Thirsty Thursday: Raspberry Grapefruit Keto Cocktail

After my mishap with the vodka tonic, I had to try to redeem myself.  This was the result.  Pretty tasty, and it rolls in at 3.3 carbs for a double (tall) drink.

INGREDIENTS (per cocktail):
6 raspberries
4 mint leaves
1 packet Splenda
2 oz vodka
juice from 1/4 grapefruit
ice
sparkling water 

DIRECTIONS:
Muddle the mint and raspberries in the bottom of the glass, and add the Splenda.  Top with vodka & stir.  Add ice to about halfway up the glass, and then top with the sparkling water.  Garnish with grapefruit, mint & a raspberry.

Calories: 145 

Thirsty Thursday (Primo Edition): No Throw Solo

Happy Valentine's Day!  You might be expecting a holiday-themed cocktail...and you'd be right...just not THAT holiday.

My cousin Primo messaged me over the weekend with this new cocktail recipe, so I had to get it posted for this week!  Since Mardi Gras season is in full swing down in in New Orleans, he created this as his cocktail special to run through Fat Tuesday (March 5 this year).  If you're going to be in NOLA for Carnival season, head over to La Bayou, say hey to Primo, and order one up...or you can make it at home.

INGREDIENTS:
1.5 oz Scotch (Primo uses Grant's Family Reserve)
1 oz dry Riesling (Kung Fu Girl)
1 oz pineapple juice
1/2 oz Thyme simple syrup (recipe below)

DIRECTIONS:
Combine all ingredients in a shaker with ice.  Serve over ice and garnish with a sprig of fresh thyme (and charred pineapple, if you have the means).

P.S. Don't forget to follow Primo's newest culinary adventure, Snaxidermy, a pop-up restaurant serving up killer creations like Texas brisket tacos and smoked rib sliders.

Thyme Simple Syrup:
1 cup water
1 cup white sugar
handful of fresh thyme

Combine sugar, water, and thyme sprigs in a small saucepan. Bring mixture to a boil over medium-high, stirring until sugar dissolves. Remove from heat, and cool to room temperature(~30 minutes). Strain to remove thyme sprigs. Store in the fridge in an airtight container.

Thirsty Thursday: Fentimans & Strawberry Infused Vodka!

Last spring I shared a post about making homemade infused strawberry vodka, using the leftover tops from strawberries.  Well, we're still doing it, and lemme tell ya...it's amazing. The longer it infuses, the more it mellows.  And it's taken on a gorgeous pink hue from the strawberries. (I've got a couple other infusions going as well...stay tuned.)

Also earlier in 2018, the Hubs & I brewed up some homemade ginger ale (non-alcoholic), and we split the batch to ferment half, making hard ginger beer.  Aside from it being a little explosive (because of the champagne yeast we used), it's tasty stuff, providing you like ginger.  This is like, Goslings or Q spicy ginger beer, not like Seagrams or Canada Dry sweet soda.  Like, burn-yer-nose-make-ya-sneeze ginger level.

As it turns out, our neighbor Neil is quite a fan of ginger beer, so we delivered a 6 pack to his door.  And in return, he gave us a mixed pack of Fentimans soda.  Because, you see, Neil is a Brit.  And not just any Brit, but co-owner of locally famous food truck London Calling.  You wanna eat lunch in a legit double-decker bus?  They've got you covered.

In addition to delicious pasties (like, a hand-held pot pie, or if Hot Pockets were made of real food), they offer other British imports like Walkers chips/crisps, candy, and English Fentiman's sodas. And their mall location also has UK import beers that are hard to find in this area (like Innis & Gunn).

The chicken tikka masala is my current favorite.

Lil' Man is a big fan of the Wotsits. And the sausage rolls.

So, we were savoring our stockpile of sodas, and finally popped open this one, which was just begging to be made into a cocktail.

