in some cabbage and cauliflower. I’m a little worried that it’s still to hot for them and we’ll lose them but all the guides say the best time to plant is “August/September.” Continue reading “Summer Garden 2013: Wrapping Up”

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