Tag Archives: adult drinks

Home Entertaining, Food, Lifestyle

Two Drink Recipes, for a Nice Summer Afternoon Spritz

Comment
Enjoy an afternoon wine spriz

Bringing you 2 fabulous spritz drinks to help you keep cool during California’s dog days of summer-early fall.

It’s not the end of summer in California until we endure those final “dog days” through early fall. It’ll be boiling here until Halloween! Sad for most kids because they’ve started school by now. Nice for us adults because we can sneak a dip into the pool with a nice spritzer before the kids get home from school!

When entertaining at home, we look for smooth, refreshing adult beverages for our guests. The easiest and most refreshing are the spritzes; a simple combination of wine (sparkling or not) and soda.  You can add liquors or bitters to alter the flavors. They’re really the easiest of cocktails to mix. You can watch me mix the Aperol Spritz here on my video.

Fun fact: Why are the last of the hottest days of the year called “dog days”?

Answer: Because at that time of the year, the constellation Canis Major (the big dog) starts appearing in the sky. The brightest star in that constellation is Sirius, which in Latin means dog – thus, the star is known as the dog star.

And I thought that it was just because dogs tend to lay about and snooze during the day when it’s hottest. I’ll figure out how to work this bit of trivia into my next cocktail patio party when I serve these simple and refreshing drinks. As always, use the largest ice cubes you can to avoid diluting the drinks.

I’ll start with the Aperol spritz I found on Epicurious.com.

If you love the taste of grapefruit and are excited about a drink that blends the taste of orange and some bubbly, then you’ll really enjoy this drink. It’s become one of my most favorite—especially during those hot “dog days.”

Pour into a large wine glass filled with large rocks of ice, and stir:

  • 2 ounces of Aperol (an Italian apéritif with a complex orange flavor).
  • 2 ounces of sparkling white wine (I use Valdo Prosecco, extra dry in my video)
  • 1 ounce of freshly squeezed grapefruit juice (prefer “ruby red” variety).
  • A “splash” of soda water to taste.
  • ½ Grapefruit wheel as garnish (also “ruby red”).

Maybe citrus isn’t your flavor. That’s okay. Here’s another recipe from Epicurious that’s a bit sweeter. The base is the French liqueur St. Germain, made from elderflower. So, prepare for some floral brightness from this spritz.

Pour into a large wine glass filled with large rocks of ice, stir gently:

  • 4 ounces of sparkling white wine (again, I suggest Valdo Prosecco, extra dry)
  • 1½ ounces St. Germain liqueur
  • Splash of club soda to taste
  • A sprig of fresh cut lavender to garnish

Serving tip: I prefer serving these drinks in large stemless wine glasses. There’s a lot of liquid and ice here, and the drink might be a little top heavy if you try to mix and serve these spritzes in stemware. Either drink goes well with cold cut fruit to fight off the heat of the afternoon. Makes me think of sitting back on a balcony, enjoying a sunset overlooking the Grand Canal in Venice with friends.

Enjoy!

Home Entertaining, Table Top, Lifestyle

8 Must-Have Items for your Home Bar

Comment
8 must-have home bar

Spare yourself the last-minute run-around – get these 8 handy home bar tools now.   

Next to food, drinks are a main hospitality ‘go-to’ especially if you plan to get serious with home entertaining. Of course, I’m talking specifically about adult mixed drinks. Whether you plan to mix something as complex as a Commonwealth (with 71 different ingredients!) or as simple as a Negroni (equal parts, 3 ingredients), you need some essential bar tools.

Before you wave me off and say, “Fran – I’ll improvise,” think about all the tools you have for preparing and serving food. As my dad always said, “You’ve got to have the right tools for the right job.” You wouldn’t forget spoons or forks, would you? Serving plates and bowls? How about cookware and a set of wooden cooking spoons?  We all have our ‘must haves’ in our kitchens.

So, why is it any different for the home bar? If all you have today is a bottle opener, one rusty cork puller, and a single shot glass, it’s time. Intimidated? Don’t be. Just about every mix recipe you find online and in books comes with careful step-by-step instructions on what to use, how, and when. You’ll be mixing like a pro in absolutely no time at all. The best part, your mixed drinks will actually taste better, they’ll look more appetizing, and you’ll have more fun mixing them!

Here’s your list of the 8 ‘must-have’ bartending tools for your home bar:

  1. A high-quality stainless steel jigger is basically two measuring cups stuck together to form a kind of hour-glass shape. Typically, the bigger end measures 1½ ounce (or “one jigger”), and the other measures ¾ ounces (or a “half jigger”) – the most common measurements for drink ingredients. Pay attention to the jigger that you buy as some of them are 1 ounce and ½ ounce. The OXO has measurements inside each cup so you can use it for ANY drink recipe.  This is an indispensable tool for mixing up perfect drinks every time. No conversion with cups or measuring spoons, and no clumsy messing around with shot glasses.
  2. Good ice cube molds are much better than the regular ice trays you have for daily use. First, you want larger cubes for your drink as they melt slower than normal or smaller cubes and keep drinks colder longer without diluting it. Secondly, there are all sorts of fun shapes and sizes – ones that will fill a standard highball glass with a big cube or a single sphere. You can find very nice “ice molds” from Tovolo, Rabbit Wine, and W&P Design.
  3. Muddlers are extremely handy for extracting the oils and flavor from mint leaves or other herbs – even fruit. With fruit, you can ‘muddle’ with gusto, but with herbs and citrus peels, I suggest a gentler touch because over-muddling can produce a bitter taste. Use muddlers for mixing mojitos, mint juleps, and caipiroska (a tasty vodka drink with lime wedges and sugar muddled together).
  4. There’s nothing more indispensable than a two-piece cocktail shaker. When you shake a drink, it not only chills it properly but also creates the proper dilution and aeration (adding air) for the beverage. Get a separate strainer if yours doesn’t come with one – you don’t want the errant bits of ice poured into your glass.
  5. You’ll need a bar spoon – for stirred cocktails – Manhattan or Martini (if you’re not James Bond) or mixes with floating layers. They’re long handled and narrow (teaspoons are too short and too wide). This one from OXO can spin while you stir, which is kinda fun!
  6. A fresh fruit juicer is important for many, many cocktails – lemons, limes, oranges or even pomegranates. Buy one large enough that can handle most citrus.
  7. Good garnishes are important for great mixed drinks, so don’t skimp. Use fresh fruit, herbs, and high-quality cherries and onions. Absolutely avoid neon colored cherries – they look bad and taste terrible. I recommend Luxardo maraschino cherries and Reese sour cocktail onions.
  8. Cocktail books are also important to have around, even if you have some experience. Don’t go crazy and get a “masters” level ‘mixology’ book unless you have master-level skills. Start easy and simple, like “The Bartender’s Black Book” – 150 easy-to-read, simple to mix recipes, along with useful mixing tips.

There are lots of places to go for bar tools. I like the selection and quality of OXO. You can also find some great tools from Crate&Barrel and Sur la Table. Happy mixing!