drinks Archives - Patent & the Pantry

Lockdown Libations no. 21: Bee’s Knees

May 14, 2021 No Comments

Cracking a new bottle for this: Saskatoon Honey Gin from Eau Claire Distillery.

What better liquor for a Bee’s Knees, which is all about the honey, than this gin made from locally sourced honey, Saskatoon berries and rose hips, along with the usual botanicals.

This week calls for sweet and simple. And this fit the bill perfectly. Softly sweet, slightly floral. Delicate and soothing.

I used my Tantalus Vineyards honey again — the last of it, actually — and it lent such a lovely flavour to the cocktail. A perfect farewell for that jar of deliciousness. Given how much of a role it plays in this cocktail, if you do have good honey hanging around in your cupboard, this is a good place for it.

I/m feeling a little low on words this week, so I’ll just say that I enjoyed this far more than I thought I would. Really. Truly. Like, I wish I had more honey, really, truly.

If you have gin — any standard one should work; having a honey-infused one was a bonus — I 10/10 recommend giving this a try.

Bee’s Knees

2 ounces gin
1 ounce fresh lemon juice
3/4 ounce honey syrup — see below

To a cocktail shaker filled with ice, gin, lemon and honey syrup. Shake vigorously for 15 to 30 seconds, until the vessel is cold to the touch. Strain into a coupe or martini glass.

Honey Syrup

1 cup honey
1/3 cup hot water

Combine honey and hot water and stir to combine. Use immediately. Leftovers can be stored in the fridge for up to five days.

(I didn’t have a full cup of honey — nor was I sure I wanted that much syrup! So, I’ll confess I did the math and did three parts honey to one part hot water to make a far smaller batch. Here’s where knowing kitchen math is super helpful: one tablespoon = three teaspoons. So, I did 1 tablespoon honey to 1 teaspoon boiling water. Made just a little more than the required 3/4 ounces needed.)

Drinks, Lockdown Libations

Lockdown Libations no. 20: Sake-tini no. 1

April 30, 2021 No Comments

A bottle of sake was at the front of the liquor cabinet when I opened it this week and that seemed good enough reason as any to make that the theme ingredient. The harder part was narrowing down one recipe I wanted to make. Sake, it turns out, makes a myriad of interesting cocktails.

But I was particularly drawn to the simplicity of this one, the Sake-tini no. 1, and also because I immediately thought it would be a great way to use some of my delicious Sheringham Distillery Kazuki gin, which features cherry blossom petals, yuzu peel and green tea leaves and flowers. I love a theme, so matching a Japanese-inspired gin with sake — rounded out with a little Cointreau — sounded lovely.

I’m sure any dry gin — which is what the recipe calls for — will be great, but this seemed near magical with the Kazuki. Light and delicate, with just the subtle hint of orange liqueur to amp up the yuzu flavour.

I thought the cucumber was kind of an odd garnish, but it was refreshing.

10/10 didn’t think I’d like this as much as I do. The first one went down easily — so much so I put all the ingredients away to force myself to wait for a second….

Sake-tini no. 1

2 1/2 ounces sake
1 ounce dry gin
1/2 ounce Cointreau or Grand Marnier
cucumber slice to garnish

To a cocktail mixing glass (or I used my shaker vessel), add a handful of ice and top with sake, gin and Cointreau. Stir until well chilled, about 30 seconds. Strain into coupe glass and garnish with cucumber slice.

Drinks, Lockdown Libations

Lockdown Libations no. 19: Sbagliato

April 23, 2021 No Comments

Generally, TikTok is bad for me. I’ve lost far too many hours to that app over the course of the pandemic, watching mostly silly, sometimes funny, generally inane videos, often to the point where the app pops up with this whole “Whoa, you’ve been on here too long — go take a break!” message.

But, the algorithm is good. And that means I get a lot of great body positive content, fat women showing off amazing outfits and solid recipes. Like this one for a Sbagliato.

The Italian word for ‘mistake’ or ‘mess up,’ the story goes this cocktail originated when a busy bartender accidentally swapped the gin in a Negroni for sparkling wine. Given how different those bottles tend to be, I’m not sure how that could happen. But, then again, I make one cocktail at a time. For just myself (Hello, COVID-19 safety measures). So…

I can honestly say, I quite like this cocktail. It’s all the bitter and hint of sweet from a Negroni or Boulevardier but without the boozy heaviness. This is the kind of cocktail I want on a sunny patio. With a plate of charcuterie and some olives. (Ignore the fact it is snowing as I type this.) I can see some lovely summer afternoons on my balcony sipping a double Sbagliato (three ounces is not much, especially given one-third is sparkling wine) as the weather warms.

Cin cin.

Sbagliato

1 ounce sweet vermouth
1 ounce Campari
1 ounce prosecco
orange wheel to garnish, optional (because, like, I never have these garnishes)

To a glass filled with ice, add sweet vermouth, Campari and prosecco. Stir gently to combine and garnish with orange wheel — if you have one.