INGREDIENTS: (per cocktail)

2 oz strawberry infused vodka (you could also make it with regular vodka)

4-5 ounces of Fentiman's soda

lots of crushed ice

strawberry to garnish (note: I think some fresh mint would also work great in this.)

DIRECTIONS:  

Fill your glass with crushed ice, and add the vodka. Then top with the soda and stir to mix.  Garnish with strawberry and enjoy!

We made two versions, one with just plain vodka (so essentially a screwdriver), and the other with the strawberry infused.  We both agree that the strawberry version was much smoother.  Slainte!

Thirsty Thursday: Strawberry Ginger Smash with Homemade Ginger Beer

In case you didn't know, the Hubs (and me, technically...I'm more of an assistant) is a home brewer.  We've been brewing for several years now.  It's a fun if periodically frustrating hobby (like most hobbies, probably), that gives you a tangible result in the end...that can also get you buzzed.  Earlier this year we decided to branch out from our usual beermaking to make some spicy ginger beer from an extract kit we found at our local homebrewing store.

The full packet makes 16 Liters, so we bottled four 2-Liters, and then put the rest in the fermenter with some yeast.  The yeast gobbles up some of the sugar and converts it to alcohol, and boom...you have hard ginger beer.

BOOM, is right...since we decided to use champagne yeast.  Which not surprisingly, makes the bottles fizz up like crazy when you open them...much like a bottle of champagne.

Anyway, aside from those incidents, it's tasty stuff...providing you like ginger. Like, REALLY like ginger.  This stuff will go up your nose and make you cough.

Much like the other super-spicy ginger beer, Q, this makes an excellent moscow mule. Or Dark & Stormy  But since we've already made those here before, I wanted to try something a little different.

INGREDIENTS: (per cocktail)
4 hulled strawberries
1 tsp honey
5-7 mint leaves (note: I think this would be equally delicious with basil)
1/2 lime juice
3-4 oz strawberry infused vodka 
8 oz homemade ginger beer 
Crushed ice

DIRECTIONS:
Place the strawberries, mint, and honey in the bottom of the glass and muddle with a wooden spoon.  Then top with crushed ice.

Add the lime juice, vodka, and ginger beer.  Garnish as desired.  Kick back and enjoy with a nice cheese plate.

Featured cheese: Mango Ginger Stilton

Slainte!

Thirsty Thursday: Infused Strawberry Vodka & a Cocktail!

Hey there folks!  I decided to share this tasty concoction in honor of the Ponchatoula Strawberry Festival, going on this weekend in Ponchatoula, Louisiana.  If you're anywhere nearby, I highly recommend attending.  It's family friendly, lots of fun, and you get to eat a LOT of strawberry foods.  And pick up a few flats of fresh Louisiana strawberries, of course.

NOTE: I did not come up with this stroke of brilliance. I got it from a "moms who drink" group I follow on Facebook. Because that is TOTALLY OKAY. No judgement here.  

So one of the moms noted that her kids go through a ton of strawberries over the summer, so she started keeping a jar of vodka in her fridge, and would just throw the strawberry tops into the jar and let them infuse over time.  A light went off in my head--"we eat strawberries--like almost a pint a week! I can totally do that!"  

So I did.  I used 360 Vodka (made in Missouri), and just threw in my strawberry tops as I cut them off each day.  When the jar got too full, I would use tongs to fish the strawberry tops out, squeeze them out as much as possible, and then continue to put more strawberry tops in.  Probably did that for about a month before we tried it.

Y'all...this doesn't even need a mixer.  But because I'm a lightweight, I added some Fresca.  And it was DELIGHTFUL.

(Editor's note: These pics are not great.  I was in a rush, so I apologize.  But still.  DO IT.  You will thank me.)

