Cinnamon Apple Vodka

This entry is going to be two fold, to start with I have found a way to lose that weight that my Doctor has been bugging me about I will call it the new Subway diet.  This week we opened the Subway restaurant at work.  It has been an adventure to say the least, my days went like this:  Get up at 3:00 am throw dishes in the dishwasher, shower, shave etc... then head to work about 4:00 at 5:00 arrive at work and start the bread baking process, most days I had help but it takes about four hours in total. Around 10:00 throw some cookies into the oven then double check to make sure that everything is ready for lunch to begin at 11:00, work the line for lunch and train new staff as I can.  After lunch scurry around and get everything ready for evening, do some prep work for the next day and train staff, pull bread for the morning and leave work at about 7:30 pm for my hour commute home.

 Whew...

 I did this basic routine Sunday through Thursday then on Friday I had a day off, and didn't really do too much.  I got out of bed, took Mr. Man to daycare then started to watch a TV show and promptly fell asleep.  I woke up a little later, ate some chips and salsa and fell asleep again.  The good news, when I stepped on the scale this morning I was 9 pounds lighter than the previous Sunday, I suppose whatever gets me there.

 All that being said I'll start part two of this post, my friend that I have never met traveled from the other side of the earth to land almost literally in my back yard recently.  I had been making plans to meet Camilla and her family since the middle of last summer.  I went through about 200 menus in my head as the date approached plus I mixed up a batch of special vodka to go with the dinner that I hadn't quite planned.  While Camilla was in the area I sent her an email that said something along the lines of...

"I work this weekend and am really busy on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday but after Mr. Man's Doctor's appointment and before Miss Lu's vision therapy I think that we should get together on Thursday."  Somehow that didn't work out!?!  I am sorry that I was so busy while you were here...  Oh well maybe the next visit... 

The original plan was a nice family dinner then, getting to know my friend and her family and maybe a little booze.

I made an apple cinnamon infused vodka a week or so before, it was as simple as can be.  Into a wide mouthed one liter jar I cut up three gala apples that were nearing the end of their usable life and put  in three cinnamon sticks and and two teaspoons of brown sugar.  Dump a bottle of vodka in and close, set that on the counter for about five days, shake it up a couple of times a day.  After that time pour it through a sieve and into a bottle.

I like this ice cold, it has a warm quality to it and a nice texture and goes down really well, and as a warning it does have the kick of strait vodka so be careful or if you have had a week like mine just cut loose.

Cranberry Vodka

So it is that time of year you know the wonderful warm holiday season where we get to spend time with our family and friends.  That warm magical season of peace and happiness....

Right.

Or maybe it is the season that we need a couple more of these

Yes folks this one is a showstopper!

To infuse the Vodka start like you would with cranberries
1/2 bag of fresh cranberries
1/2 cup of brown sugar
a little bit of water (just to get the cranberries going)
1 bottle of vodka

Put your cranberries, brown sugar and splash of water into a sauce pan and heat.  You want to cook them about half as much as you do for cranberry sauce, so remove from heat when some but not all cranberries have popped.

Pour all the cooked cranberries into a large mouthed jar then add a bottle of vodka.  Here comes the hard part... set it on the counter for about a week.  After the 6-7 days poor through a cheese cloth lined strainer then put it into a bottle, I have been keeping it in the freezer.

To mix this drink pour about 3-4 oz of cranberry vodka into a shaker, top with about a Tablespoon of orange simple syrup and shake.  Strain into a martini glass, this guy is garnished with candied orange peels.  Altogether an great drink and it should take the edge off of any family gathering.

 Maybe after one more I will be ready to put those annoying lawn ornaments outside

S'more Martini

These are the situations that only happen to Kris and me... A couple of weeks ago we had Mr. Man's preschool parent teacher conference. His teacher is almost exactly what you would expect as a leader of 4-5 year old children, very nice, a little loud and just bursting with energy. Kris and I both like her; she takes great care of Mr. Man and overall seems like a good person. Our parent teacher conference went from her telling us how well Mr. Man is doing, he is ready for Kindergarten by the way, to how his academic performance has improved over the past year, and we talked a lot about his social interactions. As the conference started to wind down we were all starting to get a little silly, we were the last one of the day. So as we were heading to the parking lot Kris had said something to MS D. about going out some evening after Mr. Man was out of her class and a few weeks into Kindergarten.


