ginger lemon drop

ou guys know how obsessed with ginger I am, right?  I can't get enough of ginger infused treats and cocktails.  I recently got to go on a tour of Heritage Distilling in Gig Harbor and participate in their My Batch experience where you get to distill your own craft spirits and at the end of the day, in addition to the spirits I created, I also couldn't resist picking up a bottle of their ginger vodka!  They have so many amazing flavored vodka flavors, and while I'm not usually a vodka fan, after trying their ginger vodka I knew I'd have fun making cocktails with it!  I almost picked up the blood orange vodka too, but I didn't and I kind of regret it.  Blood orange summer cocktails are calling my name!  Blood orange AND ginger?  OMG.  Okay, anyway.  After getting the ginger vodka I was brainstorming how to use it first.  I had a few leftover lemons, so a lemon drop fit the bill!  The lemon drop is a simple, sweet cocktail that is a definite crowd pleaser.  The bright, citrus flavor makes it a perfect cocktail for those hot summer days.  Now, if only those hot summer days would get here...

 
Ingredients (makes one cocktail):
2 oz Ginger Vodka
.5 oz Triple sec
1 oz Simple syrup
1 oz Fresh lemon juice

Garnish:
Brown sugar mixed with a bit of ground ginger (for rim)
1 Lemon twist
1 Piece Candied Ginger


1 / Coat the rim of a cocktail glass with brown sugar mixed with a bit of ground ginger and set aside.

2 / Add ginger vodka, triple sec, simple syrup, and lemon juice to a shaker and fill with ice.

3 / Shake until frosty, and strain into the prepared glass.

4 / Garnish with a lemon twist and candied ginger. Enjoy!

rosemary gimlet

ife goals: be a full time cocktail photographer.  I'm sort of joking, but I don't know what it is about shooting cocktails, they're just one of my most favorite things to photograph!  Maybe I just need to publish a cocktail recipe book so I have an excuse to shoot a ton of cocktails, eh?  Yup.  Sounds like a plan.  At this point, though, this hypothetical cocktail book will have to wait a few months because I've got tons of stuff happening in the next couple months, ack!  
I'm super excited about everything planned, though, well, except taxes.  Taxes can suck it.  But other than that, the next couple months are full of some crazy amazing stuff!  I've got a bunch of styled shoots coming up that are going to be so much fun.  Our Adventures in Oz burlesque show is on stage again in April and this time we're doing two shows!  The next two months are going to be full of tons of practice, choreography, and costuming.  I'm doing a new part in the show this time and I'm giddy about it!  I'll give you a hint: my hair color is very apropos.  This march I'm going to California for a big website rebrand and launch, and it's the first time I'll have had outside help doing my website, I've always DIY'ed everything but I'm ready for a change and super excited about getting a fresh space that feels "me."  Then, the day after that, I fly to Texas to speak at TxSC Camp!  Holy whoa!  "Spring," March especially, is usually rough here in the PNW.  I always think it should be warming up and starting to feel more like, well, spring, but it's typically the most wet and grey part of the year, and drags on for far too long.  It'll be nice to have all this busyness to keep me preoccupied.  
Oh right, back to cocktails.  I've been having a gin moment lately.  I had one briefly in college, but haven't had much in the way of gin in the last five years.  I got a bottle a few months ago, though, and am appreciating the flavor quite a bit these days!  It's such an interesting spirit with a very distinct flavor that makes it pretty cool to pair with other flavor profiles.  I'm loving it with citrus, especially.  I've always been more drawn to smokier flavors, but gin is just so bright and fresh!  It's a nice change of pace.  



Rosemary Gimlet (recipe via savor home)
4 oz rosemary honey simple syrup
4 oz gin
3 oz fresh lime juice
1 tbsp sugar, for sugar rim
1 rosemary sprig, for garnish

First, get your glasses ready. Add sugar to a plate, run a lime over the rim of each glass and dip the rim in sugar to coat.

Fill your cocktail shaker halfway with ice, add simple syrup, gin, and lime juice.

Shake the cocktail for about 30 seconds, or until the shaker gets frosty and freezing cold.

