Category Archives: Cocktails
WE love when we can combine a business trip with a little pleasure, and recently we got a chance to rush off to Vancouver for a little business mixed with Joy time. Unfortunately, when we travel the window for socializing is pretty small, and we only got to spend a little time with Joy and her beau Jens. We were really excited to spend some time with Joy and to finally meet the famous Jens. We were not disappointed. Cute, funny, social, very admirable and can get his drink on! All wonderful traits don’t you think.
After dinner, Jens introduced us to a proper Irish pub where he further introduced us to a drink made with beer and Ribena. Ribena? This was new to us, and we were really intrigued. Jens continued to educate us on this new-to-us and mysterious beverage. Come to find out Ribena is a non-carbonated, fruit based juice, that originates in the UK. Most commonly it is made with blackcurrants and is sold as a concentrate; very syrupy. A bonus is that is it high in vitamin C! Jens proceeded to share with us how it was delicious in beer, as well as other cocktails. After that conversation, I could not want to get my hands on some of this magically Ribena. The next day, I ventured out to find it. I searched high and low, and finally I found it in at all places … the drug store. I could not wait to get home and pour the deep black syrup over some chilly ice cubes.
We had a week of rather balmy weather in the city, which was the perfect excuse to get our cocktail on. In honor of Joy and Jens, we made these cocktails using the Ribena and their poison of choice, vodka. You may think this sounds like a vodka tonic but with the added black currant and heavy splash of lime, it takes a tonic to another place. Not overly sweet but rather refreshing. It was hard to stop after just one.
Recipe: Joy and Jens
- 2 oz. vodka
- 1 oz. ribena
- tonic
- ice
- limes
Put some ice cubes into a cocktail glass. Layer the ingredients to make the presentation WOW. Gently pour the Ribena over the ice, then the vodka and finally slowly pour the tonic on top. Use a gentle hand and pour slowly to create the layers. Squeeze half of a lime over the top. Garnish with a lime slice. Serve. Drink.
Apricots have finally shown their smiley red cheeks at our neighborhood market, and we have been enjoying often. I am really hoping they still around for a bit as I have some great ideas that I want to try out. Just one of them happened to be this cocktail, The Helen.
We named this cocktail after my grandmother Helen, as it was her small but humble apricot tree that made me fall in love over and over every summer. My sister and I use to run around the back yard, making up stories and playing for hours. I remember spring time days, when the blossoms would gently scent the back yard. A quick run under the tree would stop my tiny feet in their tracks, so I could inhale the perfumed air. I loved that smell, and to this day, it grabs me whenever it may be floating by. I anxiously use to wait until that first “perfectly” orange apricot arrived, just waiting for me to pluck it off the branch and stuff it into my tiny mouth, nibbling away, rolling the pit between my teeth; savoring every last fiber. They were so perfect, still warm from the sun kissing it’s flesh, still slightly firm from barely just turning orange and sweet like nectar.
My grandmother never made cocktails out of the apricots nor did she feed us Rye; there there was an occasional shot of brandy or apricot schnapps to cure what ailed us. Instead she made delicious jam out of the bounty of apricots, which to this day, I still miss. It was so fresh that I would sneak it by the spoonful. I am sure if she was still here with us, we could talk her into joining us for a Helen, and that she would enjoy every sweet sip just as I enjoyed that first bite every summer.
Do you have a favorite cocktail using Apricots?
Recipe: Helen
* serves two
- 2 apricots, cut in half and pitted
- 4 ounces rye
- 2 tablespoons simple syrup
- 1/4 lemon juiced
- 1 tablespoon thyme
- crushed ice
- apricot for garnish
- triple sec
In a blender add the apricots and 2 ounces of the rye. Blend until smooth. Set a sieve over a bowl and strain the apricot mixture; just to remove some of the pulp from the puree. Put the thyme into a shaker and gently muddle just to slightly bruise the herb; then add a handful of ice, the apricot puree, 2 ounces of rye, lemon juice and the simple syrup. Give a couple generous shakes, the outside of the shaker will begin to ice a bit. Stain into 2 cocktail glasses add a floater of triple sec and garnish with a slice of apricot. Serve. Drink.
Okay, you are probably thinking, rum and coke, that is not very imaginative. How about when it is made with homemade cherry rum? So, I have you back with me; right!
