Have A Figgy Old Fashioned Christmas!

'Tis the season for all things figgy. Figgy puddings, trifles, cookies and such just seem to fill the Christmas bill.

It's also the time for cocktails redolent with the spices and deep, rich flavors we associate with the season. In the spice vein, that might include cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon, cardamom and allspice, while in the classic holiday fruits category, raisins, figs, dates, oranges, cranberries and the like would qualify. Which brings me to this year's Dinner Plan-it holiday cocktail, the Figgy Old Fashioned.

Made with a Black Mission fig, warm spice simple syrup, bourbon (or rum perhaps for yet another, sweeter twist) and kissed with a touch of orange bitters, it's a cocktail that will have you remembering Christmases of old by a crackling fire with those you love. Cheers, friends...lots of Christmas cheer to all of you!

Figgy Old Fashioned

• 1/2 oz fig simple syrup* 
• 2 dashes Regan's orange bitters
• 2 oz good bourbon - I used Bulleit or a good spiced rum like Pittsburgh's own Maggie's Farm for a sweeter cocktail
• 2 Amarena Fabri or Luxardo cherries - reserve one for garnish
• 2 strips fresh orange peel - reserve one for garnish
• 1 or 2 whole cloves for garnish

In a cocktail mixing glass, muddle one cherry and the simple syrup together. Add spiced rum and stir well. Strain into Old Fashioned glass (what else would you use?!) over a large ice cube and stir well, add the bitters, twist the peel over the surface of the drink and lightly swipe the orange side of the peel around the rim of the glass. Garnish with another cherry and a clove studded orange peel.

Cheers!

* Fig Simple Syrup: 1 C sugar, 1 C water, 1/2 C dried Black Mission figs - cut in halves or quarters, 3 green cardamom pods - cracked lightly, 1 cinnamon stock - 4" long, 4 whole cloves. 

In a small pot, bring sugar and water to a boil and all the rest of the ingredients. Immediately reduce heat to bring the contents down to a simmer and continue simmering for 5 minutes. Let cool in pot, then strain the liquid into a small bottle. You're all ready to make cocktails now!

NOTE: Try using big, plump Medjool dates (be sure to remove the big pits in the center before adding to the pot) instead of figs if you wish...equally fabulous!

Paw Paw Ice Cream or Concord Grape Sorbet...One Difficult Decision

This week's Millie's Homemade ice cream CSA presented we fortunate subscribers with a choice: a pint of native Western PA paw paw ice cream or harvest fresh concord grape sorbet? Tough decision, right? I love choices where there are no wrong answers. I chose paw paw. 

Why? Because I've been dying to try paw paws for many years. From the time we moved into our house in the North Hills 28 years ago, all those fruit tree catalogs tempted me with descriptions of the exotic sounding fruit tree. The fruits look like a large mango with a flavor description of a banana crossed with citrus. Described as having a custardy texture, I SO wanted to try them. 

The trees themselves were unlike any local tree I'd ever seen...so cool and tropical looking! Somehow I never got around to ordering a pair. Yet another gardening regret in hindsight as paw paws have become the darling of the fall fresh and local scene. Blew that one!



I was tickled to see the last Cure'ated dinner (at Cure in Lawrenceville with Chef Brian Voltaggio of Volt in Frederick, MD (and of Top Chef fame)) used paw paws in every course. (I was first on the waiting list for this dinner if someone cancelled. They didn't. Damn.) And now, I was being offered paw paw ice cream delivered directly to my door? Yes, please.

Now that I had a pint of my dream paw paw ice cream in my hot little hands, would I be disappointed after years of imagining the exotic, yet local, fruit's flavor? Not on your life. It was everything I'd imagined and more! Just a hint of banana with a subtle melon nuance and a smidge of pineapple in the forefront delighted my tastebuds. THIS is ice cream to savor!

And you know what? When Lauren delivered my pint to the door, I was lucky enough to be gifted a bonus pint of Concord Grape sorbet, too. I hit the ice cream lottery! 

One taste of this intensely grape-y sorbet had me imagining a tall glass of gin and tonic with a big scoop - or TWO - of this gorgeous deep purple grape sorbet bobbing in a bubbly tall glass. So that's exactly what we enjoyed last evening. Ahhhhhhhh...a perfect purple-y adult float. Cheers to Millie! And her homemade chilly delights.

Millie's Concord Grape Gin & Tonic Float

Serves 1

• 1 1/2 oz.  Bluecoat gin
• 2 nice big scoops of Millie's Homemade Concord Grape Sorbet (or another brand if you can't get your hands on Millie's - I bet blackberry would be pretty amazing, too!)
• Fever Tree Naturally Light Indian Tonic Water (or regular, not light) - enough to fill the glass

In a nice tall glass, add the gin and a little tonic. Mix. Add hefty scoops of sorbet and pour enough tonic to fill the glass. Gently stir and serve with a straw. (I love my metal spoon straws...dual purpose!)

