CityMama™

Valentine's Day Cocktails. Because I like you. Lots.

Whether you're toasting to your lovah or drowning your sorrows, do it up correc' with these fine and frosty libations.

The Tarragon Martini

1 1/2 oz. Sub Rosa Tarragon vodka
1/2 oz. Limoncello
Lemon peel

Put ingredients, including lemon peel in shaker.  Shake and strain into martini glass.  Garnish with an additional long lemon peel.   If you have some lemon sorbet, a large melon ball scoop or small ice cream scoop floating in the middle is visually striking.

Recently Mike Sherwood of Sub Rosa Spirits sent me two bottles of their infused vodkas. He also sent me several CDs of awesome mashups that really set a party mood, but that's because our fun phone conversation covered everything from booze to Oregon to GirlTalk.

The first was a Tarragon vodka.   It's a subtle blend of organic tarragon that is slightly licorice yet herbal; with a touch of fennel and a note of mint on the back of the palate.  The Tarragon vodka makes a sublime martini with simply a lemon twist or a touch of Lemoncello.  You'd almost call it feminine if it weren't 90 proof.    

The second was a Saffron vodka.  This golden distillate has notes of toasted cumin on the nose, a mid-palate of lemony coriander wrapped in the aromatics of saffron with grace notes of ginger, black peppercorn and red chilies. This infused vodka is as complex as a gin with 8 spices making up a mélange that echoes India and Morocco.   They are both 90 proof.    This one really needs some juice to tame it.  Served straight up, at 90 proof, it's a bit overpowering.  But in a cocktail, quite memorable.  

Mike's right. Straight, these vodkas are intense and complex, almost too much to bear, but tamed by your favorite mixers, they really add a little somethin-somethin.  And the Saffron vodka in a spicy, salty Bloody Mary makes it different from the usual.

Cocktail number two comes from the fine folks at Sandeman's Founders Reserve Porto. Now, you might be thinking, "Port?  In a cocktail?"  The answer is: YES. Resoundingly, YES!

 

Sandeman's Sweetheart Sparkler

1 part Founders Reserve Porto
3 parts Sparkling wine

Serve in tall champagne flute. Guzzle.

What could be easier? Nothing. And I promise, this sparkling sip will make crafting all those kids Valentine's cards MUCH more bearable.

Happy Valentine's Day to you!!

New Year's Eve Drinkies: Stoli Accomplice

 

Recently the folks at Stoli sent me a bottle of vodka plus a few recipes to try. I went straight for the Stoli Accomplice because the strawberries were calling me, but in all truthiness, I used Grey Goose because that's what I had open.(Don't sweat Stoli folks, your vodka will get drunk, trust me!)

It goes down nice and easy and looks festive to boot. Would be perfect to serve on New Year's Eve. Especially to the girrrlz.

Muddle 3 strawberries (in your shaker)
1 ounce simple syrup or rock candy syrup (I used agave nectar)
2 ounces sweet sweet vodka, nectar of the gods
1/2 ounce fresh lemon juice

Shake ingredients and strain into sugar-rimmed martini glass. Top with champagne.

Notes: I have one of these muddlers and it's awesome. You can buy simple syrup or rock candy syrup at any well-stocked liquor store like BevMo if you don't want to make it yourself. The strawbs can muck up your shaker so just shake-shake-shake that mofo to get all the cocktail out. Prosecco would be lovely (and a more budget-conscious choice) instead of champagne.

Cuz nothing says it's the holidays like booze and dried fruit

booze-soaked dried fruit

Hello, my name is Stefania and I love fruitcake.  I know. I'm one of the only people on earth. I prefer my fruitcake in panettone form, but really, if it's a baked good that has booze and fruit, it's going in my mouth.

Anyway, since I have nothing better to do than to wait for my Amazon order to arrive in 47 separate shipments, I'm baking.

The December issue of Everyday Food has a recipe for a fruit bar based on the fruitcake theme. I'm making it for our open house and I've adapted the recipe to my taste below.

FRUITCAKE BARS

Don't freak because there's no levening in this "cake."  It comes out yummy—like blondies with fruit added. (I'll post pics when I serve them.)

• 2 sticks of butter + more for greasing the pan
• parchment or waxed paper
• 2 leveled cups flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 5 cups of dried fruit (I used golden raisins, dried cranberries, and chopped dried apricots
• 1/2 cup sweetened flaked coconut (optional)
• 3/4 cup cognac
• 1/4 cup Grand Marnier
• 2 packed cups of brown sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 3 eggs
• powdered sugar for dusting

A barrage of Christmas recipes to come, starting with Hot Spiked Apple Cider

Over the next week, I plan on posting as many holiday-themed recipes as I can. I had an email request for appetizers (my favorite "food genre") so I'll be posting those as well. And a reminder that you can always peruse the categories to the right of this post for appetizer (or any other) ideas. I know there are a lot of categories, I'm trying to pare them down...

In other exciting news, the lovely Event Bliss folks who designed my blog added a print function so that you can print recipes without printing everything else on the page. I care about your printer ink.

First things first. The drunken apple cider. My pal Suzanne made this last year at her ladies-only holiday gathering and I almost drank the whole batch. It's a delicious holiday cocktail. I'd much prefer sippling this instead of nasty, boozy egg nog. I'm serving this more than once over the holidays.

HOT SPIKED APPLE CIDER

• 12 cups apple cider
• 1/4 cup orange juice
• 1 orange, peel only cut into strips
• 1 tablespoon (packed) brown sugar
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 2 whole cloves
• 2 whole allspice
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 1/2 cups brandy (or have people spike their own drinks)

Mix everything but the brandy in large saucepan. Bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer mixture 30 minutes to blend flavors.  Strain mulled cider into mugs.

