beverages Archive

Grapefruit and Black Pepper Margaritas

Happy Cuatro de Mayo!

I had every intention of posting this recipe earlier in the week to give y’all plenty of time to plan your Cinco de Mayo menu, but I simply didn’t get to it. So, I’ll keep this short and sweet.

It’s a sunny, 80+ degree day in Portland, OR. It isn’t summer yet, technically, but it certainly feels that way. It’s a perfect Saturday.

The only thing that would make this day a little more perfect? A margarita, of course.

Enjoy the day.

Soak in the sunshine.

Make yourself a margarita.

Grapefruit and Black Pepper Margaritas

Serving Size: Makes 1 margarita

Ingredients

2 ounces quality tequila (I used Espelon Tequila Blanco)
3 ounces fresh squeezed grapefruit juice
Kosher or sea salt (for rim)
1/4 cup agave syrup
1 teaspoon whole black peppercorns, plus more for rim
Orange bitters*
*If you do not have orange (or other) bitters, you may substitute a small bit of orange liqueur, such a Triple Sec.

Instructions

First, prepare the black peppercorn syrup. In a small saucepan, mix the agave syrup with a couple teaspoons of water. Gently crush the black peppercorns with a mortar and pestle (or using the flat side of a knife) and stir into the agave mixture. Bring to a low boil and reduce heat. Allow mixture to simmer for 5 minutes, then remove from heat. Set aside until use.
Prepare the glass: to line the glass with salt (and black pepper!). moisten the rim of an empty glass. (I run a lime wedge along the rim). Pour kosher salt onto a small plate, and grind some fresh black pepper onto the plate as well. Dip the rim of the glass in the salt/pepper mixture. Set aside.
Pour the tequila, grapefruit juice, orange bitters, and 2 teaspoons black peppercorn agave syrup into a cocktail shaker (or mason jar). Shake/mix well. Taste, and adjust to your liking.
Place ice cubes into the prepared glass and pour the grapefruit mixture over the ice. Enjoy!

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Blood Orange & Bourbon Cocktail

I think it goes without saying that blood oranges are much prettier than their standard orange counterparts. When it comes to flavor, however, the general consensus is that blood oranges actually tastes a lot like standard oranges.

But, that is beside the point. I believe that blood oranges taste better than all other oranges, but this belief is based purely on aesthetics. The vibrant, blood red flesh of a blood orange has so much allure and appeal. (You could even say that it’s a sexy fruit?) And, for this reason alone, I am of the opinion that blood oranges taste better than other oranges.

It might be shallow, but it’s true.

So, thank goodness for blood orange season and all the culinary possibilities that come with it. I’ve been making up blood orange cocktails for the past few weeks, and I think this one has emerged as the favorite. It’s simple, refreshing, and lovely. It’s blood orange and bourbon…what’s not to like?

BLOOD ORANGE & BOURBON COCKTAIL
Adapted from Love & Lemons

Serves 1, scale accordingly

INGREDIENTS:
1/3 cup freshly squeezed blood orange juice (strain to remove pulp and seeds)
3-5 tablespoons bourbon (depends on how boozy you want it)
1 teaspoon simple syrup
3-4 drops of Angostura bitters
1 large ice cube
garnishes: blood orange slices & sprigs of mint

METHOD:

Place a few ice cubes into a cocktail shaker and pour blood orange juice, bourbon, and simple syrup over the ice. (Feel free to throw in a muddled mint sprig as well.) Shake for 30-60 seconds, or until drink is cold.

In a rock glass, place one over-sized ice cube. Using the shaker lid, strain and pour the cocktail into the glass. Shake a few drops of bitters into the cocktail, and gently stir. Garnish with mint and a slice of blood orange. Enjoy immediately (and responsibly!).

Kaffir Lime Infused Gin & Tonic

When it comes to cocktails, I’m a gin & tonic kind of gal. The G&T has been my standard drink order for years, and I never seem to tire of it. The gin & tonic is, in my opinion, the perfect cocktail. (And then there was that one time I made gin & tonic Jell-o shots…)

And for the longest time, I didn’t think there was any way to improve upon the gin and tonic. It is the perfect cocktail, after all. And then I added a handful of Kaffir lime leaves to a cheap bottle of gin, and I fell in love with a whole new kind of gin and tonic.

There’s no need to complicate matters by writing a real recipe for this cocktail. All you need is a few Kaffir lime leaves (which you can find in Asian supermarkets or New Seasons Markets in Portland) and a cheap(ish) bottle of gin. I placed a handful (5 or 6) lime leaves into a mason jar and poured the gin over the leaves, and let sit in a cool, dark place for a few days. Once the gin has a slight green hue and smells of Kaffir lime (4 or 5 days), then you know it’s ready.