Thirsty Thursday: Sparkling Greyhound

I have really been on a sparkling water kick.  I'm trying to cut back on my soda consumption--I generally only drink diet soda's, but I noticed I don't feel great after drinking one.  But I still want carbonation.  So I've been trying out different sparkling water brands.  So far, my favorite has to be Hyvee's brand grapefruit sparkling water (which we can generally get on sale for like $2-2.50 per 12 pack).  However, I really like Perrier as well (it's just a little pricier).  It reminds me of our honeymoon in Europe--everywhere we ate, if we ordered water, the server would say "gas, no gas?"  "Gas" of course being carbonated water.

So, this is yet another one of those "what do we have in the house" cocktails.  And at the time, we had some lime flavored Perrier, some grapefruit juice (for a grapefruit blonde beer we were brewing), and of course, Missouri's own 360 Vodka.

While I'm not a cocktail connoisseur, I do know that a orange & vodka is a Screwdriver, orange/cran juice and vodka is a Madras, and a grapefruit and vodka is a Greyhound. So, by adding in the Perrier, we have a delicious and refreshing Sparkling Greyhound!  BONUS: This is also relatively low calorie--only 173 calories per 12 oz glass! (For comparison, the same amount of red wine would be over 250 calories.)

INGREDIENTS (makes two cocktails, ~8% ABV each)

2 large glasses, half-full of crushed ice (man, I love our new ice dispenser on our fridge)

2 oz vodka

4 oz grapefruit juice

4-6 oz sparkling water (whatever flavor, or unflavored, that you like)

DIRECTIONS:

Combine vodka and juice in the glass with the ice and stir, then top with the sparkling water.  Garnish with lime or grapefruit wedge (if you have it).  

Cheers!

Thirsty Thursday: Peach Brandy Fizz

I'll be honest with you--it's rare that I set out to make a *specific* cocktail.  Most of the time, it's literally just a "hrm...what do we have? Okay...those taste good together!"  And then I think I'm brilliant for having "invented" a new cocktail.

This is one of those cases.  However, have much research (read: 10 seconds of Googling), I realize that what I effectively made here is a brandy fizz.  A traditional brandy fizz has: brandy, lemon, sugar, and club soda.  But I simplified those last three ingredients by using citrus sparkling water.

And honestly, this is also a cocktail born of necessity... because I necessarily needed to get this Aquafina sparkling water out of my house.  It's...it's not great.  I mean...it's okay.  But pretty 'meh'. I'm fairly sure it was born to be a mixer.  And so it was.

INGREDIENTS:

large glass

crushed ice (can you tell I'm in love with our new fridge that magically dispenses crushed ice from the door???)

4 oz peach brandy

6 oz Aquafina sparkling water (we had the orange grapefruit version)

pineapple (for garnish)

DIRECTIONS:

Combine & serve.  Note: the sparkling water has no sweetener in it, but peach brandy is generally plenty sweet. If you need more sweetness, however, add a little sugar or Truvia or whatever your heart desires.  You gotta drink it, not me. :)

Enjoy!

Thirsty Thursday: Bourbon Slush (Sequiota Bike Shop)

Hey--remember those crazy kids who used to own an ice cream shop as a "side business" because they thought it'd be "easy"?  What a hoot!

Oh wait...that was us.

So, if you recall, a few years ago we sold our business to some friends (veteran restauranteurs). I can't recall if we ever did an update, but they have truly transformed that location. It's now the Sequiota Bike Shop--they have a great menu of sandwiches, a full-on outdoor dining area and bar, just a really fun space.  They even do bike rentals. 

Our formerly awkward parking lot is now a lovely covered seating area (perfect for those drizzly-but-still-warm days)...

And for every other day, there's an outdoor bar in the back, plenty of seating, oh, and they even added a fire pit for those slightly cooler days.

The interior of the building was reorganized and the indoor seating was removed to give them some much needed additional space inside for workers, where they crank out some of the tastiest sandwiches in town.  No fryers to mess with, so they serve up sides like chips, housemade soup, and potato salad instead.  It's a really smart use of a small space (about 600 sq feet).