Views from a barbecue-filled weekend

Can I just say, I love the afternoon light in our backyard? I never ever take photos with flash and afternoon is my favorite time of day for the beautiful, golden light.

On Saturday it was burgers, BBQ kosher chicken, and cupcakes (Wallie and cupcake crumb mouth).

Then on Memorial Day, we brought out the big guns. Schaub's "black meat" aka marinated bottom sirloin (which my husband likes to refer to as "baby seal')...

And sangria (which I drank way too much of):

I made some sides (grilled chicken pasta salad with red peppers and fresh baby spinach, broccoli salad) and bought a side (rosemary orzo with golden raisins)...and people brought more sides.

Chicken kebabs off the skewer.

The condiment tray (I love me some condiments).

"Healthy" crudités with non-healthy dip and salt and pepper (Italian-style).

...and despite me giving away "meat carepackages" to everyone who came (we also cooked up about 2 dozen sausages and a slab of salmon) we have enough food left over to last us through until Labor Day, it seems.

God, I love cooking outdoors. It really can't be beat.

Roasted Cauliflower, Fennel, and Garlic Soup

Soup is the favorite way my husband likes to eat cauliflower, with roasted running a close second. That inspired me to create this soup for dinner last night. The normally pungent fennel goes all sweet and creamy in this soup.  Roasting mellows its flavor just as it does garlic. I served it with warm, whole grain bread and local butter.

ROASTED CAULIFLOWER, FENNEL, AND GARLIC SOUP

1 head cauliflower, remove core, break into florets
1 fennel bulb, white part only, trimmed and cut into chunks
6 unpeeled cloves of garlic
olive oil
unsalted butter
6 cups of water or broth
2 waxy potatoes scrubbed and chunked (I never peel them for soup)
heavy cream, milk, half n half or unsweetened soy milk (about a cup)
salt and pepper

Place cauliflower, fennel, and garlic in roasting pan. Toss with olive oil, salt and pepper and roast at 375º for about 45 minutes until fragrant and lightly browned.

Peel garlic and then transfer squeezed garlic and veggies to soup pot and saute in olive oil and a little butter for about 10 minutes.

Add water or broth and potatoes. Bring to a simmer and cook until potatoes are soft skimming any foam as needed. Puree with a stick blender (see side bar) then add cream to taste until soup is silky. Season with salt and pepper. Serve.

Town Restaurant, Kaimuki, Hawaii

Tonight we had light dinner at Town Restaurant in the Kaimuki district of Honolulu.

The highlights:

caipirinha de uva (crushed red grapes)

deconstructed insalata caprese with house-made mozzarella and grilled flat bread

crispy fried green beans with remoulade...so light!

Le Beaujolais Nouveau est arrivé!

Did you get yours?

I love that the arrival of this fun, fruity wine kicks off the holiday season here in the United States.  I know that many people serve this wine with Thanksgiving dinner, but I like a nice Alsatian Riesling or Oregon Pinot Gris myself. Both are versatile whites that complement the turkey and trimmings quite nicely.

I like to do lots of nosh and nibbles throughout the day (cheeses, paté, chips and dip, crudité), before the dinner, and Beaujolais Nouveau is fun to serve with that.

Before we had kids, my husband and I would go to our neighborhood French bistro for Beaujolais Nouveau night on the third Thursday in November. I have fond memories of sitting at a table by the window with the windows steamed up from all the revelry inside, sipping wine, and talking excitedly about the upcoming holidays.

For me, Beaujolais Nouveau is happiness in a bottle, and will always be.

TWO OF MY FAVORITE COCKTAILS

If you have kids (especially more than one) you know how imporant that evening cocktail is.  5:00 is my favorite time of day, and some days, I get through by telling myself, "It's 5:00 somwhere!" 

Notice that I make these cocktails out of juice you might already have on hand for your kids.  "Will it make a good cocktail?" is the criterion by which I evaluate all my juice purchases.

These are perfect for your Three Martini Playdates.

CITYMOJITO

No need for simple syrup and muddlers, though I like "real" mojitos, too.  Just eyeball it.

• Newman's Own Virgin Limeade*
• Nellie and Joe's Key Lime Juice** (it's the best) or squeeze a lime or two
• Fresh mint, a bunch, chopped and kinda mashed with a knife
• Golden Rum (I like Mount Gay "Eclipse" Rum)
• Sparkling water or club soda

Take a highball glass and fill it with ice.  Fill glass half-way with limeade.  Add 5-6 dashes of lime juice and as much mint as you like.  Stir, then add a good 3-count pour of rum and then finish with a splash of sparkling water. Garnish with lime slice if you want to be fancy.

I like to drink this with a straw to keep the mint bits from getting stuck in between my teeth.

Variation:  Add one chopped basil leaf to make a "Basil CityMojito."

CITYMAMA'S MANGO WHISKEY SOUR

• Trader Joe's Organic Mango Lemonade
• Nellie and Joe's Key Lime Juice** (it's the best) or squeeze a lime or two
• Maker's Mark Bourbon Whiskey or your fave
• an orange cut into wedges

Fill a highball glass with ice.  Fill half-way with mango lemonade.  Add 5-6 dashes of lime juice and then a good 3-count pour of bourbon.  Squeeze an orange wedge into the drink and then plop it in.

Tip: The Mango Lemonade makes a great base for so many drinks where "sour" is required, especially margaritas.  Yum.

* In Portland, available at New Seasons and Beaumont Market.
**In Portland, available at Pastaworks.