Girlfriends, Girls' Night IN And One Sweet, Hot B*tch (Surprise...That's a Cocktail!)

Girls' Night with great friends is exactly what the doctor orders sometimes. Last Saturday night the physician writing orders wasn't quite the regular General Practitioner sort of doctor you might normally visit, but more of the kind who heals your spirit and soul.

While perusing the bottles of liquor on the shelves for our evening's indulgences, we began with impromptu tastings of Zaya rum followed by Patron XO Cafe in tiny stemmed glasses. Tres chic (not)! Judy and Stacey (mom and daughter, too, like Kimber and me) and my dear friend Marti (all three of them in from Maryland), lounged in our estrogen-charged living room swapping stories, catching up on all the latest happy, sad and mundane goings on in our lives and sharing both sweet and bittersweet memories we'd been blessed to have with Mark.

Chicken, beef and pork soft tacos (yay Verde Mexican Kitchen & Cantina (their catering menu is muy bueno)!!!!) and gluten-free Chipotle Brownies (yay Marti!!!!) provided sustenance as Kimber kept us happy with delicious and creative cocktails. Bourbon on the rocks for Marti, a cucumber and jalapeno gin & tonic for me and rum and Cokes for Judy and Stacey. Hmmmm...there maybe have been some experimental picklebacks mixed in there somewhere, as well.

For herself, Kimber came out of the kitchen carrying a martini glass with 2 pickle slices perched prettily on its rim. That little riff on a pickle-tini turned out to be everyone's favorite! (You know we were all sampling each cocktail that magically seemed to appear...quality control and all that.)

Zesty Bread and Butter pickle juice (with just a little muddled cucumber and jalapeno for zip) created a perfect combo of sweet and salty, hot and sour to cap off a "Girls' Night IN" to remember. (No drinking and driving here!) Somehow the name transformed from "pickle-tini" to "One Sweet Hot B*tch." (I can't imagine what could have influenced such irreverence. *wink*) And the cocktail shall forever remain named just that.

Here's the recipe so you can create a night of your own to treasure with your very BEST girlfriends, no matter how old you are. Remember, great girlfriends can get you through just about anything while holding your hand, simultaneously making you laugh...and sometimes shedding tears of their own right along with yours. Cheers, my friends!

One Sweet, Hot B*tch

• 2 cucumber wheels - save 1 for garnish
• 2 fresh jalapeno wheels - save 1 for garnish
• 3 oz. Bluecoat Gin (made right here in Pennsylvania!)
• 2 oz. Zesty Bread & Butter pickle juice (Vlasic!)
• splash of tonic (I use Fever Tree)
• ice
• 1 pickle slice for garnish, too

In a cocktail tin, muddle the cucumber wheel and jalapeno wheel. Add gin and pickle juice, then fill the tin 3/4 of the way with ice. Shake vigorously until the tin frosts and strain into a martini glass. Garnish with the cucumber, pickle and jalapeno wheels. Enjoy!

 

Krak The Wall Punch For A Roller Derby Tailgate Kinda Evening

Fellow bloggers, Jenn and Michael of 101 Achievements fame, invited me to tag along at last Saturday night's roller derby bout. Pittsburgh's Steel City Roller Derby teams, the Steel Beemers and Steel Hurtin', skated against teams from Indianapolis in a dizzying, seesaw scoring battle...what a showstopper!

Funny enough, the first showstopper of the evening wasn't on the oval track at all, but started with a tailgate. Yep, the back parking lot of the Romp n Roll skate arena in Shaler was the site of our first ever, high faloutin', roller derby tailgate. The menu for such an auspicious event? What else would you serve, but derby themed cocktails. And a lovely charcuterie board. Of course.

Michael crafted a gorgeous pink number, a riff on a Pink Lady he named "Gritty In Pink," using tequila and cynar in place of gin. A lady it wasn't. Smooth with a swagger, sweet with a throat punch attitude and perfect for the occasion.

My own contribution was a little something I ended up naming Krak The Wall Punch. The odd name came from the use of Kraken rum, local Stone Wall rum (thank you Boyd & Blair) and (while not local, still a local favorite in Pittsburgh's Italian community and among craft bartenders here) Janamico Super Punch, an amaro. To that combo, I added a mint and jalapeno simple syrup and a hefty zip of lime. To quote the label of Super Punch, the cocktail was "refreshin."

Add to the cocktails Jenn's charcuterie board of fine meats, cheeses - I especially liked the one with volcano ash, gourmet mustards, a fine baguette, jellies and fruits and we had one classy ass, bang up, pre-derby feast. Oh...and I made a little dessert with layers of crushed chocolate cookies, cannoli cream and drunken Bing cherries in screw top jelly jars for a sweet ending before the derby began. What a fun and fabulous way to spend a summer Saturday night!

