CLASSY COCKTAIL | OLD FASHIONED

Don Draper's concise statement "make it big and make it brown" pretty much sums up my recipe for a classic Old Fashioned. This is my fallback drink when I can't decide which cocktail to make on those brain-dead evenings after an extremely long day of cubicle purgatory. It's also a great one to serve to guests if you are a lousy multi-tasker like me, because you don't have to think about complicated steps and measurements and can actually chat with your pals while you stir. It's pretty hard to mess this one up unless you get overzealous with the bitters. The key to the success of drink is the giant ice ball. The ice molds we use are the Tovolo brand and they cost about 11 bucks for a set of two, but we use them all. the. time. A few words about our ingredients: rich syrup is just simple syrup made in a ratio of two parts sugar to one part water (for example: one cup of sugar melted into a half cup of hot water. ta da! rich syrup.) We prefer syrup to sugar because it doesn't have to be dissolved into the drink and you can use it in a million other cocktails. For reference, I added a shot (below) of how the glass should look with just the rich syrup and bitters. My chronic problem with this drink is that I get carried away with my bitters, so take this as a cautionary tale and be careful. Less is more when it comes to bitters!

Classic Old Fashioned

2 oz whiskey

1 tsp rich syrup

4 dashes Angostura bitters

Orange peel

Giant ice sphere

Combine rich syrup, bitters and ice. Top with whiskey and stir. Using a y-peeler, create a hearty orange peel. Express orange oils over the drink and rub the peel along the rim of the glass. Drink up & enjoy!

RECIPE REVIEW | MUSHROOM + SWISS SLIDERS

          I owe all the credit for my current interest in cooking to The Pioneer Woman. Her writing is so engaging and hysterical that for the first time in my life I was actually able to read a recipe without hyperventilating. One of my (and let's be honest...Daniel's) favorite meals is The Pioneer Woman's Mushroom & Swiss Sliders. I pretty much follow everything she says, but one time I didn't have white wine so I subbed in balsamic vinegar and I've never made it with the wine since. I highly, highly recommend you do what the lady says and add heavy cream to your burger meat. It keeps the tiny patties from drying out and adds an extra layer of richness to the meal that I really enjoy. I will not pretend that this meal is healthy in any definition of the word, but sometimes you just need a fatty, super-rich and satisfying meal to balance out your life. I like making these on the weekend just to make the break from work extra fun & relaxing (...and naughty, as the Pioneer Woman would say). She's taught me well! Yes, I even make the spicy fry sauce, because it hearkens back to my youth. We also like to serve these with sweet potato fries (as if you actually need anything on the side of these babies...).

And because this post was super short....here's a light & bubbly little drink I made up which would pair nicely with the heavy sliders. 

Rosemary, Lemon, & Gin Spritzer

2 oz Gin

1 oz lemon juice

3/4 oz simple syrup (or if you feel super fancy, you can make rosemary simple syrup)

Sparking water (to taste)

Sprig of fresh rosemary 

Combine ice, gin, lemon juice, simple syrup into a glass and stir. Top with sparkling water and sprig of rosemary. Cheers!

Classic Cocktail: Aperol Spritz

Lately, I've been on a bit of an Aperol kick. Daniel is a huge fan of Campari, which is a bitter herbal liqueur that I am still working on acquiring a taste for. Aperol is like the sweeter, younger brother of Campari. The Aperol spritz is a lovely refreshing summer drink that combines sweet, bitter, & bubbly in the perfect easy proportions. It's a classic Italian drink, so I feel very sophisticated and passionate while I sip this on a hot-blooded summer weekend. 

I like mine with one and a half ounces Aperol + sparkling wine to taste, served up with a lemon or orange twist. On exceptionally hot days I prefer it on the rocks. 

Here's a cute video from Martha Stewart showing her preferred recipe for the Aperol Spritz. 

Sarah

Introducing twenty-somethings: the lost art

This month I began working on a collaborative blog with my dear old friend, Danielle called twenty-somethings: the lost art. We both like to create, write, and share our hobbies, so we decided it was high time we created a structured place to do so. Visit us here!

Sarah

Weekend Eats & Drinks

      We love food in our family, and a weekend tradition of ours is to mess about with recipes and cocktails. The above photos are from Friday's dinner and drinks & Saturday's lunch. 

      Friday: On Friday nights, we like to eat breakfast for dinner (or brinner for short) to celebrate the weekend and mark the beginning of a time of rest for our busy little family. This week we went for the-most-calories-possible-per-serving and made a version of eggs benedict (of sorts). It was a glorious layered masterpiece starting with a base of hashbrowns, then a strip of thick cut uncured bacon, next a poached egg, & all were topped with a generous dose of homemade hollandaise sauce. 'Twas a rich brinner, indeed!  For nightcaps, we made classic mint juleps, using mint from our very own Kentucky Colonel plant. 

     Saturday: After our trip to the Farmer's market Saturday morning, our meals took a healthier turn (kind of). Sandwiches are the best quick lunch, and we try to make them as delicious as possible. This one was made with white bread, Cherokee purple tomato, red onion, leftover hollandaise, sharp cheddar, Bibb lettuce, and topped off with a fried egg. Because my side dish was berries, this wasn't totally unhealthy, right? Later on we made a Blueberry French 75 cocktail. It was bubbly, crisp, and refreshing on a humid summer day. 

Happy Weekend All!