Jamis Roast Beef sandwich.

The Hubs & I like to stop by periodically to have a drink (great local beer selection) and share a sandwich (our personal favorite is the Finnegan's Reuben). 

Soooo good.

It's always a little bittersweet because we have so many stressful memories tied to that business and location, but I'm honestly very happy for our friends.  They've done more with it than we ever could have.

Anyway, enough gushing.  Bring on the booze!

Sweet tea bourbon slush.

So, Bike Shop has a rotating menu of slush cocktails, made with Four Roses Bourbon.  As much as I love my beer, it's hard to not get a slush when I go.

Watermelon mint slush.

Simple, cold, refreshing. And I do not have the recipe, so I cannot replicate it here.  So I guess you're just going to have to go try one for yourself.

Granted, we are in October....in Missouri.  Where it can be 70 one day and 40 the next.  But I still think Bike Shop is a great destination for this time of year.  Because if it's 70, you get a slush. If it's 40, then you grab a chair by the fire and ask for a spiked cocoa,coffee, or chai instead.

They also frequently have live music, so if you don't have a kiddo (or are lucky enough to have one old enough to leave at home, or better yet, be your DD), it's a great place to kick back in the evenings.  It's like your own back yard...but better.

Cheers!

Thirsty Thursday: Moscow Mule

My last trip down south, my buddy Dre introduced me to Q Ginger Beer.  If you like ginger, you will LOVE this stuff. If you don't like ginger...well, you should probably steer clear.  There was a time when I thought Gosling's was intense.  This stuff...man.  If the first sip doesn't make you cough, you're a tougher mother than myself.  Big, bold, peppery, the heat of ginger, all in a fizzy cold soda. It's crazy.

Dre's sweet handmade man-cave bar in the background.

So Dre made me a Moscow Mule with Q, and I was hooked. I immediately went to Target & picked some up when I got home and made drinks for The Hubs & I that next week. (Note: I do not have the fancy copper mugs. Sorry.)

INGREDIENTS: 
Large glass
crushed ice (our new fridge dispenses crushed ice. I'm so spoiled now.)
1-2 oz lime juice (start w/1 oz, and if you need a little more to offset the burn of the ginger beer you can add more)
2 oz vodka (we like 360 Vodka, made in Missouri!)
6 oz Q ginger beer

DIRECTIONS:
Pour lime juice & vodka over ice.  Top with ginger beer and add lime wedge for garnish. Enjoy!

Note: I also had a killer Bloody Mary this same trip. So if you're flying through New Orleans (MSY), stop by the Atrium Bar (D Terminal) and ask for one.  (I am easily bribed by lots of free pickled snacks in my drinks, obviously.)

Thirsty Thursday: The Riff Off (Toup's Meatery, New Orleans)

Last week I made my quarterly jaunt down to Louisiana for work.  After wrapping up all my site visits, I was rewarded by sharing an amazing dinner with my cousin Primo at Toup's Meatery.  This place has been on our radar for a while, and we finally got around to visiting.

(Photo Source: nola.eater.com)

Owner Isaac Toups may be familiar to you if you're a fan of Top Chef--he finished third on the 13th season of the show. But Toups Meatery has been around since 2012.  As opposed to Blue Oak BBQ, which sits catty-corner across Carrolton Ave and hosts a more laid-back vibe, the Meatery is more upscale, with low lights, small packed tables, plenty of ambient chatter, featuring a few local beers, double-digit cocktails and entrees ranging from $20-40.  Primo & I decided to start with the smoked trout deviled eggs, and then share the Meatery Board: $25 for a selection of their available house-made meats, pickled veg, and condiments.

Smoked Trout Deviled Eggs, topped with cracklin, pickled jalapeno, and trout roe.

Note: I swiped this photo from their Instagram--the low lighting inside didn't do much for my photos.