Pour the cocktail into your rimmed glasses, and add a sprig of rosemary to garnish.  Recipe makes two cocktails.

blood orange rosemary gin cocktail

his is a somewhat tortuous post, since I'm currently still on Whole30 and not drinking any alcohol (or consuming sugar either).  Looking at these photos I remember just how delicious this drink was!  I'd never really had blood oranges, outside of those blood orange san pellegrino drinks (okay, those don't count).  I've seen plenty in photos and thought they were stunning fruit, the depth of the red is just so incredible!  And when you juice them, that red is maintained, such a rich color!  I think this drink would be a perfect cocktail for a Valentine's date or party, it's the perfect color and it's seriously so delectable.  One of my favorite little simple cocktails a few years ago was an Orange Blossom, with gin and fresh squeezed orange juice.  The rosemary and blood orange in this cocktail just take that to the next level.   I'll definitely be posting a follow up to my Whole30 experience once I'm done.  I've got about a week left of the 30 days and then after that is a week or two of reintroducing foods and seeing how my body reacts.  At this point I'm kind of tired of it, and not feeling any different or better, which makes it harder to press on and finish, but I will.  I suppose at this point I'm more interested in the reintroduction to see how those foods affect me than in the 30 itself.  One bummer: I'm not done with the 30 until after the Superbowl, boo!  If ever there was a time to enjoy a beer, that's it, especially with the Seahawks playing!  Enough Whole30 pity party though, are any of you doing it?  If so, how far into are you and how are you feeling?



Rosemary + Honey Simple Syrup:
1 cup water
5-6 sprigs fresh rosemary
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup honey
First make the honey-rosemary simple syrup.  In a medium pot, and add fresh rosemary, water, sugar, and honey and bring to a boil.  Once boiling, remove from heat and let it steep for 6 hours. After the syrup is done steeping, remove the rosemary and store the syrup in the refrigerator.

Cocktail:
1/2 c fresh squeezed blood orange juice
1/2 c rosemary honey simple syrup
2+ oz gin (add more, for more gin taste and more kick!)
1 rosemary sprig + blood orange slice, for garnish
Add orange juice, simple syrup, and gin to a cocktail shaker filled halfway with ice.  Shake until the shaker is frosty and cold.  Pour into a glass and add ice, garnish with a sprig of fresh rosemary and/or a slice of blood orange.  Yield: Two cocktails

peppermint white chocolate cocktail

o, speaking of holiday treats, I wanted to share a little holiday cocktail recipe with you guys!  I put together this super easy Peppermint White Chocolate cocktail recipe for South Sound Magazine, so go check it out!  Really easy, only three ingredients and it's a really decadent little boozy drink, perfect for holiday parties.  And it looks pretty fancy with the peppermint encrusted rim!  Throw one of those baby candy canes over the rim too, for extra holiday points.  Head over to South Sound Magazine for the recipe!

strawberry bourbon julep

ummer seems like it might be starting to wind down, though it pains me to say.  Still, I'm not giving up without a fight, and a fruity cocktail sounds like the perfect way to ignore the impending season change.  I'm a firm believer that we shouldn't start thinking about fall until September at the earliest, and that's over two weeks away, so I'll be over here in summerland until then.
Still, September is still pretty summery in my mind.  I've been wanting to take a little road trip lately and my options are south or east (I still haven't updated my passport to my new married last name, so Canada is off the table), and south seems most interesting to me.  I haven't been down 101 since I drove down in the Winne and, while 101 is gorgeous, some of those twisty roads just aren't ideal in a 20 ft long 1973 Winnebago.  Little roadsters trying to zip along those roads were not my biggest fan.  Ever since I stopped in Mendocino in the Brave I've wanted to go back because the day I spent there it was totally socked in and rainy.  It'd be fun to be able to give it another try with (hopefully) better weather.  We'll see, though.  I feel like I booked myself solid until November, so it might be challenging to get out of town.  I've decided that I'm not booking anything in November, November is going to be my month.  Hopefully there'll be some fun for our third wedding anniversary and family time for Thanksgiving!


INGREDIENTS
4 hulled strawberries
2 tbsp mint leaves
1/4 oz simple syrup
2 oz bourbon
crushed ice
mint sprig

Muddle the strawberries and mint leaves in your glass and add the simple syrup.  Top with the bourbon and crushed ice and garnish with the mint sprig!  Enjoy!