Krak The Wall Punch

4-6 servings 

• 3/4 C Kraken rum
• 1/2 C Stone Wall Rum
• 1/4 C Janamico Super Punch
• 6 oz jalapeno mint simple syrup - recipe below
• 1/4 C freshly squeezed lime juice
• crushed ice
• lime wheel and mint sprig garnish for each cocktail

In a small pitcher, stir well the rums, Super Punch, jalapeno mint simple and lime juice. Fill glasses with crushed ice, pour the punch over and garnish each with a wheel of lime and sprig of mint.

Jalapeno Mint Simple Syrup: 1/2 C demerara sugar (find it in the sugar section of the grocery store), 1/2 C water, 6 nice sprigs of mint and 1/2 half of a LARGE jalapeno, sliced across into rounds. (If you like less heat, use less...if you like more heat, use more!) 

In a small saucepan, bring the sugar and water to a boil, lower heat and simmer until the sugar is dissolved. Add the mint sprigs and jalapeno slices. Stir until the mint is wilted into the syrup and let the mixture cool completely. Strain the mixture into a jar and store in the refrigerator.

Roller derby action!

My Very Own Ideal Vodka Infusion For Just My Kind Bloody Mary...Spicy!

Bloody Mary brunches are anything but boring...especially when you start with one helluva vodka infusion. Last week a vacationing friend Facebook tagged me on his local beach bar picture of a vodka infusion. Does Greg know me or what?!

The picture was of a clear, spigoted and lidded glass crock that sat behind the bar. It wasn't immediately discernible what exactly was in the colorful mixture of red, dark green and light green vegetative objects bobbing in what I assumed (confirmed) was vodka. I mistook some of the lighter green spikes for Kosher dill pickle spears. Nope, Greg said...just various shades and types of hot peppers. Which got me to thinking. What would I put into my ideal Bloody Mary vodka infusion? I got to work.

Although that glass crock in the pic was beautiful, I already had a perfectly good large French canning jar that would work just fine for my experimental batch. Dark green jalapenos, bright red serranos and pale green long peppers went into the jar first. I like lots of pepper in a brunchtime Bloody so black peppercorns went in, followed by lots of lemon to brighten up the spiciness, garlic for zip, and yes, zesty Kosher dill pickle spears all made the cut. What an infusion! 

Would this mad mixture work in my leisurely Sunday brunch Bloody Mary? Would it work in a vodka martini? YES!

Here's how to start your own homemade Bloody Mary vodka infusion experiment. Be warned, this one is HOT! Adjust the number and types of peppers to your own personal heat tolerance. I did!

Hot Pepper Horseradish Garlic Black Peppercorn Lemon Dill Vodka 

For Bloody Marys

• 750 ml bottle of vodka - use your fave....with this much ooph being added, you won't be tasting the vodka anyway!
• 6 strips of fresh horseradish root, peeled - use your wide harp-style veggie peeler and cut strips about 3" wide and 4" long
• 4 zesty dill pickle spears - your favorite brand
• 2 dozen black peppercorns 
• 1 long pepper, cut in half lengthwise from the bottom almost to the top - leave the halves connected below the stem
• 2 red serranos, cut the same as above
• 1 large green jalapeno, cut the same as above
• 4 large garlic cloves, peeled and smashed with the flat side of a knife
• 3 strips of lemon peel - NO white pith at all - each about 3" long and 1" wide

Into a jar with a lid large enough to hold everything, add all the solids to the jar and top off with the bottle of vodka. Try to submerge the everything as best you can.

Refrigerate the jar, agitating once a day, for a week. The color will become a beautifully rich yellow and pack quite a punch! Decant the infused vodka by pouring the contents through a large strainer over a bowl with a pouring spout. Press the veggies against the strainer to get out all that precious vodka!

Pour the liquid into a pretty bottle, cap and refrigerate.

The Bloody

• 3 oz. of the vodka infusion
• 8 oz. Original V8 (I use low sodium V8 and add my own salt)
• Kosher salt to taste 

In a 16 oz. glass, combine all the ingredients, add ice to top, stir gently and enjoy! 

NOTE:  I kept the Bloody Mary recipe simple - why muddy the pure flavors of the vodka infusion when I'd gone to such lengths to perfect it? You can add whatever floats your boat and makes your very own Bloody Mary the best you've ever had, JUST the way YOU like it. Worchestershire? Go for it. More lemon or even lime? Why not? Anchovies? Let those little fishies swim in a sea of vodka and tomato! Make it YOUR way! 

Look! Up In The Sky! It's A Bird? It's A Superhero Cocktail!

You know I don't need much of an excuse to whip up a cocktail and this morning was no exception. Kimber and Jenn (101 Achievements blogger with her husband Michael) both ran in the Superhero 5K this bright and early morn. The run was for the benefit of The Superhero Foundation which fights the crusade against child abuse. 