Then MS D. showed us a picture of a drink she had a few days earlier, a S'More Martini. Kris gave me the look and I knew that I was going to be figuring out a new drink. You all know that I enjoy gaining new knowledge… OK you have probably figured out that I like the chance to drink more than I should and call it a learning experience. I tried a few, but as I am pretty sure I have mentioned in the past, you only get maybe 2 attempts at a Martini recipe in a day, after that the taste buds just aren’t as sensitive as you need them.

After a few attempts I came down to this one
3 oz Vodka
1 ½ oz Chocolate Liquor
Marshmallow Cream
Graham Cracker Crumbs
Mini marshmallows on a skewer

Take the marshmallow cream and spread it around the rim of a martini glass I spread it on the top quarter of an inch inside and out, then roll it in the graham cracker crumbs. Put your vodka and chocolate liquor over ice in a cocktail shaker and shake until chilled. Toast your mini marshmallows over the stove top until slightly burned. Pour the chocolaty goodness into your martini glass, garnish with toasted marshmallows. This exact one is below.

How did that go over? I liked it, for Kris it was a bit much… Martinis can be a bit much if you don’t have them often. So I wend back to the drawing board (see the sacrifices that I make). Actually one simple addition made it. Put the vodka and chocolate liquor into your shaker then add a good tablespoon of marshmallow cream and mix with a stick blender (or mix in a blender I suppose) then add ice and shake, every thing else is the same. That is the one pictured at the top of the page, defiantly sweeter and smoother than by original.

Genius

Genius, there is a word that we bandy about a lot... there was Newton, an apple dropped on him and he started to consider gravity. Then that Einstein fellow with the whole relativity thing that he came up with and that E=Mc2 equation, a lot of people have tried to explain that to me... since I am not a genius I don't really get it. Shakespeare, he could really turn a phrase, I watched a high school performance of Hamlet last year and thought how cool it was that 400 years later it is still a gripping almost current story. In the world of art, Chagall made a stained glass window that gave me the shivers every time that I walked past it.


There are genius' out there that we don't always think of or can't put a name too...

Once someone said something along the lines of, "After we let these old potatoes ferment in that water and yeast mixture, why don't we heat it in an enclosed container then take the essence of that distilled beverage and drink it? I think that we should call it ’Vodka!'"

Somewhere else in the world someone said, "Say I have a great idea! why don't we take that fatty meat by the pig's stomach then smoke it in your shed for a couple of days, once that is done I will brine it for a while then in the middle of Winter we can slice it thin, throw it on ma's iron skillet and have it with some eggs."

I always wondered what would have happened if the "potato vodka" genius and the "bacon guy" (tell me that wasn't genius) had got together... what kind of idea would they have come up with. See these are the twisted things that go on in my mind.

Anyway I was at the liquor store a couple of days ago wandering through the Vodka section. When I was in College I only remember about three maybe four kinds of Vodka; Stolichnaya, Smirnoff, Absolute and that rot gut stuff on the bottom shelf that usually made it into my basket. The liquor store that I frequent these days has at least 150 different vodkas to choose from; some infused with lemon, currants, mango, heavy cream, clementine, cotton candy, blueberry, buffalo grass well you get the idea just about anything imaginable. Then I start to wonder what makes a bottle of hooch worth $499.99 not that I will ever shell out five hundred smackers for that bottle in the glass case but someone must. While all these thoughts are going on in my head I see it a few bottles at the end of the aisle, something new, "Bakon" yes folks a BACON flavored VODKA! There was absolutely no way I could pass this up.


I took it home to show my lovely bride my prize, oddly Kris was not as enamored as me with the idea. Add to that my boozy oddity shelf is getting a little crowded. I corked my bottle of bacony hooch and was struck at first with a smoky aroma as I poured it into my glass. The first taste, the thing that I got was the smoky bang then there is a subtle, hard to describe (because it is in a liquid form) meaty finish to it. On the rocks it wasn't my favorite but at room temperature the flavors could bloom and I could taste the full round richness of this drink. Kris described it as inhaling smoke from the fire pit while drinking vodka. The bottle came with two recipes; a chocolate bacon martini (I doubt that I will make that one) and a bacon bloody Mary.