When it comes time to consume the infused gin, simply mix it with your favorite tonic water and garnish the beverage with a lime wedge. (I’m personally a fan of Fentiman’s or Q Tonic Water.)

It’s really as simple as that.

Strawberry Rhubarb Smash

Apparently, I’m into roasting strawberries these days. First, I made a roasted strawberry vinaigrette. I liked it so much that I decided to concoct a roasted strawberry cocktail.

If you’d like to see my latest roast strawberry creation, head over to the Plate & Pitchfork blog to see my recipe for a Strawberry Rhubarb Smash.

This is officially my new favorite cocktail.

Cucumber Rhubarb Cooler

Today, a friend told me that I’m going through a “rhubarb phase”, which she likened to my infamous “beet phase”. (If you don’t remember my beet phase, let me refresh your memory: there were the boozy beet popsicles. There was that delicious champagne & beet cocktail. Lest we forget, there was a beet and feta salad, a beet grilled cheese, and beet and quinoa pancakes. I even made beet pesto.)

However, I hardly think that two rhubarb posts in a row constitutes a rhubarb phase.

Granted, my friend knew that I had a bunch of rhubarb puree. She also knew that I’ve been putting that puree on/in everything. I’ll give her that.

You see, when I made my vanilla bean rhubarb bars last week, I was a little overzealous with the rhubarb and I ended up with a lot of extra rhubarb puree. Thankfully, the puree is phenomenal and I was eager to find other ways to use it. Naturally, my first inclination was to make cocktails.

It’s been sunny and perfect in Portland all week, and thus this particular cocktail was born: it’s summery, crisp, refreshing, and lovely. I’m going to enjoy this fake summer as long as I can, and enjoy a couple of cucumber rhubarb cocktails along the way. (Because, let’s face it, Portland: it’s probably going to start raining next week.)

Photo: I enjoyed this cocktail in the backyard with a big bowl of spicy Korean noodle salad. I’ll post that recipe next week. :)

CUCUMBER RHUBARB COOLER
Makes 2 cocktails
(Note: I had the hardest time figuring out what to call this drink. I’m unabashedly against anything that adds “tini” to the end of a drink title – unless, of course, it’s an actual martini. Cucumber Rhubarb-tini? Thank you, no.)

Ingredients:
4 oz gin
2 tbs rhubarb puree
2 tabs fresh squeezed lime juice
Dash of Angostura bitters
3 – 4 pieces of cucumber, peeled (about 1/5 of a cucumber), plus thin slices of cucumber to garnish.

Method:
Place the cucumber pieces in the bottom of a martini shaker. Pour just a dash of gin over the cucumber. Muddle the cucumber and gin, until cucumber is mushy. Pour in the rest of the gin, the lime juice, and rhubarb puree. Top off the shaker with a handful of ice. Place the cap on the shaker and shake for a few seconds, or until the mixture is chilled. Strain into 2 martini (or other cocktail) glasses. Top off with a dash of bitters and a slice of cucumber.

Gin & Tonic Jellies: A Vintage Recipe Swap (and a Tribute to Mad Men)

Today is a big day.

It’s April Fool’s Day. Game of Thrones (Season 2) premiers tonight. A new recipe swap goes up today.

And there’s a new episode of Mad Men on tonight.

I adore Mad Men. I think the writing is fantastic, the sets and wardrobes are stunning, and I have a soft spot in my heart for Don Draper.

So I think that it’s entirely fitting that I’m giving my recipe swap post a Mad Men twist.

If you’re unfamiliar, I’m part of a Recipe Swap group that re-interprets vintage recipes. Christianna from Burwell General Store selects a recipe from an old cookbook and emails it to the group. We then create our own interpretations of the recipe, and we all post on the first Sunday of the month.

This month’s recipe was bizarre, to say the least. Christianna selected “Ham Snails“, in honor of the post going up on April Fool’s Day.

I read through the recipe a few times and to be honest, I was somewhat repulsed. I just couldn’t wrap my mind around the recipe. Nothing about it sounded appealing to me. (And, I’m still in the middle of Lent, so I knew that I couldn’t actually make something with ham.) But for whatever reason, I kept coming back to the “jelly roll” part of the recipe. I wasn’t about to make a ham snail, but I could work with a jelly roll.

And somewhere along the way, a jelly roll turned into a jello shot.

I’m not quite sure how it happened, but I’m happy that it did. I was researching classic cocktails to make for this evening, as we’re having a few friends over to watch Mad Men and Game of Thrones. And I cam across a recipe for Gin & Tonic Jellies. Done and done.

You see, the gin and tonic is my all time favorite cocktail. It is simple, crisp, refreshing, and perfect. I was giddy at the prospect of turning my favorite cocktail into jello. So I decided to kill two birds with one stone: these gin & tonic jellies are my ode to both ham snails and Mad Men.

Sure, it might be a stretch. But it’s a delicious (and boozy) stretch.

