Fellow Food Bloggers and Cocktail Cohorts - The Brunch

Occasionally - not always - some of the best plans are hatched among friends around the bar. As I recall, the idea arose around a discussion of tiki drinks, which led to building the perfect pina colada, which led to the question, "Have you ever had a grilled pina colada?" Which naturally then led to the next question, "When are you going to have US over for brunch?!" Thus the plan AND the brunch was born.

Bloody Mary Bar - Just the beginning!                 Photo credit - Jenn Tkocs & Michael Scotto

 
Dessert was already set...grilled pina coladas, of course. And Bloody Marys because, in my humble opinion, there is no brunch without bloodies. Two kinds actually - a standard one for non-adventurers, and a not-for-the-faint-of-heart version kicked up with reconstituted dried guajillo peppers and chile de arbol peppers, fresh garlic and jalapenos, mesquite smoked salt and some other fun stuff thrown in for good measure. Okay...drinks and dessert are set, what else? (Imagine the thrumming of fingertips on tabletop while pondering the question....) 

Smoked Pork Belly on the left, Grilled Paiche on the right - both with ALL the fixings!                Photo credit - Jenn Tkocs & Michael Scotto

Photo credit - Jenn Tkocs & Michael Scotto

Breakfast tacos! (NO! I just realized I forgot to make dippy eggs! Drat.) Sans the dippy eggs, we managed to make do with roasted mojo pork, grilled paiche fish (the fishmongers behind the glass at Whole Foods assured me it was a mild, sweet and delicious pick - and it was on sale!) and smoked pork belly that I'd rubbed the night before. Mark got up early to get it on the smoker by 6:00 a.m.! 

With breakfast tacos, naturally there were black beans, jalapeno coleslaw, cilantro lime crema and pickled red onions as traditional accompaniments. A huge coconut rum fruit salad filled in the holes...oh, and a batch of key lime coconut bars, too.  
 

Sure food is important at a brunch, but with the cocktail geeks and bartenders in attendance, there must be fabulous cocktails! And there were. Each guest was requested to bring the requirements for his or her favorite or signature cocktail. Boy oh BOY, did they come through! 

Michael with Blackberry Mezcal Julep   Photo credit - Jenn Tkocs & Michael Scotto

Jenn and Michael (of the blog 101 Achievements fame) made a variation on a julep...made with mezcal (instead of bourbon) and blackberries along with the required julep ingredient, mint. Smoky, sweet and minty with a kick. Marvelous.

Tiki Max in the midst of the 1934 Zombie creative process!   
Photo credit - Jenn Tkocs & Michael Scotto

Max and Chip (of RhoMania) brought some amazing rums and homemade syrups they magically turned into classic tiki drinks. Max's authentic tiki mugs were the icing on the cake...or the lime in the coconut? Max made not just any old Zombie, but the original 1934 Zombie recipe using hand-cranked crushed ice, no less. Next up was the 151 Swizzle!

Dave and Gail discussing proper Mai Tai preparation.   Photo credit - Jenn Tkocs & Michael Scotto  

One beautifully garnished Mai Tai Photo credit - Jenn Tkocs & Michael Scotto

 


That wasn't the end of the tiki drinks, folks. Fellow former mixology classmates, Gail and Dave, created Mai Tais that were simply out of this world. The making of the tiki drink for them was just a warm up for their tropical themed wedding in LESS THAN A MONTH. Awwwwww. Mark and I already have our tropical attire ready to dance at their wedding.

Marie, Gail, Dave - Where was Brian?!
Photo credit - Jenn Tkocs & Michael Scotto

What did our Acacia bartender guests, Marie and Brian, make? Absolutely nothing. On their day off, we guaranteed them they wouldn't be making drinks for anyone, it was their turn to be served! Maybe the drinks made for them weren't as wonderful as what they normally make for us, but we tried our darndest. If nothing else, a good time was had by all in the sunshine and the breezes under the big umbrella with full bellies and drinks in each of our hands. 

Photo credit - Jenn Tkocs & Michael Scotto

Grilled Pina Colada

Makes 4

• 1 fresh pineapple, outside removed, cored and cut into 3/4" slices
• 1 cup coconut flakes, toasted
• 1 cup caramel topping, good quality (I prefer Richardson's)
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1/4 cup rum, Meyers dark rum, coconut rum, whatever kind you prefer - I used Kraken spiced rum this time!
• 4 scoops ice cream, Talenti's coconut gelato
• fresh whipped cream

Melt together caramel topping, butter and rum in a small saucepan until well combined.  Set aside.
 
Grill pineapple slices on both sides until caramelized and have nice grill marks. 
 
On a pretty plate, place a slice of pineapple, scoop gelato into center of ring, top with whipped cream, drizzle with caramel and sprinkle with toasted coconut.  AWESOME!

Spicy Szechuan Smoked Pork Belly

• 1 1/2 tablespoons black peppercorns
• 1 teaspoon Szechuan peppercorns
• 2 small green cardamom pods - find these at Penzey's in the Strip District
•  1/3 cup brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon Kosher salt
• 3 pound VERY lean pork belly (yes, I know this is an oxymoron)

Put the black and Szechuan peppercorns and the cardamom pods in a small coffee or spice grinder - or just crush them with a mortar & pestle. Remove to a small bowl, add the salt & sugar and mix well. Set aside.