The Meatery Board didn't disappoint.  We enjoyed tasting our way through the variety of offerings, particularly the pickled wax beans, grilled jalapeno, housemade dill pickles, ginger sesame sausage, boudin ball, chicken-pork terrine with brandied cherries, and candied pork belly...

See...low lighting makes for crappy pics, and I can't bring myself to use a flash or bring in extra lighting.

...and OHHHH the rillons...I mean...pork belly is amazing in pretty well any form.

(Delicious photo borrowed from Tabelog.)

To accompany this, I selected the "Riff Off" from their cocktail menu.  While the name of course appealed my love of Pitch Perfect, the server's description of its contents sealed the deal.

Ingredients:

Plum Liqueur

Chicory Bitters

French Sparkling Cider

It's like fall, in a glass.  And it paired beautifully with the ginger/sesame sausage.

All in all, if you're a fan of tasty cocktails and housemade meats, this is a must for your "to dine" list. I do recommend getting a reservation, since even the bar was packed when we visited (8pm on a Friday).

Thirsty Thursday: Peach Muscadine Sangria

I picked up this bottle of wine during my last trip down to Louisiana, knowing that we had an upcoming BBQ for our 5th wedding anniversary.  It seemed like a perfect way to add a little "Cajun" flair to our party!  

In the past, I've not had a lot of good luck with Louisiana wines--primarily because the grape that grows the best in Louisiana is the muscadine.  It's a beautiful, GIANT grape with a thick skin, native to the southeastern states with a slightly odd sweet taste that in my past experiences has resulted in an overly sweet wine.  However, it seems that Landry Vineyards has managed to tame the wild muscadine, resulting in a light, semi-sweet, very drinkable peach blend.  I would have been perfectly content to sip this chilled from a glass all by itself on our back porch...but I promised our friends a peach sangria!

I was really pleased with how this turned out.  Very light, drinkable, not overly sweet, perfect for a summer BBQ!

INGREDIENTS:
1 bottle (750mL) peach muscadine wine (you could sub another white fruit blend if you can't find this exact one)
1 cup peach brandy
1/4 cup lime juice
2 cans ginger ale
Fresh Fruit: 2 peaches, 1 apple, 1 orange, washed

DIRECTIONS:
The morning of the day you plan on serving (or the night before if you'll be having with brunch), slice up your fruit and add to a pretty pitcher.  Pour in the lime juice, brandy, wine, and ginger ale, stir, and then cover to help preserve the effervescence.  Place in the fridge for at least 2-3 hours, then serve to your guests! Use the bits of fruit as garnish. Enjoy!

Thirsty Thursday: Candied Praline

I'm so glad to see the weather outside finally warming up so we can enjoy our porch!  Well...when it's not raining and soaking our chair cushions.  Apparently some of those April showers got delayed.  We can probably blame DFW airport--I always seem to get stuck there too. :)

I've been having a lot of fun coming up with things to use this Praline Liqueur  from New Orleans in.  So far, we've used it to sweeten up an Irish Channel coffee and add a nutty hint to pineapple upside down pancakes.  Then I whipped up this cocktail the other night to enjoy out on the porch after work.  The ginger ale helps to balance out the sweetness of the liqueur.  And for fun, I threw a little chiffonade of basil in there for the aromatics.

INGREDIENTS:
1 oz Praline Liqueur
4 oz ginger ale
Ice
basil chiffonade (optional)

DIRECTIONS:
Muddle basil with ice, and then add the liqueur and ginger ale.  Drink outside.  Enjoy!

Thirsty Thursday: Pink Carnation Punch (A Mother's Day Cocktail)

So, this year I celebrated my first Mother's Day.  My husband asked me for a list of ideas, and so I sent him this:

I know you keep asking and I keep saying I don’t know, so here’s some ideas:

-        I would like to sleep in.

-        I would like a mimosa or other cocktail at some point in the day.  Maybe two.

-        I would like to go for a walk or to the park since the weather should be nice.