Drinks, Lockdown Libations

Lockdown Libations no. 17: Right Word

April 9, 2021 No Comments

Right. After an Easter weekend break, we’re back. And just in time for a return to some restrictions in Alberta.

Let’s have a cocktail.

My friend, Dan McPhee, has been making a series of cocktails over on Facebook and one I immediately bookmarked was this, the Right Word. A play on the Last Word — which is such a great cocktail name — this drink swaps Last’s green chartreuse for a combination of St. Germain and Lillet Blanc. I’ve used these in cocktails before (week no. 1’s Peruvian Elder Sour and the Vesper Martini for week no.3, respectively) but we’re definitely at the point where liquors are going to be repeated — though there are still others that haven’t been cracked yet, so I will start prioritizing those.

Those who have been following along will know the Vesper didn’t blow my skirt up, so I was despairing a bit that this huge bottle of Lillet Blanc — a fortified white wine — was going to continue to sit unused in my cupboard.

(Not so that Les Subversifs gin, which is my second bottle. Makes an excellent Gibson, which I am currently so devoted to that I’ve just made my own batch of cocktail onions. Good lord, what a finicky process.)

Given it contains two liquors I’ve had a hard time using up through this project, I really wasn’t sure what to expect of this cocktail. Turns out, I like the floral undertones and slight sweetness mixed with the tang of lime.

Regular rotation? Maybe not. But one I would happily revisit.

Right Word

3/4 ounce gin
3/4 ounce Lillet Blanc
3/4 ounce St. Germain
3/4 ounce freshly squeezed lime

To a cocktail shaker filled with ice, add the gin, Lillet Blanc, St. Germain and lime juice. Shake vigorously for 15 to 30 seconds, until the vessel is cold to the touch. Strain into a coupe or martini glass.

Drinks, Lockdown Libations

Lockdown Libations no. 13: Negronino

March 5, 2021 No Comments

Just like with the Averna Amaro, I have a bottle of Amaro Nonino for making a specific cocktail: my beloved Paper Plane.

And, while I could (and have) used an entire bottle for just making those, I wondered what else Nonino — a liqueur made from grappa and grain alcohol that is infused with herbs and spices and is aged in oak barrels — could work with.

Hello Negroni hybrid!

The Negronino (and bless, I love a good portmanteau) is essentially a Negroni (equal parts gin, Campari and sweet vermouth), but with Amaro Nino replacing half portions of both the Campari and vermouth. (I did spot one recipe that started to get into even more fractured measures and… no. I’m good at math, but there is a line.)

I like a Negroni for its boozy bitterness. It’s a slower sipper for me, which serves me well when I want to really savour a cocktail. I may prefer a Boulevardier, which is the same ingredients and proportions, but swaps bourbon for gin. But either way, this seemed an intriguing cocktail worth the experiment.

I’d probably have a more thorough discussion of the nuanced differences between the Negronino and a standard Negroni if I sipped back to back. Perhaps that’s an experiment I will shelve for a future date. Watch this space?

This is a smoother sip and, consequently, was consumed a little more quickly. Not a complaint, just a fact. There is a … roundness? to this cocktail that I quite like.

If you don’t have a bottle of Amaro Nonino and felt your collection could handle one more addition, I think it’s a good liqueur to have on hand — both for this cocktail, which will be folded into the regular rotation and for the Paper Plane. If you haven’t tried that, may I please recommend? Truly, one of my absolute favourites. And that’s saying a lot.

Negronino

1 ounce gin (a London dry variety of your choice)
1 ounce Amaro Nonino
1/2 ounce Campari
1/2 ounce sweet vermouth
orange peel, to garnish

Add ice to an Old-Fashioned glass. Pour in gin, Nonino, Campari and vermouth. Stir well to chill. Garnish with orange peel.*

*Which I didn’t have, so didn’t.

Drinks, Lockdown Libations

Lockdown Libations no. 7: Sidecar 75

January 22, 2021 No Comments

An almost-finished bottle of Courvoisier, a neglected half a lemon in the fridge and a little googling led to this week’s Lockdown Libation and I couldn’t be happier.

I love a Sidecar — it’s included in Pucker for a reason. And, really, it’s the reason I have a bottle of cognac to begin with. So, I was sorely tempted to just make one and call it a day. But that sort of defeats one of the main objectives of this project — to expand my cocktail horizons — and if I relent on that goal only six short weeks in, then I’m in a world of trouble once we get to week 20.

In looking for interesting cognac recipes, though, almost every single one required some bottle of liquor I, shockingly, don’t already own. Yes, sure, I’d love to make a Sazerac (no absinthe) or the intriguingly named Between the Sheets (fun fact: that was the title of my masters thesis exploring the role of sex columnists in contemporary Canadian media), or even my old standby the Champs-Elysees (no green chartreuse).

And then I came across this recipe for a drink that combines two old favourites: the French 75 and a Sidecar.