5 PERFECT SUMMER COCKTAILS + tips for crafting a great cocktail

One of my favorite things about summer is the cocktails.  There isn't much that's better than an ice cold cocktail on the patio as the sun glides towards the horizon.  Dan and are working on our yard right now, so instead of a patio we just have a pile of sod and dirt for the time being, but if I close my eyes I'm sitting on our future patio with my feet propped up on our future fire pit.  The point is, it doesn't really matter whether or not you have a dreamy patio to enjoy a cocktail, they're still pretty damn delicious regardless of where you're doing the enjoying.  
Want to make some bomb cocktails this summer?  Here are a few tips for giving your cocktails an extra boost of awesome.
Always use the freshest ingredients when you can.  Squeeze citrus juices fresh from the fruit, and use fresh herbs and spices.  If you plan on making lots of cocktails this summer, it helps to always have lemons and limes on hand.  Instead of using a sour mix, make your own!  I promise it'll taste ten times better.
When muddling fruits and herbs, make sure to muddle the right amount.  Use a heavier hand with fruits, while being more delicate with herbs.
When it comes to booze, get the best you can afford.  I've always heard that you shouldn't cook with a wine you wouldn't drink, so it stands to reason that a cocktail should be made with liquor that tastes good straight!  Of course, liquor can get super pricey, so it's a balance between affordability and taste, just find something that works for you.  But!  A good liquor can really make a cocktail incredible.
Strawberry Basil Lemonade Sparkler (above)

New York Sour

Chipotle Whisky Sour
Make sure to dilute your drinks!  Diluting can feel like it's going against the point of creating a cocktail, but here are simple cues to know when your drink is diluted the right amount.  For cocktails that are stirred, watch the edges of the ice cubes. Once they've lost their sharpness and the edges are rounded, it's done!  If you're making a shaken drink, you'll know it's properly diluted as soon as the shaker gets frosty.  Another tip on ice: if the ice has been sitting in your freezer for too long it can start to take on the taste of other stuff in your freezer, which really isn't the flavor profile you want in your cocktail.  Use fresh ice!

Don't forget the garnish!  My favorite way to make a cocktail look super fancy is the garnish.  Even the most simple of garnishes can make your cocktail look like it was handcrafted by a world class bartender.  Just a twist of lime, sprig of mint, or a wedge of fruit is all it takes!  Not only do garnishes make your drinks look great, they can also finish out the flavor profile of your drinks.  Just a twist of lemon peel or a star anise can perfectly finish your cocktail!  If you're garnishing with a citrus peel, make sure to twist it over the drink before rubbing the rim and dropping it in.  If you're garnishing with herbs, clap them between your palms to release the oils first.
Using the right type of glass for a cocktail can also help your cocktails shine.  It's not required for a great tasting cocktail, obviously, but it can make it that much more pretty.  I've bought all my different kinds of cocktail glasses at thrift stores!  Or, you know, just use mason jars, I'm guilty of using mason jars for 90% of my home cocktails.

Clover Club

Classic Mojito

strawberry rhubarb lemonade

The rhubarb is still going strong in our CSA and now they've added strawberries!  One can only make so many strawberry rhubarb pies without it reaching the level of absurdity so I've been thinking of new ways to utilize my stock of strawberries and rhubarb without repeating the same recipes over and over.  We've been having amazing weather, and I think summer might finally be here to stay, so all I really want to drink is iced tea and lemonade.  As a kid I remember going to Red Robin and getting their "freckled lemonade" which was lemonade with muddled strawberries in the bottom.  This lemonade recipe doesn't have muddled fruit (though why the heck not, right?  Go for it), but it's way more delicious than Red Robin's.  I'm having a hard time not guzzling straight through it.  I think my blood sugar thanks me for making that effort.  
One of my favorite things about summer is lemonade stands on street corners.  Kids with their pitchers full of crystal lite and scrawled signs.  I lived on a small cul-de-sac growing up and there wasn't any foot traffic and the only cars that rolled through were our neighbors, so I didn't ever get to have a lemonade stand, except for one time when we had a garage sale.  I remember we got those costco jelly-filled pastries and giant muffins and sold those too.  I also remember sleeping in until like 1 pm, so I probably missed half of my potential customers.  It was summer!  Sleeping in on summer break is, like, totally legit, though not recommended for fledgling entrepreneurs.

