Figgy Maple Bourbon Fizz

Happy 2014! I hope the holidays treated you well and you're not too tired of the kitchen. I somehow managed to come out of it alive, albeit with a few pounds to spare!

Despite all the dietary resolutions floating around out there today, I'm not giving you a recipe for kale or spaghetti squash. That's not to say I'm not reining it in around here too, but I feel like you probably need a little bourbon in your life all year long. 

A few weeks before the holidays I was gifted (well, swapped!) a couple different homemade bitters from Kate at Snowflake Kitchen which inspired me to come up with something a little different to mix up and sip on. The vanilla maple coconut bitters included in this recipe are super yummy and add just a little extra suntin'-suntin' to the overall flavor of this drink, but if you don't have the time to whip up your own you can swap them out for another variety of bitters. And if finding fresh figs at your local grocery store is hit or miss around you as it often is for me, you can make the fig-infused bourbon with dried figs, omit the fresh fig in the muddling step and still have a lovely figgy cocktail!

Figgy Maple Bourbon Fizz

(makes 2 cocktails)

Fig-infused bourbon:

fresh figs, halved

bourbon

mason jar, or other clean glass vessel with cover

1. Fill your mason jar, or other container, halfway with fresh figs. Top off with bourbon, cover, and let sit for 5-7 days, giving it a gentle swirl once a day or so. Once infused, strain the bourbon through a sieve (reserve the figs for another use like a boozy jam) and pour bourbon into another clean jar for storage.

Figgy Maple Bourbon Fizz:

1 fresh fig, halved

2 tsp pure maple syrup, the darker the better

squeeze fresh lemon juice

few dashes vanilla coconut maple bitters, or angostura bitters

3 oz fig-infused bourbon

ginger beer

1. Divide the fig between 2 old fashioned glasses. To each glass add 1 tsp maple syrup, small squeeze of fresh lemon juice and a couple dashes of bitters. Muddle ingredients in each glass until well incorporated. Fill glasses with ice, pour 1 1/2 oz of the fig infused bourbon over each and then top with ginger beer. Give a quick stir and enjoy!

Raspberry-Apple Moonshine "Fish Egg" Shooters

If you know me then you know October is my favorite month of the year. Of course the leaves are changing, the air is cool and crisp, there's apple picking and apple baking, but most importantly, there's Halloween!!

Now, I tend to take the more creepy & gory route on Halloween as opposed to cute. You're more likely to find me giggling with pure glee at the sight of zombies chowing down on someone's face than covering my eyes and hiding under a blanket. I can't say my mom didn't try... but I can't help it that Xenomorphs and the Crypt Keeper are more fun than nail polish and rom-coms!

Anyway, what this all means is that I spend a lot of time thinking about and planning for Halloween. Besides decorations, a lot of the fun for me comes with thinking up creepy concoctions for my party menu. Most of the time you don't even need to make the food look extra scary, all you have to do is create a spooky ambiance at your table and give it an icky name - a hunk of gorgonzola with some prosciutto can become Moldy Cheese with Cured Epidermis, chili cheese dip can become Vomit, dates stuffed with cheese wrapped in bacon can be Roasted Roaches. You get the idea!

There's nothing scary about this Raspberry-Apple Moonshine cocktail, until you slap a "Mutated Fish Egg" label on it! It's delightfully light and fruity, and honestly would make a lovely drink any time of the year. Something about moonshine seems extra festive for Halloween - I'm not sure if it's because it has Moon in the name, or if it's because rednecks are scary. Either way, it makes a great mixer! I used Onyx Moonshine which is local to me, but with moonshine's popularity on the rise you shouldn't have a problem finding some in your neck of the woods!

Raspberry-Apple Moonshine "Fish Egg" Shooters

2 parts Red Jacket Orchards Raspberry-Apple juice, or similar juice blend

1 part moonshine

1/2 part Elderflower liqueur

splash of fresh lime juice

fresh pomegranate arils

1. In a pitcher, combine apple juice blend, moonshine, elderflower liqueur, and lime juice, to taste. Chill. Add 1/2-2 tablespoons of pomegranate arils (depending on the size of your serving glass) to the bottom of your shot glasses, cocktail glasses, or test tubes. Pour the cocktail over the pomegranate seeds and serve. 

Autumn Sangria with Hard Cider

This past weekend I did all the apple picking and cider mill hopping that I wanted to at Holmberg Orchards and B.F. Clyde's here in CT. Now my kitchen is stocked with fresh pressed cider, apples for pie, and some of my favorite hard cider which I've used to conjure up an enticing autumn brew!

Everyone loves sangria - it's sweet, smooth, contains yummy bits of fruit to nom on and goes down WAY too easily. It's something I personally associate with warm weather and time spent outside in the sun, while apple cider is something I crave as soon as the crisp fall air comes around and daylight dwindles. But why not combine the two by replacing the grape wine with hard cider?

