Lillet Summer Cooler

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I've been pondering just how I will do this.

Go into great detail?

Jump right in, ignoring the obvious?

Fix us all a light summer cocktail and celebrate?

I think option number three is going to win out.

So why am I celebrating? My return to blogging. It's been disconcerting to be away for so long. Like a part of me has been missing.

Enough. I'm here. Let's raise our glasses to friends, family, dear bloggers near and far, good food to come, and a great summer cocktail.

First, a little back story:

Our youngest son attends art school in Portland where he and his lovely wife make their home. He is also a licensed bartender. When Mr CC and I visited them recently (during an intense heatwave), Miles first made us a wonderfully refreshing non-alcoholic drink from South Africa, recipe courtesy of Evangelina, called a Rock Shandy. This drink incorporates equal parts organic sparkling lemonade and ginger ale, a few dashes of Angostura bitters, and is served in a tall glass with lots of ice.

Mmmm, bitters. Angostura is the most popular brand. Peychaud's Bitters is traditionally used in a Sazerac, which, should you find yourself in Portland, can be made for your imbibing enjoyment at Hoyt 23 in the historic Alphabet District.

That was my first taste of bitters. Since then I've purchased my very own bottle and have put bitters in my orange juice, on my scrambled eggs, on grilled fish, fresh sliced tomatoes; it seems there is no end to how you can use them. I find the Peychaud's has the best flavor for food and for this little cooler.

Which brings us back to the subject of my celebratory post - that which you see in the photo above: the Lillet Summer Cooler. Named by yours truly and inspired by bitters, I had an epiphany and asked the bartender at Hoyt 23 make one for me. I must confess to needing to come down a few notches from having had a Sazerac the night before. (Not for the timid, I can tell you.)

Lillet (pronounced lee-lay) is a delightful apéritif from the Bordeaux region of France. A combination of wine, orange liqueurs, fruit and herbs, it is supremely wonderful on a hot summer evening, served very cold, with light appetizers. I think my version makes sipping doubly delightful.

Lillet Summer Cooler

Christine's original recipe (so far as I know)

Fill a tall glass (8-ounces or more) with ice. Pour in 3-ounces of Lillet (white) and several dashes of Peychaud's Bitters (I think I did 4-5 dashes, but I really like it.) Give it a stir then fill the glass with a low to no sodium seltzer. Peel a 1/8-inch wide by 2-inch long strip from a Meyer lemon, leaving the white pith off. Twist the lemon strip over the drink to release the essential oils and drop it into the glass.

Sip slowly and enjoy.

Cook's Notes:
> Yes I know, 3 ounces is a lot of alcohol but, in my defense, it does get diluted by the ice and seltzer.
> Lots of links. When I get excited about something, I want to share.

Copyright © 2005-2009, Christine Cooks. All rights reserved

Easter Brunch: New And Improved Heart Healthy Pancakes

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If it's worth doing once, then twice, isn't it worth doing a third time just to get it right?

Running with that premise, I offer the new, taste-improved, now even heart-healthier, delicious mini-pancake. The addition of cooked, cholesterol-busting steel-cut oats is what makes this a pancake worth crowing about. Health factors notwithstanding, the addition of the oats give this pancake a delicious nutty taste and a texture your tongue will enjoy. All that, and the fact that I'm so into heart-healthy foods right now, I keep tweaking an already good recipe to make it fabulous.

Have I succeeded? I think so. But don't believe me; try them for yourself. Go on, they're good for you. You'll thank me later.

Here, sip on a pomegranate-champagne cocktail while you read on.