Superheroes of all varieties - The Hulk, Batman and The Flash, caped superhero dogs and babies, even Superman himself to name a very few - ran side by side to help victims of child abuse. Superheroes to the rescue!

Wonder Woman and Katniss Everdeen

From the beginning, Jenn joked about having a cocktail waiting for her and Kimber at the finish line. Me? Cocktail? You know I did! 

The Beach Bum Berry tiki drink, the Jungle Bird, has been making the rounds on Facebook the last day or two so that seemed like a good jumping off point for a little riff. 

Hum (a lovely liqueur of hibiscus, ginger, cardamom and kaffir lime in a rum base made right here in Pittsburgh for Hum Spirits) subbed in for the Campari used in the original recipe. I used Mount Gay Rum instead of aged rum, cinnamon syrup in place of simple syrup (because that's what I had in the fridge...frugal you know), and because we'd be imbibing before noon, I lightened it up with a spritz of seltzer just before serving. And besides, pineapple juice is a great breakfast accompaniment and there's plenty of it in the cocktail so its perfectly appropriate in the morning! 

Look. Up in the sky. It's A Bird!

The unfancy version of It's A Bird?...perfectly acceptable apres run in the parking lot.

It's A Bird!

Makes enough for 4 large or 8 small cocktails

• 3 oz. cinnamon simple syrup (see note below for recipe)
• 12 oz. Mount Gay rum
• 6 oz. Hum 
• 12 oz. pineapple juice
• 4 oz. fresh lime juice
• seltzer or club soda

Mix all but the club soda in a small pitcher. Add lots of ice to a glass, pour the cocktail over and top with seltzer. Cheers!

Cinnamon syrup: In a small pot, bring 1/2 C water and 1/2 C demerara sugar to a boil and stir until dissolved. Add 3 cinnamon sticks to the hot liquid and let cool. Remove all but 1 cinnamon stick and pour the cooled liquid and remaining cinnamon stick into a Mason jar, cap and refrigerate. Keeps 1-2 weeks.

 

Passion Fruit Blood Orange Ginger Fizz - A Valentine's Brunch Cocktail

Valentine's brunch anyone? Okay maybe the actual day is on a Friday this year, but who says you can't continue the lovebird celebration into Saturday, too? There's absolutely nothing wrong with a big romantic night on the town followed by the afterglow of an intimate brunch the next morning...WITH an appropriate cocktail!

What could be better in a cocktail created just for Cupid's favorite holiday but passion fruit? The name says it all. And what would play the supporting role better than the lush Valentine red juice of blood oranges? Makes for one gorgeous brunch cocktail for two, I'd say. 

Pump up the excitement with a little exotic green cardamom, a touch of lime, my favorite Hendricks gin and a little fresh sparkle of ginger beer and you have a pair of sexy cocktails to start your morning after with style.

Now that you have the brunch cocktail, get cracking on those dinner plans for the night before and don't forget the roses!

Passion Fruit Blood Orange Ginger Fizz

• 1 passion fruit, cut in half lengthwise - found mine at Whole Foods
• 1 blood orange, juiced - about 1/4 c. - yep, Whole Foods again! Have another one handy for the garnish
• 2 green cardamom pods, I get mine at Penzey's in the Strip or if you don't live near a Penzey's, you can order from them online
• 1/8 lime
• 1/2 t. superfine sugar
• 2 oz. Hendricks gin
• ginger beer - I used Fever Tree

Scoop the pulp from one passion fruit half into a tin, set the other half aside. Add sugar, green cardamom pods and lime wedge and muddle until the pods are crushed and the lime is mush. 

Add the blood orange juice, stir and strain into another tin and add ice 3/4's of the way up. Cap, shake and strain again into  2 glasses. Top with ginger beer, scoop the seeds and pulp from the other passion fruit half and divide between the glasses, garnish with a blood orange wheel. 

Happy Valentine's Day!

Summer State Of Mind In The Midst Of Winter - A Rum Drink

Okay, I'm in denial. But as cold and snowy as it is out there, I still think summer is a state of mind. 

Inspired by these adorable little mini-pineapples, a warm weather tiki-ish drink HAD to be concocted! Two kinds of rum, a little Don's Mix for tiki-ness, fresh lime, pineapple and Meyer lemon juices capped with a dash of Tiki bitters from Bittermens and I know it was summer...at least in my hand for a moment.

So what if its fluffy snow and not snow white sand? So what if it's just a wee bit chilly out there? Put a tiki drink in my hand and the snows melt, the sun shines, the seagulls squawk and the waves swoosh around my toes...in my mind it IS summer...until the REAL thing is here. And for now, that's good enough. Well, almost anyway.