When I was in my teens, my friends and I would walk to the Krazy Kone after school, where we would drink sugary vanilla cokes and eat salty fries that were dipped in special sauce, while we waited for that “cute guy” we were hoping to grab a glimpse of. These cute guys were in high school, and we were only in 8th grade; they were definitely our first crushes. I am not sure what I enjoyed more, the creamy vanilla cokes or when that “cute guy” smiled my way. Either way, that was the first time I was really introduced to flavored cokes. We are not soda drinkers at home, but, when I do occasionally grab for a sugary drink it is usually a black cherry soda. Slightly nostalgic of my
Remember the eight pounds of cherries, well, I had to do something with them besides stuffing them into our mouths and baking desserts. I have been playing with vodka and different citrus for a couple of years, so I figured why not do something with cherries. The thought of cherry vodka just was not that exciting, so I dug through the booze stash and grabbed a bottle of rum. The process is simple and only takes a week. Wash the cherries, pit them (now I am thinking I will try it with pits next time), toss them into a large jar and pour in the rum. Put the jar into a cool and dark cupboard and forget about it; except to flip it over every couple days. In a week, you have cherry rum.
Now the cola part. I tried three brands of cola, two natural unnamed brands and the standard Coke. The unnamed brands while they were good on their own, just did not work with rum and lime. They were too flat, not enough fizz. Eventhough, I wanted to keep the sugar low on this recipe, it wasn’t working for me, so I grabbed a good ole, sugary Coke. This worked, just enough sugar to cut through the rum and plenty of fizz to keep the drink refreshing, and interesting. Where does the vanilla come it? Just a dab of vanilla paste is swirled in the glass of rum, right before splashing with coke.
Recipe: Cherry Rum
- fresh cherries, enough to fill a quart sized mason jar
- bottle of your favorite rum
Wash and dry the cherries. Pit the cherries. Fill the mason jar with the pitted cherries, pour the rum into the jar to cover the cherries; give a couple good shakes and then put the jar into a dark but cool cupboard. Every other day, give the jar a good shake and then put it back on the shelve. After a week strain the cherries from the rum. Enjoy with your favorite rum drink or make our cherry vanilla rum coke.
Recipe: Cherry Vanilla Rum and Coke
*makes one drink
- 2 ounces of cherry rum
- 1/2 can coke
- lime
- vanilla bean paste
- ice cubes
In a small cocktail glass put a couple ice cubes; add the rum and stir just a drop of vanilla bean paste into the rum. I use the tip of a knife to get the amount of paste I want to use. Pour the coke over the rum and ice, squeeze half a lime into the glass and give a quick stir. I use the squeezed lime and rub it around the rim of the glass. Garish with a piece of lime.
If you like this recipe, check these out:
YEAH! We are trying to get on a regular schedule to start posting cocktails for happy hour every Friday. We missed a couple weeks due to a fun little road trip we took. Don’t fear; we cocktail-ed while away!
Summer in San Francisco has settled in, which means foggy days or as we like to call it “June Gloom”. We both associate summer with sunshine, and miss it terribly once it shows it’s ugly face here in the city. After all, isn’t summer meant to be half dressed, drenched in glistening sweat beads, sitting on the back porch or a stoup, sipping a cool cocktail. Instead, we are usually bundled up in pea coats and cable knit sweaters, drinking hot-toddys!
Our first summer together in SF – 4th of July (we were so young)
We have had enough of it, and will be bringing back a little sunshine to the back porch this week with “sunshine”. Sunshine is made with limoncello, St. Germain and a little tonic. We are fans of St. Germain, it is slightly floral, and little sugary sweet; great in a cocktail such as this or even on it’s own, when you want a little pick-me-up. An amazing compliment to a tart limoncello. The tonic, just adds some fun bubbles! Sunshine is really sweet, as in gushy cute sweet; like slowly sipping summertime!
Happy Friday!
Recipe: Sunshine
*makes one cocktail – use slim glasses, such as the ones made by Roost
- 2 ounces limoncello
- tonic, we like fever tree (Denise) or schweppes (Lenny)
- st. germain
- ice
- lemon peels
Fill a glass with a couple ice cubes; our slim glasses fit 4 small ice cubes. Pour in 2 ounces of limoncello, fill the glass with tonic, leaving about 1/2″ from the top; pour a st. germain floater on top. Garnish with a lemon swirl. Serve. Drink.
If you like this recipe made you thirsty, check these out:
Limoncello Champagne Cocktail
Limoncello Gin Cocktail with Grilled Thyme
Campari Limoncello Spritzer
We have been talking about doing a cocktail series for sometime now. It is really sad, that we are just getting around to it, too, as we have had some pretty darn good cocktails. We love cocktails! There is something so nostalgic about them. We use to be purely wine drinkers with an occasional vodka tonic tossed in for excitement. Then we picked up a few cocktail books, and unleashed the beast over at Chez Chez. Since, it has been a sort of Dr. Hyde lab going on …..