-        Maybe dinner or lunch somewhere? I would like to not cook that day.

-        A foot and/or back massage.

-        A decent looking picture of the baby & I together and/or all three of us.

-        A reminder to call my mom & talk to her for a little while.

And I would have been utterly happy with just a couple of them.  Particularly that first one. (I mean...there's a reason it's first.)  But my amazing husband made ALL of them happen...even though we were all under the weather that weekend and not feeling 100%.  

• The baby woke up at 7am, so he got up with him while I slept in 'til 8:30am.
• He made me biscuits & gravy (from scratch) for breakfast, and then grilled pork steaks & sweet potatoes for lunch (leftovers of the same for dinner).  
• The weather was iffy, so we did a 20 minute walk through our neighborhood instead of going to the park.
• I got a foot massage while I played on the floor with the baby.
• We [eventually] got out of our pajamas so that Baby J & I could take a pic together on the porch (this request was inspired by an article I read earlier in the week about how there are so few pictures of mother and child together because the mother is usually the one behind the camera).
• And I called and chatted with my mom for about 45 minutes after lunch.

Oh...and he made me this cocktail as an afternoon aperitif.  

Since carnations are the most traditional Mother's Day flowers, I thought that would make an appropriate name, given the color.  It was quite tasty and just thrown together from things we had in the fridge.  The basil, pineapple, & cherry garnish really made it special (plus, I mean...fruit!  Now it's healthy, right?)

Bouquet in the background is from Baby J's daycare.

  

INGREDIENTS:

1.5 oz vodka

3-4 oz strawberry lemonade (cold)

1 Tbsp grenadine (okay...maraschino cherry juice.  Whatever you have.)

1 tsp agave syrup 

3-4 oz ginger ale (or 7Up Ten if you're looking to save a few calories), chilled

DIRECTIONS:

Combine the vodka, lemonade, grenadine, and agave syrup in a tall fluted glass, then pour your fizzy soda of choice over the top.  Garnish with a couple fresh basil leaves, fresh pineapple, and a maraschino cherry.

NOTE: If your lemonade and soda aren't chilled before hand, you can shake the first four ingredients over ice, and then add the soda... or just serve over ice in a pint glass or mason jar.  

Enjoy on your back porch while gazing adoringly at your husband and infant son... while also perhaps smirking about the clash-tastic outfit said amazing husband managed to put together for said infant.

Chillaxin' while watching church online since we were all under the weather.

Thirsty Thursday: Jumping the Shark (Ginger, Lime & Spiced Rum Cocktail)

Have you heard of the show "Bar Rescue"?  It's on Spike, and it's one of those shows that tends to marathon at random times and makes a decent background noise--even though I'm relatively sure the host is part of the mob and has a voice that really grates the nerves after a while.

"I amuse you? I make you laugh? Funny how?"

You can probably figure out the premise--there's a bar, they're in debt and losing business, due to bad management/poor employees/bad service, whathaveyou.  Mob Boss swoops in, yells at them for a while, gives the owner/manager a pep talk, while his assistants revamp the menu, teach them some new signature drinks--and oh yeah, usually completely change the decor and the name of the bar.  Lingerie bar in Detroit?  Boom--now it's car themed.  Irish bar in the Midwest? BAM--now you're an ol' western saloon.  Tavern in Tampa?  Guess what?  Now you're a tiki bar.  

Sure, it's schticky, but if nothing else, we at least learn a few new cocktail recipes.  This is from the one that ended up as a tiki bar, but we've put a Cajun spin on it, using some Bayou Rum from Lacassine, LA.

INGREDIENTS:
2 oz Bayou Spiced Rum
1/2 oz Agave syrup
1 oz lime juice
4-6 oz ginger ale

DIRECTIONS:
Fill a pint glass with ice and add the rum, syrup, and lime juice, then cover and shake.  Pour into a glass with ice and top with the ginger ale.  Enjoy!