Score both sides of the pork belly in a diamond pattern. Rub the peppercorn mixture evenly onto both sides of the meat. Use ALL of the rub. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. An hour before you're ready to smoke, take the meat out of the fridge to bring to room temp.

Prepare smoker as you normally would and soak smoker chips for at least an hour in water (wouldn't sake be nice instead of water?!) - I like hickory for this dish.

Once the smoker is ready to roll, unwrap the pork belly and place it on the smoker. We smoked this for about 4-5 hours - how long yours takes depends on you and your smoker.

Remove from heat when done, let rest 15 minutes and slice against the grain.

Serve on tacos or just by itself. Serve for breakfast or dinner. 
You will LOVE this one!

Gingerbread Figgy Pudding and Dark Rum Trifle

There are flavors that send me time traveling back to the Christmases of my childhood. Christmas dinners back then always started with orange sherbet in gingerale (fancy!) and ended with traditional desserts - usually more than one. 

Aunt Anna and Uncle Bert, PapPap, the cousins, my sister, mom and dad were all seated around the big old dining room table swapping jokes (occasionally even a slightly naughty one!) and telling stories until long into the night. Sometimes we'd play cards around the same old table...Flinch, 500 Rummy, Canasta...good old-fashioned games those were. 

It's the nose-tingling scent of warm spices in the air - ginger, clove, allspice, cinnamon - that I think triggers those wonderful memories.  We always had a mincemeat pie or a plum pudding with those very same Dickensian notes - rum or brandy, dried fruits and spices. I was on a quest to recreate the flavors of Christmases of old. But with a twist. What to do, what to do.

So I decided a trifle would lighten up somewhat heavy flavors with a fluffy vanilla cream.  Fresh pears came to mind to add a little crunch and brightness. Thus the dessert came together. 

It was beautiful! Even better, it was just what I had in mind.  Gingery, spicy goodness all together with creamy mousse and lovely dark rum...and just a glimmering of zesty orange. 

Maybe it wasn't the simple, easy days of the 1950's again, but that's okay.  Back then we didn't have our kids and grandkids to make brand new memories together and to share some of the old stories with.  You know, that's what special family dinners are all about...remembering the past and making memories for the future. 

Wishing you all nothing but the sweetest of your own warm remembrances...and to making some of the best stories ever!
 

Gingerbread Figgy Pudding and Dark Rum Trifle

• 2/3 of an 8"X8" pan of gingerbread, cubed - I used the recipe from "The Cake Doctor Bakes Gluten-Free" by Ann Byrn using a Hodgson Mills Yellow cake mix.  (If you are using a normal, NON-gluten-free mix, make an 8"X8" pan and make cupcakes out of the rest of the batter.) Snack on the 1/3 that's left!

• 2 oranges, Cut the peel off with a sharp knife and make strips 3" X 1/8".  Cut the oranges in half and juice.  Reserve.
• 1 cup dried Black Mission figs, diced
• 1/2 cup dark rum, or more if needed, I used Kraken
• 2 Bosc pears, cored and diced

• 1 package French vanilla mousse mix, prepared. I used Dr. Oetker brand - gluten-free
• 8 ounces Cool Whip Lite®, thawed

• candied orange peel, see recipe below - use peel from above

Bake an 8" X 8" pan of gingerbread a couple of days ahead of when you want to serve the trifle. 
 
You're going to make the trifle the day ahead of when you want to serve this - quite nice for a more relaxed party, yes?  The morning you're making the trifle, put the diced figs into a 2 cup measuring cup.  Add the reserved orange juice and the rum.  If the rum doesn't cover the figs completely, add more until it does.  Set aside for several hours before making the trifle.
 
Later in the day, make the French vanilla mousse according to package directions.  Let sit for a few minutes and then gently fold the Cool Whip into the mousse.  Set aside.
 
Assembly:  To the bottom of a nice trifle dish or other tall, pretty bowl, make a layer of 1/2 the gingerbread cubes.  Strain the liquid from the figs - RESERVE!  Scatter half the figs over the gingerbread, drizzle half the reserved OJ and rum over the that, layer half the mousse mixture over top and repeat layers ending with mousse.  Refrigerate overnight loosely covered with foil.
 
Before serving, decorate the top with candied orange peel and serve in beautiful goblets.

Candied Orange Peel:

• the orange strips from above

Bring a pot of water to a boil, add the orange strips, bring to boil again.  Boil gently 15 minutes.  Pour through a strainer and rinse while gently stirring the strips to rinse thoroughly. Set aside.

In the same pot, bring 

• 3 cups sugar
• 3 cups water

to a boil.  Lower the heat and simmer gently for 45 minutes to an hour.  Let cool.

Pour the orange strips through a strainer and collect the liquid in a large container.  THIS IS A BEAUTIFUL ORANGE SIMPLE SYRUP!  It would be a shame to waste it.  Use it for cocktails or to drizzle over yellow cakes or...well, just use your imagination.  Refrigerate it.

Okay, back to the candied orange peel....now spread 

• 1 cup of sugar 

on a baking sheet.  Toss the orange peel with it until the strips are totally coated with sugar.  Let sit like that overnight. 

Use what you want for garnishing the trifle and save the rest for something else.  Wouldn't the orange simple syrup and candied orange peel make a lovely Christmas morning Bellini?  Maybe with a little cranberry juice for color?