So happy recipe swap, everyone! (And happy April Fools! And Mad Men! And Game of Thrones!)

GIN & TONIC JELLY SHOTS
(Adapted from The Food Network)

10 ounces tonic water (I use Q Tonic Water)
6 ounces gin
4 teaspoons fresh squeezed lime juice
2 limes, hollowed and flesh/pulp removed (See note below)
2 teaspoons unflavored gelatin
Lime zest, for garnish

Note: If you would like to make jello shot lime wedges, first cut two limes in half lengthwise. Using a spoon or small paring knife, remove the lime flesh and pulp, leaving the “shell” in tact. Once all the flesh is scraped out, set aside until ready to use.

Pour half of the tonic water into a small bowl. Sprinkle the gelatin over the top of the tonic (do not stir) and allow to set until the gelatin blooms (5 minutes).

Meanwhile, heat the rest of the tonic water and the lime juice in a small saucepan over low heat. Bring the tonic to a low simmer and then whisk the hot tonic into the gelatin mixture. Whisk in the gin. Pour the mixture into shot glasses or hollowed lime halves and place in the refrigerator for 2+ hours (or until set). Garnish with lime zest. Keep chilled until ready to serve.

Ringing in the New Year: The French 77

Let me start off by saying this: 2011 was a great year.

*I turned 30.

*I got the best bunny in the entire world, Little Omar.

*I traveled to Chicago, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, and Seattle.

*My niece, Jubalee, was born in July (and she’s perfect and beautiful and the best little chunk of a baby).

*I finally got to dine at a Thomas Keller establishment (Bouchon in Las Vegas).

*I dyed my hair ‘ombre’.

*I planted my first real garden (thanks to the raised garden beds my husband built for me). I grew: squash (delicata, spaghetti, zucchini), chioggia beets, tomatoes, shallots, carrots, chives, arugula, kale, chard, peppers, and cucumbers.

*I was asked to join the board of the Montavilla Farmer’s Market. (And I accepted, of course).

*I finally got on the Harry Potter bandwagon. I read all the books and watched all of the movies this year, and I’m seriously kicking myself for not reading them sooner.

*In June, I celebrated 2 years of marriage to my best friend.

This is us, looking celebratory (!):

So, yeah, I’d say it’s been a fantastic year.

As for 2012? I’ve got a whole lot to look forward to…

*Hosting the PDX Food Swap (The next one will be in March, 2012!).

*Working with the Montavilla Farmer’s Market, specifically working to help reduce food insecurity through the Everybody Eats program.

*Eating at DOC in Portland – it’s been on my list for ages, and somehow I’ve not had a chance to eat there.

*Taking on new freelance writing gigs, in addition to expanding my wedding coordinating and events business. I have some exciting things in the works!

*Traveling to Europe with my love (The plans are still tenative, but if I write it here, that means we have to go!).

*Planting & growing an even more successful garden!

*Disneyland! (We’re going in January. I’m a total sucker for Disneyland.)

*Vegas in March with a couple of my favorite ladies.

*Trying new things, cooking new things, and learning new things.

–

I’m exciting to grow and change this year. I’m excited for whatever life throws at me. I’m thankful for all that I’ve been given, and I look forward to the new year with a sense of hope and excitement. God is good.

Lastly, I thought I’d share a festive cocktail recipe that is perfect for ringing in the new year. It also happens to be my favorite cocktail of all time: The French 77.

The French 77 is a variation on the classic cocktail, The French 75. The French 75 was created in 1915 at a bar in Paris and the drink was originally made with gin, champagne, simple syrup, and a lemon twist. The name hails from the fact that the cocktail was rumored to “have such a kick that it felt like being shelled with the powerful French 75mm field gun”.

The 77 doesn’t differ much from the 75, but the one slight change makes all the difference (in my humble opinion). The 77 uses Elderflower Liqueur (St. Germain) in place of the simple syrup. The St. Germain adds a sweetness that isn’t too sweet. It’s slightly floral, without being too overpowering. It’s perfect. The cocktail is smooth, balanced, and goes down ridiculously easily. And yes, it certainly has the kick of a French field rifle. This cocktail packs a punch (in the best way).

So, Happy New Year to you and yours! I plan on celebrating with a French 77. Maybe you’ll join me?

The French 77
Note: The drink is often served in a champagne flute, but I like to serve it in a smaller classic cocktail glass.

Ingredients:
2 oz Gin
1/2 oz St. Germain (Elderflower liqueur)
1 oz fresh squeezed lemon juice
2 ounces Champagne (or sparkling wine)
1 small strip lemon zest

Shake together gin, lemon juice, and St. Germain with ice. Strain, and pour into a cocktail glass. Pour champagne float over the top, garnish with lemon zest. Serve immediately.

Makes one cocktail.

Happy New Year, y’all!