real recipes. made up people, places, and things
On the coffee snob scale I think I fall somewhere between Chock Full of Nuts (I’m not even sure that is still for sale but I do love the old theme song) and a bean with flavor notes longer than my arm that requires a specific temperature and method of brewing or pressing or distilling. […]
Atop our bar sits a tattered copy of “Cocktail Bill Boothby’s World Drinks and How to Mix Them”. In faded brown ink the original owners (the Mr’s grandparents) signed their name and the year – 1952- on the title page. Some sections are pristine, some, like the section on Manhattans, have notes on how to […]
The history of the Margarita is muddled (something with such straight forward ingredients is bound to have been made in more than one place by more than one clever mixologist) so why not muddle your ingredients too?! Just remember that just like the classic daiquiri this is less sweet than something made with a mix.
Imperial Hard Cider topped with an easy homemade honey hot buttered rum batter will keep you toasty from top to toes! This is a delicious low alcohol winter warmer that adapts effortlessly to being just a bit more boozy (try it with bourbon!) The minute I tasted the 2Towns’ The Bad Apple knew we were […]
The paloma- a classic mexican cocktail with grapefruit, lime, tequila and a salt rim gets a refreshing update with SeekOut cucumber+juniper hard seltzer. Trust me on this one, it’s really good- the play between citrus, tequila, and the earthy sweet notes of the cucumber and juniper make this my go to hard seltzer cocktail. Originally […]
A negroni without the negroni- instead of campari sub the refreshing slightly tart goodness of Seekout’s raspberry+meyer lemon hard seltzer and you have a brighter bubbly bigger version of the classic cocktail. I love campari- if you want a campari drink without the gin and sweet vermouth this slushie is A+ looking for some other […]
A bracingly refreshing coconut rum cocktail with a ginger bite and a pineapple finish. Just a little but sweet and just right boozy, loaded with fresh ginger, lulled with coconut rum, lightened and brightened with fresh lime. We have a bottle of coconut rum in our bar of unknown origin and age. A remnant of […]
Get your Brit on while drinking local with this flavorful take on a PImm’s Cup. I’ve never been to a polo match and my extravagant hat collection isn’t what it used to be but I can get behind this British summer tradition. Light, refreshing, and complex- a Pimm’s Cup made with SeekOut’s key lime+mint hard […]
We’ve got a long weekend ahead of us, the beginning of a long hot summer. What better way to get it started and keep it going than this light and refreshing and just barely boozy take on a piña colada made with SeekOut Real Hard Seltzer’s Pineapple+Passionfruit and coconut water.
Ginger Cider Slushie? Mango Float? Rum Smoothie? What do you call a cocktail that is a mashup of so many favorite things? If I’m honest this was originally going to be a float but that Ginja Ninja cider was calling me and I just couldn’t wait for the mango to be fully iced. I’m going […]
This strawberry sangria comes together in minutes so you can make it ahead or make it on the fly. With just the right amount of tart and fruit and sweet it’s perfect for date night or when friends stop by or for when you crave some quality alone time- with cocktails. Making sangria with hard […]
Is it still a Manhattan when there is no bourbon? no cherry? Still the essence is there, the oak aged brandy, the carpano antica sweet vermouth, a dash of bitters. A brandy cocktail worth repeating. I keep one fancy vermouth and one inexpensive vermouth (sweet and dry) on hand because it makes a difference sometimes. […]
Eggnog Fizz Cocktail If you’re still with me after the title than you must be ready for a holiday cocktail with just a hint of nog. Cranberry simple syrup adds a bit more holiday cheer to this bubbly frothy combination that tastes better than it looks and better than it sounds because gin and egg […]
A little nutty, a little tart, smooth and somewhat sweet. This is a frozen drink for cold days, it’ll give you chills in the best sort of of way. Because you love it, and because you want more. The only problem with this Pear Pomegranate Amaretto Cocktail is that is that if you’re not careful […]
The subtle spice of cardamon and clove play nice with a kick of brandy, and a not too sweet chocolate chaser. Best of all, on a hot summer evening- frozen. Chai Brandy Alexander cocktails are the dessert drink I can’t wait to share with a crowd. The brandy alexander is a lesson in moderation. When […]
Feel like spring in a glass? plus gin. Because. Well. Gin. Whip up a batch of Garden Gimlets: gin gimlet w/fresh cucumber, lime, & basil. When spring arrives each week at the farmers market (or in your garden, if you are so lucky) brings new revelations. Berries, basil, cucumbers of all varieties. The first week of […]
This is the grownup slushy that I’m willing to wash the blender for. Refreshing, red, laced with a hint of orange blossom, and just a little bit boozy so, as long as you can manage to sip slowly, it’s the perfect hot afternoon yard beverage. Campari Orange Slushy with triple sec and orange blossom water […]
Bring on the sunny days and brightly colored drinks. Refresh yourself with this easy/fancy sipper made with homemade hibiscus infused vodka. Mostly a sidecar but perhaps more like the sort of sidecar you might find in the tropics- bright pink, strong enough for the bumpy roads. Maybe like this vintage vespa 150 from Bali ? […]