Summer State Of Mind

• 1 1/2 oz. Zaya rum
• 1 1/2 oz. Mt. Gay rum
• 1 oz. Don's Mix - see recipe below
• 1/4 oz. fresh lime juice
• 1/4 oz. fresh Meyer lemon juice
• 1/2 oz. pineapple juice
• 6-8 drops Bittermens Elemakule Tiki Bitters (tropical flavors of cinnamon, allspice and other island spices) - optional
• crushed ice

Stir together both rums, Don's mix, juices and bitters together. Fill a glass, small tiki mug or hollowed out tiny pineapple with crushed ice. Pour the cocktail over the ice, garnish with colorful paper umbrellas, fancy straws, pineapple leaves...anything that makes you smile and forget the winter. Escape to the beach....aaaaaahhhhhhh.......

Don's Mix: 1/2 cup water, 1/2 cup sugar, 2 cinnamon sticks -  slightly crushed, 1 cup fresh squeezed grapefruit juice.

In a small saucepan, mix sugar and water, add cinnamon sticks and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool. Strain out cinnamon sticks. When the syrup is cool, add grapefruit juice. Store in a covered jar or bottle. Keeps 1-2 weeks stored in the fridge.

Red stag Reindeers - A Winter's Take On A Moscow Mule

It's winter! It's the holiday season, too. Wouldn't one of my favorite cocktails, the Moscow Mule, instead be more fittingly named a "Reindeer" at this time of year? Especially when made with Red Stag bourbon by Jim Beam? In my opinion, that would be a resounding YES!

Actually, you're going to find two variations on a Moscow Mule theme here...one cinnamon spiced, the other hard(core) cider. Warm winter spices kiss the Cinnamon Reindeer, while apple cider notes sweeten the Hardcore Cider Reindeer. 

Both cocktails were created with a subtle, Christmas-y hint of rosemary. I think that gentle piney-ness brings idyllic images of friends around blazing logs in the center of tall firs, sharing laughs and old stories while snowflakes swirl about. Okay, maybe hot cocoa would be warmer...but humor me. Merry Christmas!

Red Stag Cinnamon Reindeer 

•  2 oz. Red Stag by Jim Beam Spiced With Cinnamon bourbon
• juice of 1/2 a lime
• about 10 fresh rosemary leaves
• 6.8 oz. bottle Fever Tree ginger beer (or other GOOD brand)
• a fresh rosemary sprig and a tall cinnamon stick for garnish 

In a tin, muddle whiskey, lime juice and rosemary leaves gently. Add ice 3/4 of the way up the tin. Shake until the tin is frosted then double strain into a copper mug (or glass). Add fresh ice nearly to the top and fill with ginger beer. Stir gently and garnish with rosemary and a cinnamon stick.

Red Stag Hardcore Cider Reindeer 

•  2 oz. Red Stag by Jim Beam Hardcore Cider bourbon
• juice of 1/2 a lime
• about 10 fresh rosemary leaves
• 6.8 oz. bottle Fever Tree ginger beer (or other GOOD brand)
• a fresh rosemary sprig and an apple slice for garnish (be sure to rub some lime juice on the cut surface of the apple to keep it from browning!) 

In a tin, muddle whiskey, lime juice and rosemary leaves gently. Add ice 3/4 of the way up the tin. Shake until the tin is frosted then double strain into a copper mug (or glass). Add fresh ice nearly to the top and fill with ginger beer. Stir gently and garnish with rosemary and an apple slice.

One for the Weekend - Fennel, Lemon & Hendrick's

When one is in possession of lacy, fragrant fennel fronds - those that weren't needed for soup - one simply does NOT throw them away! No no...in the house of Dinner Plan-it, they become simple syrup for a delicate, anise-y gin cocktail to sip and savor with friends. Of course!

Why Hendrick's? Although juniper is definitely part of the ingredients equation, this gin is not overpowered by a juniper jolt. Hendrick's alluring botanical Bulgarian rose and light cucumber notes are so graceful they don't crush the nuance of fennel and fresh lemon components in the cocktail. Well, that and I just really like Hendrick's!

Fennel-y, gin-y, just a light lift of lemon...cheers to the weekend!

Fennel, Lemon & Hendrick's

• 2 ounces Hendrick's
• 1/2 ounce fennel simple syrup (see recipe below)
• a nice wedge of lemon
• a strip of fresh lemon zest for garnish
•  a small fennel frond for garnish, too

In a cocktail tin, add Hendrick's, fennel simple syrup and the juice of a nice wedge of lemon. Add ice 3/4 of the way up the tin, cap tightly and shake vigorously until the tin is frosted.

Strain into a coupe or favorite glass and garnish with the lemon strip and fennel frond. Cheers!

Fennel Simple Syrup

• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup water
• 3/4 - 1 cup fresh fennel fronds from a bulb of fennel

In a small pot, bring water and sugar to a boil and stir until the sugar is completely dissolved. Add the fennel fronds and stir down into the syrup. Remove from heat and let sit until the mixture is cool. 

Pour the cooled syrup through a strainer into a jar or bottle and refrigerate. Keeps 1-2 weeks in the fridge. Try it in iced tea or in an iced glass of soda or seltzer with a little lemon. Yum!