So my friends, here it is Breakfast in a glass:
Double shot of Bacon flavored vodka
5 oz Vegetable juice
dash of Worcestershire sauce
dash of hot sauce
pinch of salt
shake in a cocktail shaker the serve over ice
garnish with celery and cracked pepper

The vegetable juice and the liquid bacon flavor worked well together, instead of obscuring the meaty smokey flavor they  were almost amplified.  Now if I can only think of how to get some fried eggs and I would have the true breakfast of champions.

Happy Thanksgiving!

I usually end up working on Thanksgiving, which means that my first alarm (I am a snoozer) goes off at 3:07 then I trudge off to work after my 40 minute commute into Chicago. Since I like to cook I am still making Dinner, obviously some of the traditional items are off the table... no turkey, which is fine we haven't had that in a couple of years. I have also been doing some little things throughout the week so I am not making everything at the last minute.  One of the things that I have made already is my cranberries.  They sit happily in the bottom of my fridge, untouched... well maybe a couple of bites smaller... waiting for the big meal.

I have seen a couple of recipes for Bourbon and Cranberries floating around this season (here is one) which is the way I usually make mine (this is last year's) but I ran into a problem this year. I didn't really notice it until I was getting my ingredients together, it seems that my bourbon met up with some sweet vermouth and ended up mixed with ice instead of cranberries. So with a quick change of ingredients I am making something completely new Cranberry Sauce with vodka. Maybe to be all fancy I should call them Cosmopolitan Cranberries... then again maybe not.

The process couldn't be easier...

12 oz package of fresh cranberries

Grated peel of one orange

Juice from the same orange

1 Cup sugar

3/4 Cup Vodka

Splash of Triple Sec

A sprinkle of ground cinnamon (I would guess about a 1/4 tsp)

Put all of the ingredients together in a 2 quart sauce pan and cook until the sugar is blended and the cranberries have popped. I had it on kind of low heat because I was doing other things around the kitchen and could watch my pan so this cooked for about 20-25 minutes. When it is all done pour it into your serving dish, cover and cool over night.

One additional note here, I have often heard people say that they have, "cooked all the alcohol out of a dish."  Where I don't always believe that is 100% true a lot of food that is made with wine or booze is fine for the kiddos.  This one is not! It isn't appropriate for your friend after his AA meeting or your kids.  Depending on the rest of your family's kids you might want to slip one of them a shot  bowl. 

Caprese Martini

It has been a heck of a few days at work again, I am beginning to think that it will never calm down.  Well that isn't unexpected business usually picks up this time of year and keeps going until the holidays are past so I imagine things will continue to get busier.  I can handle it though I have a new secret weapon ...

If you follow this blog you know that I have spent a fair amount of time this summer messing with my hooch.  Infusing vodka has been quite a bit of fun.  I have learned a couple of things too.  First, vodka can take on flavors of many fruits, vegetables and aromatics.  Second, you only get to try a new martini recipe once (maybe twice) in a day then the experiment gets a out of hand.  This one is by far my favorite from the summer! I started with basil infused vodka.

The vodka was easy, about 2 cups of vodka with a good stem of basil (7 or 8 leaves) let them "steep" for 3 or 4 days.  Once that is ready you just need set it up. Take about a third of a cup of your basil infused vodka, a splash of dry vermouth and a splash of lemon juice and put them into a cocktail shaker with plenty of ice.
shake away and pour into a martini glass.  I took a couple of grape tomatoes and put them on a bamboo skewer then froze them to use as a garnish, along with a sprig of fresh basil.  That is all there is to it, this one tastes like summer in a glass.

Come home from the crappiest  day of work and shake this baby up and you can relax a bit, at least until the kiddos start the yelling.

Bluberry Vodka

I have been looking at my posts for the summer and the two things that seem to be getting a heck of a work out are my martini glasses and pork tenderloin.  I am sitting here on my day off thinking of what to blog about and all I seem to have ready is a martini and a smoked pork tenderloin recipe.  I have plans to start some other things today but I am so busy...  My plans today include:

Take the kiddos to daycare

Go to Menards

Watch The Next Food Network Star and a 43 year old episode of Star Trek

Eat lunch with my beautiful wife

Get some stuff together for another blog post

Go to the grocery store

Lay in the pool reading with a drink in my hand

Pick up kiddos and make dinner

As you can see my day is full, my thinking is blog about the Martini today then when I am working this weekend take a few minutes of slacker time and post about the Pork Tenderloin, I know the meat comes up a lot, but this the best one that I have done in a while so come back in a couple of days!