Christine's New and Improved, Heart-Healthy Mini-Pancakes
A recipe inspired by Eating Stella Style
Ingredients:
1/2 cup egg substitute (or you could use 2 whole eggs)
1/4 cup water
2 teaspoons good vanilla extract (no sugar added)
1/3 cup almond meal (finely ground almonds)
1/4 cup organic flax seed meal
2 tablespoons Splenda granular (or you could use regular table sugar)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
pinch salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2/3 cup cooked steel cut oats, cooled to room temperature
Preparation:
Combine the eggs, water and vanilla extract.
In a large, combine the almond meal, flax seed meal, sweetener, baking powder, baking soda, salt & cinnamon and combine well with a whisk.
Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir with the whisk until combined.
Add the cooked oats and stir to fully blend.
Allow to sit for 5 minutes to thicken.
Place a cast iron skillet or griddle over medium heat and spray with non-stick spray.
When the pan is hot, drop the batter in 1/4 cup measurements into the pan. Do not crowd.
Cook until the bottom is firm when lifted with a spatula then flip to finish the other side.
The pancake is done when it springs back when gently prodded with a finger.

Serve with a dollop of the best plain yogurt you can find, some perfectly fresh, ripe fruit, and, of course, your champagne cocktail.

It's a lovely way to celebrate Spring.

Copyright © 2005-2007, Christine Cooks. All rights reserved.

The Faraway

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At last!

While deep in the New Hampshire woods this past fall at my dear friend Erika's family get-away home, we gathered around the massive stone fireplace, the flaming logs within keeping us warm against the night chill, and toasted to lasting friendships with this cobbled together version of a Cosmopolitan.

Christened "The Faraway", after the name of her family holding, we put this together with what ingredients were on hand, the grocers being at least 6 miles away, down country lanes, in the deep, dark night.

When Mr. CC and I returned home in October I had every intention of posting this delicious concoction immediately but couldn't find the recipe, having left it, as it turns out, back in New Hampshire.

Now sometimes recipes are important and other times not. This one belongs in the former category because, lacking a recipe in the first place, we'd made it up. You can't very well make up another recipe to replace the first made up one, now can you? So I waited...

And yesterday I received an email from Erika who is back at Far Away for the holidays, in which she said, "...since I checked the liquor closet door, and finding the recipe in your own hand for "The Faraway", I thought I'd give it to you direct!!" Thank you dear friend. Merry Christmas!

And now, here it is. Direct from the New Hampshire woods:

The Faraway
5 ounces good Vodka
1/3 cup orange juice
3/4 cup cranberry juice
Juice of 1 lime
Ice

Fill a pitcher with ice. Add all ingredients and stir. Serve in martini glasses or, lacking those, wine glasses, sit by a cozy fire with the best of friends and enjoy!
Serves 5

Mojitos... Summer Can''t Be Far Off

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Mojito: A refreshing alcoholic drink of Cuban origin
employing mint, sugar, rum, fresh lime juice, selzer water, plenty of ice and a muddler. A muddler is an implement used to mash fresh mint with sugar, causing the herb to release its volatile oils. I use a very large wooden pestle that belonged to my father-in-law. I'm sure he would enjoy the use that I've found for it. Here's my recipe for a large crowd. Please drink them judiciously.

3 cups mint leaves, packed (Save some of the tops of the mint stalks for garnish)
1/3 to 1/2 cup sugar, to taste (or Splenda-sugar blend. Splenda granular works too)
3 cups Bacardi Gold Rum
2 cups Captain Morgan's Original Spiced Rum
1 cup freshly squeezed lime juice

Place the mint leaves in a large wooden bowl or mortar, add the sugar and mash with the pestle until the volatile oils of the mint are released. Place the mix into a large glass pitcher.

Pour the rums and lime juice over the leaves and give it a stir. Taste for sugar adjustment. TASTE, I said! When it's to your liking, chill well in the fridge for a few hours. Pour the mixture through a sieve to remove the mashed mint leaves. Press on the leaves to extract all the liquid.

To serve, fill glasses with crushed ice then add 2-4 oz of the rum mix, depending on the size of the glasses. Fill the glass with chilled selzer water, top with a mint sprig.


These are wonderful on a hot summer's afternoon. Or, on the beach in the fog. Wherever...

For a non-alcohol version, follow the directions, steeping the mint in fresh lime juice and white grape juice. Top off the glasses with chilled ginger ale.