Brunch Time Tomato Shrub Spritzer

My nearly 48 year obsession with that tomato-based brunch cocktail known as a Bloody Mary has taken a new twist. Still tomato-based, still using vodka....but instead of a heavy tomato juice I used a bit of tomato shrub I made from an overabundance of tomatoes from a recent CSA pickup.

Picture this. A tall glass of ice, a little vodka (or maybe a wee bit more), a touch of beautiful tomato pink shrub, a hint of Tabasco and a bare splash of seltzer...voila! Who knew that traditional brunch cocktail could be made light and refreshing?! Okay Will Groves...YOU did. Thank you Will Groves, Butterjoint and the Pittsburgh Cocktail Week class I took at this very fine establishment!

What's a shrub, you ask? It's a simple method of preserving fresh fruits - and sometimes vegetables or herbs - in a sugar and vinegar solution. The shrub can then be used in both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages and vinaigrettes. You know...I bet it might make a mighty fine drizzle over roasted or grilled chicken, too. I'll have to give that one a shot! It's basically one of the methods employed, before the age of modern refrigerators and freezers, to save the freshness and flavor of summer.

Now why would a craft cocktail bar have an interest in preserving? Because Butterjoint is the bar inside of Pittsburgh's North Oakland restaurant, Legume. Owner of both Legume and Butterjoint, Chef Trevett Hooper is renowned for his expertise in preserving - particularly pickling. The fruits of his passion grace the menu at Legume throughout the year. Will Groves, Bar Manger at Butterjoint, serves up an array of very creative cocktails made of some intriguing shrubs and other pickling products he and Chef Trevett have made throughout the year.

Chef Hooper shares his knowledge on a regular basis via hands-on classes right in the restaurant kitchen. The post on Dinner Plan-it last year at the sauerkraut makingclass? That was at Legume with Chef Trevett at the helm! So you know it's only natural then that the bar side, and Will, shares knowledge and expertise, too. Education is part of the DNA at Legume and Butterjoint!

The shrub class? The bar was packed with eager learners, all in our places (with bright shiny faces), each student equipped with a bar glass of papery-husked ground cherries, a deli container of pineapple pieces submerged in sugar and another deli container of vinegar produced by none other than Chef Trevett and his staff. 

We husked ground cherries and plopped the freed fruit into a glass while Chef and Will spoke about preserving methods, the varieties of shrubs and pickles they make at Legume and Butterjoint and various uses for the resultant pickled products. Then we got down to business.

Ground cherries, sugar and pineapple were laboriously crushed together into a sweet, juicy pulp with aid of the biggest muddler I've ever seen. Almost the size of a baseball bat...well, a kid's bat anyway...the job was done quickly and efficiently. 

Next we.......put lids on the vinegar and the pulpy mass and took it all home! The next steps were undertaken several hours later instead of in class. And then again several hours after that. And then some aging was in store. You see time, patience and waiting is involved in a good shrub. According to Chef Trevett, the purpose of preserving is to "capture moments of time." So well said.

Baseball bat or muddler...YOU be the judge.

 

The bottled result of our labors were beautiful. And delicious! So good, in fact, the next day I put up a batch of tomato shrub and a separate batch of tomato basil shrub. My friends Jenn and Michael of the blog 101 Achievements (who were seated next to me at the bar for the class) were inspired to make tomato shrub and prune plum shrub. Yes, shrubs are that good and that easy to whip up! Another bonus of making shrubs is that it can be made with less than perfect fruit since you're just going to smash it all up anyway.

Confession time here...I didn't wait the entire recommended time to try my tomato shrub.  (You're not surprised, are you?) Without waiting for the aging and mellowing, it still made for a perfect brunch cocktail that tickled the palate with a tart, sweet, lightly vinegary, tomato-y and energizing zinginess. 

Don't get me wrong, I'm not about to go cold turkey on my old favorite Bloody Marys. How very nice, though, to have something new in my arsenal of Sunday brunch cocktails that's both old and familiar, yet new and deliciously different at the same time. You know, it just might be time to have a few friends over for brunch...and new cocktails!

Brunch Time Tomato Shrub Spritzer

• 2 ounces tomato or tomato basil shrub - more or less to your own liking
• 2 ounces vodka
• a few drops of Tabasco - more or less to taste (more for me, please!)
• a splash or 2 of seltzer or club soda
• ice

In a tall glass filled 3/4 of the way with ice, stir together everything but the seltzer or club soda. When it's well combined, add a splash or two of soda or seltzer, give a gentle stir and garnish. Serve with a straw. 