This particular drink starts a few weeks ago I made a Green Tea, Mint and Rum drink and a Blogger Friend of mine (I hope that I can call you that) TKW said something along the lines of "I love the way that you take something like green tea, loaded with antioxidants then add hooch to it."  I was joking about her comment at work one day and a Dietitian friend of mine mentioned that Blueberries were filled with antioxidants too.  So I think that it would be perfectly reasonable to say the the following recipe is both Chef and Dietitian approved (maybe without their consent).

Actually after my mind was made up about how healthy this drink would be, this drink was a few weeks in the making.  I started infusing my vodka with blueberries right before my trip to the Surgeon.  Oddly for about three weeks after abdominal surgery I didn't feel like drinking much.  When I found myself, for the most part, recovered I pulled this bottle out of the cupboard and mixed it up.  Here is how it goes.

Mix about a half cup of fresh blueberries and 16 oz of Vodka in a bottle then let them steep for a month until it is a beautiful pinkish purple color, hopefully without a trip to the hospital, but if that is what it takes to keep you out of the hooch then you may have to.

This is the simplest part pour it into a cocktail shaker with some ice and a splash of triple sec then shake.  Garnish with a lemon peel and there you have it.  This is a very sturdy drink, mostly vodka, remember that as you savor the fruity taste, one may be enough, two if you aren't driving... Three will lets just not go there.

Here it is made with Blue Curacao

Greentini or maybe Greenteane

Ok a few days ago I posted a recipe for a green tea and rum cocktail... it is a really good beverage for a summer afternoon, imagine laying on an Adirondack chair and slowly drinking this.  After I posted this a good blogger friend of mine TKW mentioned how she appreciated me taking something full of antioxidants and adding rum to it. 

Then my brain started going...What if?  

I have infused Vodka with different flavors before but I have never done this.  Here is, the base... Green tea and mint infused Vodka:

12 oz Vodka

1 1/2 green tea bags broken open

1 big sprig of mint (about 10 leaves)

put these into a bottle together and shake up and let it sit in your cupboard for 24 hours or so.

When it is all green and tasty you have your Vodka ready, pour that through a paper towel in a strainer and what you have left is essence of green tea vodka

Now my drinking friend here is where it gets cool!  Take about a half cup of your infused vodka and pour it into a cocktail shaker with a good amount of ice a Tablespoon of simple syrup and shake.  Put this elixir into a martini class and garnish with a sprig of mint.  Now if you follow this blog you probability know that I have been known to imbibe a bit of drink sometimes but I have to say that this one knocked me on by butt... wow!  Bright, minty and an icy smack of sunshine in a cocktail glass.

Cocktails for the Cookout

My lovely bride and I both had kind of hard weeks this week which got me thinking about a Friday afternoon cocktail. It is spring bordering on summer so a Martini is the first thing that I think of. It seems like only a few years ago the Martini stopped being an"Old Man" beverage (think Manhattan or Old Fashion people make fun of me when I order these). In recent years Martinis have become trendy again. Since it is almost Memorial day I thought I would do Red, White and Blue Martinis. Mix them for your guests as they arrive for the cookout or make them up ahead and keep in the refrigerator. All of these are made with Vodka because I never did learn to like Gin. I use a Cocktail Shaker because I like to. Some people say there is a difference between shaken and stirred Gin Martinis but I can't tell.

White is simple I use a "Dirty Martini" because I like them.

3 oz Vodka

Splash of Dry Vermouth about 1/2 oz

Splash of Olive Brine

Put all ingredients into a shaker with a generous amount of ice cover and shake. Poor into a Martini Glass and garnish with a few olives.

Red is the new classic "Cosmo"

2 oz Vodka

1 oz Triple Sec

1 oz Cranberry juice

a splash of lemon or lime juice

Put all ingredients into the shaker with ice, Shake and Poor into a Martini Glass and Garnish with a Lemon zest. Sometimes I add a little Grenadine to intensify the color.

The Blue one doesn't have a name that I know of so call it what you like:

3 oz Vodka

1 oz Blue Curacao

Splash of Lemon or lime juice

Again Shake, Strain and Serve ice cold usually I garnish this with a Lemon zest too.

I have to say that Martinis, especially the sweet ones can get away from you, if you know what I mean. Be sure to eat well while you are enjoying them (I will have some cookout recipes later this week) and drink lots of water. Wow I never thought I would lecture about that!