Choose a cider that is sweet, not dry, for this recipe. If you live in an area with lots of apple orchards, chances are you might have a local cider mill that crafts hard cider, so look around for local tastings. Otherwise a couple bottles of a sweeter variety of the popular brands like Woodchuck or Crispin would work. I used a bottle of Macintosh from Holmberg Orchards for the CT area folks! 

Autumn Sangria with Hard Cider

(makes about 6 servings)

1 sweet apple, cored and sliced

1 tart apple, cored and cut into cubes

3/4 cup fall raspberries

6 seckel pears, whole

1 750mL bottle hard cider

1/2 cup bourbon

2 Tbsp Calvados or other apple brandy

1 cup ginger beer

1. To a large pitcher add all the prepared fruit. Pour in the bourbon, calvados and ginger beer and stir. Slowly add the bottle of hard cider. Set in the fridge for 2 hours and serve. (If you'd prefer to preserve more carbonation, serve immediately or hold off on adding the hard cider until serving. It is delicious even when completely flat though!)

Pumpkin Spice Hot Cocoa

 

Somewhere up in my attic there's a perfectly good coffee maker collecting dust. I admit to never having made a cup of coffee in my life, and while I'm sure I could figure it out, I don't bother. When I have guests over, I make them go get their own cup of coffee. That's right - hostess of the year right here, folks!

I've never been a real coffee drinker. I enjoy the flavor of coffee, but the idea of drinking a big mug of it several times a day just doesn't really appeal to me. I'd rather just have tea or hot cocoa...

Lately, though, I've formed an addiction to these stupid Pumpkin Spice Lattes from Starbucks. I'm not proud of it, but what can I do? I had a taste and it was goooood.

Still, I'm not whipping up some espresso or a cup o' joe anytime soon, so if I don't want to go broke getting jacked up on lattes then I need to figure out an alternative. In comes hot cocoa. Simple to make, satisfying, plays well with pumpkin and spice - this is my ideal autumn drink! Not that I won't be enjoying a Pumpkin Latte now and then (read: several times a week), but variety is the spice of life! Har har...

Pumpkin Spice Hot Cocoa

2 servings

2 Tbsp pumpkin puree

2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder (I prefer dutch process in this)

2 Tbsp sugar

1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice, plus extra for sprinkling

2 cups milk
Fresh whipped cream (optional)

1. In a small bowl, whisk together the cocoa powder, sugar and pumpkin pie spice. Set aside. 

2. In a small saucepan, scald the milk over medium high heat (just until bubbles form around the edges.) Do not boil. Set aside and keep warm.

3. In another small saucepan, add the pumpkin and cook over medium heat for about 30 seconds, whisking constantly, just to cook out a little of the raw pumpkin flavor. Dump in the cocoa mixture, whisking to combine (it will be clumpy.) Add the warm milk and continue to cook over medium heat until hot and well mixed. Pour into serving glasses, top with whipped cream and additional pumpkin spice, if desired.

Iced Mexican Hot Chocolate

If you didn't already know, I really like chocolate. I love it, and I don't trust anyone who doesn't love it. Seriously, something has to have gone wrong in your development if you hate the stuff.

One of my favorite ways to enjoy chocolate is in drink form. Mind you, there's a difference between hot chocolate and hot cocoa. Hot cocoa is a mild, milky drink. Don't get me wrong, it's a fine drink, but what I really love is hot chocolate. Hot chocolate is thick, rich, more chocolate than milk and meant for sipping and savoring. It's the next best thing to shoving blocks of dark chocolate in your mouth.

The problem is, when it gets to be 90 degrees and humid here in the summer, a rich, hot drink just doesn't fit into the equation. Coffee gets some ice-y love, so why not ice your chocolate too! And just to keep things interesting, you should add a little spice to your chocolate if you ask me.

Of course, if you really want to make things interesting, add a couple shots of Kahlua or dark rum too for a decadent dessert cocktail. Om nom nom...

Iced Mexican Hot Chocolate

Serves 2

3 oz high quality bittersweet chocolate (such as Callebaut, Scharffen Berger or Lindt), finely chopped

1 cup milk, divided

2 tsp cocoa mix

1/8 - 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon (preferably Saigon)

5 ice cubes

1. Heat 3/4 cup of milk in a small saucepan over medium low heat. Once steaming, add the chopped chocolate, cocoa mix, cayenne and cinnamon and whisk until smooth. Remove from the heat and set aside.

2. Add the remaining milk and ice to a blender, then add the warm chocolate mixture. Pulse until all ingredients are combined. Top with whipped cream if desired and enjoy!