Category for Drinks

There is a small corner of my mind that is always flirting with the concept of savoury drinks. It started a few years back when I was working as a barista and doing the occasional competition. I had grown tired of the sweet drinks. Seriously, we are so bombarded with sweet drinks that something a little savoury always sounds like an intriguing break to me. The problem with savoury drinks is that they are tricky. I have tried numerous ideas, and based on trial and error I can tell you this for sure, NEVER EVER EVER make yourself a sparkling iced Americano. Really bad idea. If you think about the number of savoury options that are out there, the caesar and the bloody mary are two of the few drinks that come to mind. Perhaps it is a sign, savoury is just to tricky to make well.

I however am not ready to give up on the idea just yet. Perhaps the answer to the savoury drink conundrum lies in infused syrups. In fact some of my favourite coffee drinks are ones that feature herb infused syrups. So, a few weeks ago when I saw Love and Lemons Lavender French 75 it got me thinking about what other options might just work. I decided to start slowly with this recipe from Martha Stewart. It is lightly sweet, a little tart and has just a hint of celery on the end. If you aren’t to sure about savoury flavours in a cocktail this is the place to start.

Celery French 75
Adapted from Martha Stewart

1/2 cup sugar
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2 tablespoons packed fresh celery leaves, plus more for garnish
3/4 cup fresh lemon juice (from 4 to 5 lemons)
6 ounces gin, chilled
1 bottle (750 mL) sparkling wine, such as cava or prosecco, chilled
lemon twists, for garnish

Directions
In a small sauce pan combine sugar and water. Simmer the mixture over medium heat, stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Remove pan from heat and add the celery leaves. Allow to cool. Strain out the leaves and discard.

For the cocktail, combine 1 tablespoon of celery syrup, 1 tablespoon of lemon juice and a half an ounce of gin. Top with sparkling wine. Stir lightly to incorporate. Garnish with a celery leaf or a twist of lemon.

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The deluge started this afternoon, settling itself in for the weekend like an unwanted house guest. Can you tell that I am pretty much over the rain this season? In my mind there is only one cure for such unsavoury situations like the arrive of the pineapple express. Gin.

Gin has long been a favourite of mine, but not because I often have unwanted house guests. I love its botanical flavours, its simplicity and at the same time its complexity. It was much to my delight when I learned that 2 and a half blocks for my house, a small batch distillery had opened up. Joy of joys, gin was one item on their fresh sheet. So after work one day I meandered on down to their store front to check out the situation.

Long Table Distillery is Vancouver’s first small batch distillery. Charles, one of the owners showed us around, introduced us to their products and shared some of the exciting things we have to look forward to from Long Table. Then Charles pulled out a 10 gallon bucket of foraged juniper berries. Long Table’s London Dry style gin lets their hand-picked, west coast juniper berries be the star, with just a lovely hint of lemon. All and all the gin is a real star. One that is equally exceptional, whether enjoyed shaken over ice or in a cocktail. Did I mention their distillery is just one block off my daily running route. I think I need to adjust my route!

 

Lemongrass, Gin & Soda

2 oz gin
1 oz lemongrass syrup (recipe below)
Dash of fresh lime juice
Soda water

Fill a highball glass half full of ice, pour in gin, lemongrass syrup and the juice of one wedge of lime. Stir and top with soda water. Garnish with a lime. I found experimenting with different types of citrus can give you really lovely results. You could switch out the lime for a little blood orange and lemon or perhaps even a meyer lemon.

Lemongrass Syrup

1 cup water
1 cup sugar
2 stalks lemongrass (core only) grated or sliced

In a small sauce pan bring to a light boil water, sugar and lemongrass. Stir to dissolve the sugar. Gently boil for 10 to 15 minutes, then set aside to cool. Using a sieve or cheese cloth strain the lemongrass from the syrup, pour into a jar and store in the fridge until you are ready to use it.