Tomato Shrub

• 8 ounces coarsely chopped very ripe tomatoes
• 8 ounces sugar
• 8 ounces organic vinegar - cider vinegar works nicely, but you can vary this according to your tastes...rice wine vinegar or champagne vinegar would work beautifully
• (optional) a couple of fresh basil leaves torn and mixed in with the tomatoes at the beginning

Put tomatoes in a plastic or glass wide container, add the sugar on top and just let it sit, undisturbed and unstirred for several hours until the juices are drawn from the tomatoes and the sugar becomes wet.

Muddle the tomatoes and sugar until well incorporated. Cover securely. Let sit for 4 hours. Stir or shake and add the vinegar. Stir well, cover and let stand for at least 12 hours and up to 2 days. Strain out the solids with a fine mesh sieve, pour the liquid into a clean jar or bottle and refrigerate at least 5 days to mellow. After that, it's ready to use in cocktails, sodas or whatever your heart desires.

Check out more shrub recipes online and enjoy! OR...look for a shrub class at Legume or Butterjoint and get there!


   

Plum Good Gin & Tonic!

Just as September straddles the edges of summer and fall, so  the Plum Good Gin & Tonic combines the refreshment of summer's favorite G&T  with the first flush of fall plums. 

What else would you do with a few plums that didn't go into that (recent) delicious Plum Smoked Duck? Around here, you know we simply used them in a cocktail.

To emphasize the plum-i-ness even more, we used some plum wine left in the bottle from the smoked duck, a little gin, a smidgen of Jack Rudy tonic syrup, lime, a splash of soda and there you have one mighty fine cocktail. Well, almost anyway. A few drops of Bittermen's Burlesque bitters took it right over the top. Cheers!

Plum Good Gin & Tonic

• 1 prune plum, pitted and cut in half
• 2 oz. gin (I used Bluecoat - made here in Pennsylvania!)
• 1/2 oz. Jack Rudy Tonic Syrup (check online to order!)
• 1 fresh lime, juiced (about 1 oz.)
• 1/2 oz. Japanese Plum Wine - also known as Gekkeikan
• 9 drops Bittermen's Burlesque bitters (optional)
• splash seltzer or soda water

In a tin, muddle the plum, lime juice and tonic syrup until well mashed to release all the color and flavor. Add gin and plum wine. 

Fill the tin 3/4's of the way up with ice and cap tightly. Shake well and double strain into a coupe or other glass. Garnish with a piece of plum or lime wheel and serve.

Tahitian Coconut Rum-tini

Time for a cocktail quickie! The last several posts have had stories to tell...and many words to tell them. Today? Well...it's rum. It's coconut. It's lime and Tahitian vanilla. What more needs to be said? Oh yeah. CHEERS!

Tahitian Coconut Rum-tini

• 4 ounces Mira Azul Coconut Juice - WITH gorgeous flakes of coconut suspended in the juice (got this at Wegmann's. Why oh WHY isn't there a Wegman's in Pittsburgh?!)
• 3 ounces Don Q Crystal rum (yum rhymes with rum for a reason...just sayin')
• 1 ounce fresh lime juice 
• 1/2 ounce simple syrup
• 1 drop Tahitian vanilla

In a cocktail shaker, add coconut juice, rum, lime juice, simple syrup and vanilla. Add ice 3/4 of the way up the shaker. Cap tightly, shake vigorously until the tin frosts, strain into a coupe or martini glass, garnish with a slice of lime and serve. Refreshing!

NOTE: If there are coconut flakes stuck at the bottom of the tin? Fish them out and add them to the cocktail. They are sweet and delicious and MUST be consumed!

An A-Maize-ing Margarita!

Imbibe Magazine has become one of my favorite publications. There isn't an issue that doesn't come jam-packed with new cocktails, spirits, mixers and such that are available in stores (not always in Pennsylvania, but I travel!) and all variety of cocktails, shrubs, tinctures, bitters and syrups to make right at home. Sometimes I whip up a batch of whatever sounds really interesting. Like Corn Milk Syrup.

The last issue (July/August 2013) contained a recipe for Corn Milk Syrup from Pouring Ribbons in Manhattan...it sounded like summer in a jar! This being prime fresh corn season (and having a penchant for sweet, fresh corn on the cob from the get-go), the idea intrigued me. That and the fact that Frederick Arnold, one of the creative bartending minds at TenderBar + Kitchen in Lawrenceville is currently mixing up an old Prohibition era cocktail called a Cornpopper. Corn just seems to be happening on the summer cocktail scene! 

Frederick Arnold and the Cornpopper with a festive 4th of July garnish!

That issue arrived in my mailbox before the first local ears of corn were even ready locally, so a few ears of Florida fresh from my local Giant Eagle had to do. Once the uncooked kernels were cut from the cobs, liquified in the blender, painstakingly squeeeeeeeezed through cheesecloth into a bowl, poured carefully into a plastic jug and sugar was added and stirred until completely dissolved, I ended up with a very corn-y and fresh simple syrup. Delicious. Needless to say there was some corn milk syrup and bourbon experimentation going on that night!