Ingredients
3 stalks rhubarb, chopped
1 lb strawberries, pureed (use a blender or food processor)
2 cups sugar
4 cups water
1 cup lemon juice

1. Pour the water, sugar and rhubarb into a large pot and boil for 5 minutes.  Remove from heat and add in strawberries.

2. Let it sit for about 45 minutes and then strain through a sieve or cheesecloth.

3. Refrigerate the syrup for 1 hour and then stir in lemon juice.  If it's too sweet for your taste, add water and/or lemon juice until it reaches the desired taste.  If you have powdered or premade lemonade, you can always add the strawberry/rhubarb simple syrup to that to give it flavor, too.

4. Serve over ice.  I garnished with some mint, because who doesn't love a garnish?  Oh, and if you're feeling a bit saucy, throw in a 1/2 oz of vodka!

homemade egg nog

Egg Nog is one of those holiday staples, but usually I find it too rich and syrupy for my taste.  I'll usually cut it with some milk to keep it from being too thick.  When Dan decided to make homemade egg nog the other day and I was intrigued to see how it compared to the store bought versions.  Not surprising to find that it's so much better.  While it's still a rich beverage, the frothiness of the beaten eggs keeps it from having the syrup-like texture of the stuff I find in stores.  
When I was a kid, even though I had stopped believing in Santa Claus, I used to always make a plate of cookies and a glass of egg nog to set by the fireplace for Santa, just to make my younger brothers still believe he existed.  After they went to bed, I'd go up and drink some of the egg nog and take a bite out of some cookies to make it look like Santa had been there.  I don't know how long it actually worked, but I always enjoyed my sneaky little tradition.

 

(Recipe via Alton Brown)

Ingredients
4 egg yolks
1/3 cup sugar, plus 1 tablespoon
1 pint whole milk
1 cup heavy cream
4 ounces bourbon
1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
4 egg whites
dash of cinnamon or nutmeg for garnish

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the egg yolks until they lighten in color. Gradually add the 1/3 cup sugar and continue to beat until it is completely dissolved. Add the milk, cream, bourbon and nutmeg and stir to combine.

2. Place the egg whites in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat to soft peaks. With the mixer still running gradually add the 1 tablespoon of sugar and beat until stiff peaks form.

3. Whisk the egg whites into the mixture. Chill and serve.

strawberry basil lemonade sparkler

The summer menu at Metronome has a strawberry basil lemonade sparkler, and so far I've tried ordering it twice.  The first time they'd run out of champagne.  The second time, lemonade.  So I decided to try my hand at making one for myself at home.  Summer is winding down, but it can still get hot outside and this is a refreshing late summer drink.  I think this drink is so delicious and man does it go down easy.  They're not too stiff, since there's no liquor in them, so you can have a few before getting too silly.
I love a drink that has a cool gradient. I think this might originate from when I used to see my parents drinking Mai Tai's in Hawai'i when I was a kid.  I always thought the gradient of the brown on top and the orange on bottom was so cool.  So much so that one time I wanted to be cool like the grown ups, so I made a drink that looked like a Mai Tai by using orange juice and coke.  Needless to say, it tasted kind of gross, but I'm pretty sure I drank the whole thing just because.  


For the strawberry-basil syrup:
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 cup water
1 pound strawberries, washed, hulled, and sliced 1/2 inch thick
3/4 cup tightly packed basil leaves

1. Place the sugar and water in a medium saucepan over high heat and stir until the sugar dissolves and the mixture comes to a boil.

2. Add the strawberries, reduce the heat to medium low, and simmer until the strawberries have softened, about 10 minutes.

3. Remove from the heat, add the basil leaves, and stir to incorporate. Cool to room temperature, about 45 minutes. Strain through a fine-mesh strainer set over a medium bowl; discard the solids. Cover the syrup and refrigerate until ready to use.


For the sparkler: 
2 oz syrup
1.5 oz lemon juice
4-5 oz champagne/sparkling wine

Fill a collins glass with ice cubes, add the syrup, then the lemon juice, and then slowly add the sparkling wine so it doesn't bubble over.  You can also make this drink in a wine glass sans ice, if you prefer!  I like to serve the drink with the gradient intact, just because it looks cool, but it tastes best mixed up.  Garnish with a strawberry, or a lemon wedge, or a basil leaf... or go crazy and garnish with all of them.  It's your party, you can garnish if you want to.