For me, the best gatherings happen in the kitchen—food preparation in full swing, maybe a little snack or something to sip on, all the while chatting with friends or family. The meal comes together at a leisurely place, but the time spent preparing and enjoying it together is the event itself. These are the cooking moments that I hang some of my best food memories around.

One of my favorite “cooking as the event” moments happened in Paris with my sister. Since when does an evening cooking dinner in a tiny rented kitchen upstage an afternoon wandering the avenues of Paris, right? It was years ago, but I still remember the deep pleasure of shopping for our dinner items at the market, deciding what suited our mood for the evening, then negotiating with the market vendor on the exact specimens, according to our estimated meal time. Hauling our supplies up flights and flights of stairs to our apartment, deciding to while away the chilly evening hours in the kitchen. At some point, the hot steam coming from the pots bubbling on the stove fills up the tiny space forces us to throw open the window to the narrow courtyard that our building wraps around. Outside we hear the clatter and bustle of dinner coming together for everyone else in our building and we feel at ease.

Of course, not every meal is a magical Parisian memory. Most often, I enjoy the company of friends and family in my own kitchen where we partake in the age-old ritual of preparing and sharing a meal. It’s likely not a fancy meal, but nourishing and prepared with care—the very acts of chopping and dicing friendship at its best. And in these dark days of winter, it is something to look forward to. So in that celebratory spirit, I created this cocktail to share.

Meyer lemons are a seasonal favorite of mine—but hording fresh fruit is only advisable when there is a good use for it in sight. This cocktail proves to be a delicious way to highlight the sweet and pronounced flavor of the lemon.

Meyer’s Refresher

Serves 2
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3 oz. Meyer lemon juice
3 oz. gin
4 dashes grapefruit bitters
Scant 2 teaspoons rosemary simple syrup, recipe follows
Sparkling wine or cava, to finish

Combine all ingredients and shake over ice. Pour into two small glasses, add ice and top with sparkling wine. Garnish with a slice of Meyer lemon.

Rosemary Syrup

Makes 1 cup

1 cup white sugar
1 cup water
1 cup fresh rosemary sprigs
peel of one Meyer lemon

Combine water and sugar in a small sauce pan and bring to a boil. Allow to boil for about 5 minutes, until all of the sugar is dissolved. Add in the rosemary and lemon peel and stir to incorporate. Remove from heat and let steep for at least 30 minutes to 1 hour. Remove peel and rosemary and store in the fridge.

Nothing beats a snow day. Seriously, they really are the best. Or perhaps the truth of the matter is that I am still a kid at heart. I am particularly fond of the blanket of silence snow brings and the brightness that it adds to winters often grey days. This Christmas was a white one! These types of Christmases seem to come few and far between these days, so when the heavens opened up and the snow began to fall I strapped on my snowshoes and headed for the mountains. That may not be a totally accurate recount of the actual order of events but you get my drift.

My favourite treks are ones that venture off the beaten path and ever so slightly veer off into the woods were the snow is light and fluffy and I am sure to see a set of bunny tracks. This years snowshoeing treks were especially delightful as we had 2 new snow trekkers join our ranks. Both of whom were great sports and happily spent a number of afternoons traipsing through the trees on what eventually became a Sasquatch hunt. Alas a Sasquatch wasn’t to be found and we would head home rosy cheeked and ready for a little something to warm us up.



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On these types of days nothing warms you like a cup of hot cocoa!  And what better reward for our new snow trekkers than with this holiday take on the affogato.

Candy Cane Hot Cocoa Affogato

Hot cocoa
Candy cane ice cream
Peppermint extract (optional)

This recipe really is as simple as whipping up a batch of your favourite hot cocoa and topping it with a scoop of candy cane ice cream. I am a die-hard peppermint fan so I also like to add a drop or two of  peppermint extract into my cup. If you are unable to get your hand on a carton of candy cane ice cream you easily create your own by mixing crushed candy cane into some softened vanilla ice cream or perhaps even try a scoop of chocolate chip mint.