A few weeks went by, Soergel's, Kaelins' and Shenots now had their very own sweet, field fresh corn....definitely Corn Milk Syrup time again! The result? An even sweeter and corn-ier batch than the first. That being said, it was back to the Corn Milk Syrup lab for more mad scientist-like mixing, stirring and shaking.

Truthfully, I'd been mulling over the possibilities of the beautiful sun-yellow liquid since making it the first time. Corn and lime go together so well...Mexican flavors contain lots of corn and lime....how about tequila in a corn and lime cocktail? MARGARITAS! Thus the idea for a Maize (Spanish for corn!) Margarita on the rocks was born. 

It's a simple cocktail with a creamy yellow color and silky texture that makes a very nice surprise for your picnic and party guests this summer. But make these quick before our sweet corn season disappears for another year. Make hay...and Maize Margaritas...while the sun shines!

 Maize Margaritas

• 2 ounces tequila, gold
• 1 ounce Cointreau
• 1 ounce fresh lime juice
• 2 ounces corn milk syrup (see recipe below)

• lime, zested and juiced, set zest aside on small plate
• 2 tablespoons kosher salt, or more to taste

In a shaker, mix the tequila, Cointreau, fresh lime juice and corn milk. Add ice to 3/4 of the way up the tin. Cap, shake until the tin is frosted and strain into a Lime Salt rimmed glass. Garnish with a lime wheel or strip of lime peel and serve.
 

Corn Milk Syrup: 5 ears corn, sugar.  

Cut the kernels off the cobs and put into a blender. Process until the corn is completely liquified. Pour into a large bowl lined with a single layer of cheesecloth. Gather the corners and edges of the cheesecloth keeping all the corn inside and twist being sure the liquid falls into the bowl. Continue twisting and squeezing until ALL the liquid is expelled from the solids. Discard the solids (or use for soup!). Measure the liquid corn then measure an equal amount of granulated sugar. Mix the sugar into the liquid corn and stir until dissolved. There's your Corn Milk Syrup!

Lime Salt: On a small plate, stir together the salt and lime zest. Add more salt if you want the mixture saltier instead of lime-ier. I dipped the rim of my glass into corn milk before salting the rim. 

 

Mango Hibiscus Daiquiris To Celebrate National Daiquiri Day!

Happy National Daiquiri Day, friends! Funny how I just happen to have a batch of my new fave twist on a daiquiri all ready to go...thanks to the Jimmy Buffet concert last night. Yes, it surprises me, too, that there are leftovers. Who knew?!

One of the good things about making cocktails by the batch (one thing among MANY), is that nobody has to wait while one custom cocktail at a time is crafted. One big lime juicing session, some rum and (in this case) hibiscus simple syrup and it's party time! This would be wonderful served either in a pitcher or a punch bowl so the bartender can relax and enjoy the festivities.

Not gonna make you wait any longer to get started...here's the recipe for Mango Hibiscus Daiquiris for one AND by the batch. Cheers....oh, and fins up!

Mango Hibiscus Daiquiris - for 1

• 3 fluid ounces Parrot Bay Mango rum - ONLY use Parrot Bay...it isn't too sweet. Trust me on this one, the others DO NOT work at all (or you can do your own mango/rum infusion which is very good and fresh, but when you want it NOW, Parrot Bay is faster!)
• 1 1/2 fluid ounces fresh-squeezed lime juice - do NOT use that bottled crap
• 1/2 ounce hibiscus simple syrup, homemade (see recipe below)
• 1/4 ounce Canton Ginger Liqueur

Put everything into a cocktail shaker.  Cap and shake vigorously until the shaker frosts up.
 
Pour over ice into a double old fashioned glass, garnish with a lime wheel and serve! You could even do a cute little umbrella...have fun with it!

Mango Hibiscus Daiquiris - by the pitcher

• 3 cups Parrot Bay Mango rum - ONLY use Parrot Bay...it isn't too sweet. Trust me on this one, the others DO NOT work at all (or you can do your own mango/rum infusion which is very good and fresh, but when you want it NOW, Parrot Bay is faster!)
• 1 1/2 cups fresh-squeezed lime juice - do NOT use that bottled crap
• 1/2 cup hibiscus simple syrup, homemade (see recipe below)
• 1/4 cup Canton Ginger Liqueur

Put everything into a large pitcher, stir. 
 
Pour into a double old fashioned glass with lots of ice, garnish with a lime wheel and serve! You could even do a cute little umbrella...have fun with it!

Hibiscus Simple Syrup: Bring 1 cup sugar and 1 cup water to a boil in a small pot. Once it comes to a boil, add a BIG handful of dried hibiscus flowers (I get them at Reyna's in the Strip District in the back in a bulk bin) and remove from the heat. Let the solution cool completely and strain into a small glass or plastic bottle. Store in the fridge. Keeps for several weeks. Try using it in other beverages like lemonade or iced tea. YUM!