We were going to wait until July 1st kick off all the thirsty fun; but, after sampling a couple of these lovelies over the weekend, we decided we needed to give you enough time to pick up the ingredients, particularly one very secret ingredient. We thought this particular cocktail would be perfect for any Fourth of July celebration, after all, two of the ingredients are from our beloved USA. The bourbon is from Kentucky and cherries are from Tennessee; it doesn’t get much more American than that!
What we are really excited about is Ole Smoky Moonshine Cherries. That is right, folks, Moonshine Cherries. As we said before, it doesn’t get much more American than that. It is true, there is moonshine being made in them their mountains of Tennessee, and what they are doing with fruit should be illegal. Moonshine started out being made by our Scottish and Irish ancestors who migrated to the Smokey Mountains. It did not take these wise fellows long, to realize they would make more money selling a gallon of moonshine, than a bushel of corn. Soon after the industry starting taking off, the good ole government came in and cracked down. Hence, all the bootlegging that started taking place. Folks in these small mountain communities did not take nicely to this, and they kept their moonshine businesses going strong. It was easy to hide a business in the mountains, after all, the law was not about to go deep into the unknown. Lucky for us, it is now legal to have a little moonshine and we recently had the opportunity to try out Moonshine Cherries.
Pretty Please With A Cherry On Top! Don’t let these small little cherries fool you. Think of these cherries as a party in a Mason jar. From the adorable packaging to the first little nibble, you will be wowed. Maraschino cherries are soaked in moonshine before being packed into a jar with a little more …. moonshine. As soon as you break the seal, you get that first whiff of moonshine, then a slight sweet, almost vanilla like aroma. As your fingers reach into the jar, you will be a little nervous. Moonshine? Cherries? Then you will slide that first cherry between your teeth and will bite down; sweet cherry juice with a bit of alcohol will burst into your mouth, slide down your throat and warm your belly. WOWZA, was the first word that slipped over both of our lips.
These cherries are delicious on their own, but be forewarned, they do have a kick after 5 or 6 of them. You can add them to your favorite cocktail or add a couple as the topping to your “adult” bowl of ice cream. I would definitely NOT serve these to the kids! There is something really special about these cherries, besides being made with moonshine. When you have some friends over and pull out the jar or bring a jar to a party, you have instantly become that “person” …. making everyone smile all night long!
We have been enjoying these cherries in cocktails as well as on an ice cream sundae. A couple cherries are a great addition to an adult Shirley Temple or Rum and Coke, as well as a traditional Manhattan or even with a little bourbon on ice. One of our favorite drinks to add the cherries too, is a spin on a Horse’s Neck. We use traditional Bourbon with a splash of Ginger Beer, a squeeze of lime juice, a drizzle of moonshine, and the cocktail nibble, Moonshine Cherries. It is sophisticated and refreshing.
Have you ever tried Moonshine? Do you have a favorite cocktail using it as an ingredient?
Recipe: Ole Smokey
- 4 ounces of bourbon
- 8 ounces of ginger beer
- crushed ice
- 1 lime, cut in half
- ice cubes
- moonshine cherries
In a cocktail shaker add the ice, bourbon, and the juice from 1/2 of the lime. Shake. In 2 cocktail glasses add a couple chunks of ice, pour 1/2 of the shaken bourbon in each glass. Fill with the ginger beer. Drizzle a small amount of the moonshine over the top. Garnish each glass with 4 moonshine cherries. Cut 2 thin strips of lime, rub each one on the rim of the glass, then twist the lime, and add to the glass. Serve. Drink.
If you like this recipe, check these out:
Moonshine Cocktail
Sweet Tea Bourbon
Peach Basil Sangria
The Picon, also known as the Basque Cocktail of the West is a familiar term around many Basque homes. It is vague as to where it originally was made but some say it was in Bakersfield at the famed Noriega. The drink is made of Amer Picon, which is a French aperitif that is made with herbs and burnt orange peel. Amer Picon was invented by a gentleman by the name of Gaëtan Picon in 1837, and the drink evolved from begin a French aperitif by the hands of the Italians, where it fell into the hands of the Basque. The Basque Americanized the drink into the Picon Cocktail also known as Picon Punch. It is near impossible to find the original Amer Picon in the states and now the recipe has transitioned to use Torani Amer.