Mango Colada with banana and grapefruit It’s not even that warm today but just seeing temperatures above sixty in the forecast has me in a mad scramble for drinks laden with rum and blended with tropical fruit. Bring on the mango, the banana. I’m ready for sun naps and warm toes. Even without the […]
not your momma’s meyer lemon amaretto sour Amaretto sours are one of those drinks with “origin unknown” stamped across their back side. I’ve never been able to decide whether this is because it’s a basic variation of a classic or if the inventor is ashamed and unwilling to take credit. Given that the amaretto sour […]
Have you seen the headlines that the world will be without chocolate by 2050? This is worrisome but I won’t panic until they make the same dire prediction about vanilla. Vanilla gives me comfort, its my hug after a hard day, my kitten video, my memory palace. It takes an ordinary grapefruit and soda and […]
A refreshing and subtly herbal winter gin gimlet with fresh lime and rosemary. “We sat in the corner bar at Victor’s and drank gimlets. ‘They don’t know how to make them here,’ he said. What they call a gimlet is just some lime or lemon juice and gin with a dash of sugar and bitters. […]
Journey to the underworld with me where we will sip the juice of fruit from warmer climes and wait for spring. Worry not, it is hell, so there is Facebook and CrossFit and Persephone’s Smash: pomegranate mint mocktail. I was going to make this a booze-or-not-tail but when all the muddling was done I was enjoying […]
Do you know how many weird and not terrible but not particularly inspiring Campari drinks I had to consume just to get one worth posting? At last I found it. Something warming but not warm, something holiday but not heavy, a drink to have before the meal. Turns out it’s best to stick with the […]
Snow on Sand: Hot Coffee Cocktail w/rum, orange liqueur, and amaretto cream Naming drinks is almost as hard as coming up with them. I began with all that follows the colon: Hot Coffee Cocktail w/rum, orange liqueur, and amaretto cream. But the bartender in me rebelled, the story writer- who can’t come up with a […]
Rich, thick, and strong- balanced between booze, sweet and spicy. This little morsel is the perfect stormy day companion. This not, however, the sort of ‘recipe’ you should try if you want to get things done. Heat+Chocolate+Booze=snuggle up on the couch and listen to the rain smack against the window panes, light a fire, put […]
Scars and Stains Blackberry brambles, thorned arches. Dark clusters of berries, smaller and seedier than their domesticated cousins. But so much better, worth dodging webs and thorns. Free, if you count stains and scratches as rewards. Yesterday we went blackberry picking in a friends backyard. Forty five minutes in the dimming August light to bring […]
Citrus Cardamom Coffee Spritzers and Monday Mocktail Regrets It has been months since I infused simple syrup with several botanicals (cardamom, rosemary, ginger, black pepper) and vowed to dedicate my Mondays to a new post, a theme even. Monday! Mocktail! I even added words to a picture. And then the Mondays slipped away one after […]
The Piquant: a Rhubarb Gin Cocktail with black pepper and grapefruit I spent weeks at the tail end of last summer trying to come up with a homemade ‘tonic’ but was never satisfied with the results. After reading of inadvertent quinine overdoses I attempted a formula using other bitter roots ultimately deciding to leave it […]
The longest night is behind us now, a foggy morning giving way to sun. Holiday lights glimmer in the afternoon’s glow, my fingers stained red from squeezing pomegranate seeds between my eager fingers. I have made no preparations for christmas, made no preparations for the new year. I am without hope and brimming with the […]
Consider the apple. Pale flesh, vibrant skin, a star of cyanide at the core. Varied yet universal. An apt metaphor for both desire and innocence— hard, wholesome, tart, sweet. Consider the apple and consider yourself. Look in the mirror and see the wicked queen, see snow white, see your fall from grace and your salvation. […]
Turn that water into wine. Add sweet summer berries, and you have a warm weather dessert that’s just a little sweet and just a little boozy. A palette cleanser if you will, something to wash away the memory of potluck desserts or that hangover in a Dixie cup disguised as a childhood snack. For the […]
When the first cherries arrive they seem so grand, so dark and decadent, a reminder that all winter long if you saw a cherry it was just an anemic shadow compared to the firm yet sweet cherries now before you. These are the cherries that songs are written about, these are the cherries that invite […]
Mango Mule Cocktail The classic Moscow Mule goes tropical with fresh mango infused vodka (copper cup optional). If you are like me you buy a mango at the store and then realize a week later that you still haven’t eaten it. Sometimes this results in a perfectly ripe, deliciously juicy snack. Sometimes I wait too […]
update addendum: fresh herbs and bloody mary mix are a tricky thing- this siracha bloody mary mix is perfect for the first few hours but with time the thyme grows stronger. so either add the thyme just before serving or drink it all just after mixing. Spicy Siracha Bloody Mary Mix with fresh herbs I […]