I remember when we were kids and we got to tag along on an “adult” dinner down to the Winnemucca Hotel, the adults would always drink Picons. I loved the pretty color of the drink and I loved how happy it made everyone; I could not wait to try one myself. Years later, I found myself, back at the same watering hole when my sister was getting married. This time we were old enough to play along in their drinking games. Eager to try the forbidden drink, I bellied up to the bar and ordered a round. As the cold ruby red drink rolled between my lips, onto my taste-buds, I was left gasping and speechless; this potent drink was nothing as I had fantasized about for so many years. Instead, I was shocked and scared; too many of these and the wedding party would be dancing on the bar-top in no time.
Times have changed and taste-buds have grown. Over the holidays my brother in-law reintroduced me to the famed picon, but his version. Still the vibrant ruby red with a potent aroma but lighter in taste and gentler on my taste-buds with the addition of club soda and minus a brandy floater. An acquired taste, I am sure; but, still a nice addition to your cocktail party when you want a little something different to wow your guests with.
What is your favorite unique cocktail, that no-one has probably ever made?
Recipe: Basque Picon Cocktail
*originally these were served in mugs, we like to use pretty cocktail glasses
*inspired by Shawn Espinosa
2 oz Torani Amer Liqueur
crushed ice
1 teaspoon grenadine
splash club soda
lemon twist
Fill a glass with some crushed ice. Pour the Torani Amer Liqueur over the ice. Top with the grenadine and fill the glass with club soda to just under the rim. Rub the rim of the glass with the lemon twist, then add to the drink. Serve. Drink.
If you enjoyed this dish, you may enjoy these others as well:
Amer Punch Recipe
Pican Punch
Pican Beer
I am going to keep this short and sweet just as this drink is. I was not even going to share this recipe but then I was telling Allison about it and well … here is the scoop. We cheated on our Ten in 10 last night. It had been a long week and I decided as we were making dinner that we needed to take the edge off, as well Lenny was making his famous chili and one cannot drink tea with chili.
Recipe: Grapefruit Margaritas with Pomegranate Syrup
*makes two drinks
3 small grapefruits, juice squeezed out of them
1 small orange, juice squeezed out of it
pomegranate simple syrup, to taste
3 ounces dark tequila
ice
Pour everything into a cocktail shaker and shake. Put one ice cube in a glass. Strain margarita over ice cube. Pour a small tequila floater on top. Serve. Drink.
This is an electrifying cocktail that will surely tease your taste-buds and tantalize your senses!
Justin of Marx Foods contacted us right before we left for Boston, wondering if we would be up for trying out a couple of their products, in particular black garlic and the mysterious Szechuan (Sechuan) Buttons. We are always up for trying something new out and especially something we have never heard of, such as the Szechuan Button. Now, I did not know much about them but once I started investigating, my interest was peeked, especially when the package they came in said, “eat at your own risk”.
A bit about the Szechuan Button (taken from the Marx Food site) – “they are an unusual food in that their primary use is not nutrition or flavor but rather to impart a sensation to food and drink. They possess a slightly bitter, herby flavor that isn’t unusual, but a few seconds after consuming them something very interesting begins to happen in your mouth! Eating a few tiny petals from a Szechuan button will lead to a tingling sensation, almost like mild voltage or bubbles from an effervescent beverage popping on the tongue. It is similar to (but much more intense than) the tingling imparted by Szechuan peppercorns, which is how this flower gets its Chinese name, despite originally being from Africa. Part of the secret of this effect may be that these flowers contain a natural painkiller sometimes used to numb toothache (hence their other nickname: toothache plant). It is not unpleasant, but surprising, and sharing just a small pinch with friends will cause a look of confused wonder.”
I had a few ideas but the first that came to mind was to make a fun cocktail. Being the holidays I knew a bottle of bubbly would be involved. As well I had some Pomegranate Simple Syrup that I wanted to use, mostly for color, but also for a bit of tartness. I gently floated the Szechuan Button petals on the top of the cocktail and with every sip, a few of the delicate petals flowed into your mouth – let’s say there was definitely a party happening in your mouth! Not only did you get the sweet champagne bubbles on the tip of your tongue but there was an electrifying zippy feeling from the petals. A very fun cocktail to serve to the unexpected as they will be wowed! Would I use them again – definitely! I am already thinking of other recipes to use them in!
Recipe: Pomegranate Champagne Cocktail with Szechuan Buttons
1 tablespoon pomegranate simple syrup
1 glass of champagne
1/2 teaspoon szechuan button petals
Pour the simple syrup into a champagne glass. Lightly drizzle the champagne into the glass, do not disturb the simple syrup and do not stir. Sprinkle the petals over the top. Serve. Drink.
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