A traditional French 75 takes lemon, cognac, Brut champagne and a little simple syrup to create a bubbly and bright lemon drink. The Sidecar, with its cognac, lemon and orange liqueur, is a little more balanced though, obviously, non-bubbly. Combining the two seemed so smart I wondered why I’d never heard of such a thing before.

Given my healthy supply of Brut sparkling wine — owing to a subscription I had for two years with Fitz Wine, which I loved — and the fact I actually had all the things needed, this was a no-brainer of a decision.

This will most definitely be going into the regular rotation….

A note: the original recipe calls for orange bitters, which I don’t have. But I have Lemon Marrakech ones and I figure amping the tartness wouldn’t be a terrible idea, all things considered.

Sidecar 75

1 1/2 ounces cognac
3/4 ounce Cointreau — or another orange liqueur
3/4 ounce freshly squeezed lemon juice
dash orange or lemon bitters
1 ounce sparkling wine

To a cocktail shaker filled with ice, add the cognac, Cointreau, lemon juice and bitters. Shake vigorously for 15 to 30 seconds, until the vessel is cold to the touch.

Strain the drink into a champagne flute. Top with sparkling wine. (I skipped any garnish — a lemon twist would be oh-so elegant — because that lemon really had been neglected and wouldn’t have given me any usable peel.)

Drinks, Pucker

Meyer Lemon Bourbon Sour and Oh My God, I’m Writing a Book

October 28, 2013 16 Comments

I’ve been driving around for the last few days with a 10-kilogram bag of sugar in my backseat.

Not even in the trunk — there isn’t enough room between all the flats of diet coke.

Lately, I’ve found myself in a position where I’m going through lots of sugar. Maybe not quite enough to justify purchasing a bag the weight of a small child, but it is a lot more cost effective this way.

It’s not that I suddenly have insatiable cravings for sweet stuff (I will almost always take savoury options over sweet ones when it comes to snacking, despite my love of baking), it’s that recipe testing comes with a lot of trial and error. And that means going through ingredients pretty quickly.

See, I’ve been keeping a small secret. At first because details had to be ironed out. And then because I just wasn’t even sure I believed it myself and finally because I didn’t really know how to even start that conversation.

But here it is: I’m writing a book. A cookbook.

(I celebrated signing by drinking some Veuve Clicquot Rose. Sometimes a girl just has to splurge on herself.)

This time next year, people — friends, family, strangers — will be able to walk into a bookstore, or go online, and purchase something with my name on it, with my recipes inside, with my photos illustrating those cocktails, cookies, salads, main dishes and more.

The book contains all recipes that use lemons, limes and grapefruits and it’s called (and I do love this part) Pucker.

When I started this blog five years ago, it was a little side project, a hobby, something to counteract the gloom of covering crime and calamity in the city. These were the years at the height of the gang war and city police were handling upwards of 30 homicides a year. Those days when I worked night shifts, those weekends when I wasn’t listening to the police scanner, I was baking and cooking, photographing and writing, all for the pleasure of it.

Now I get to do all that as my job. And that led to me writing a book as a result.

Life is amazing sometimes.

Let’s have a drink to celebrate, shall we?

How about with a Meyer Lemon Bourbon Sour.

Meyer lemons are slightly sweeter, more fragrant versions of their regular cousins, which are more typical for sour drinks. They work just as well, as long as there is compensation on the simple syrup end of the equation. A sweeter citrus means less sugar is needed.

I’ve gone old school with this sour, using egg white in the recipe to create a smooth and frothy cocktail. Those who don’t want to take chances by consuming raw egg can just leave it out. I make it both ways and both are equally good. (Though, admittedly, not using the egg white shaves off at least a minute. You know, if that drink needs to be made quickly. However, if you do use the egg white, may I suggest hanging on to the yolk and making some lemon curd?)

When I first started drinking sours, I made them with whiskey. (Good lord, this blog has come a long way since then. Yikes!) Over the last year, I’ve come to realize that I’m really much more of a bourbon girl. In particular, Buffalo Trace. So, that’s what I use in my cocktails, like this Old Fashioned. But, of course, use what you like, whether bourbon or whiskey.

And yes, this will probably be in the book.

Meyer Lemon Bourbon Sour

1 1/2 ounces bourbon or whiskey
1 ounce Meyer lemon juice
1/2 ounce simple syrup
1 egg white

In a cocktail shaker filled with ice, combine all the ingredients. Shake well. Strain into a glass and enjoy.

Drinks

Bourbon Old-Fashioned

March 3, 2013 1 Comment

Things have been roller coaster-ish in the last couple of weeks. Some pretty good highs, some devastating lows.

And, while I’m not one to advocate drinking away your sorrows, suffice to say that there were a couple of nights when I got home from work and really felt like I could use a cocktail.

Lately, I’ve been loving the classic Bourbon Old-Fashioned. I had a couple at National back in December, raising a few eyebrows among the group I was with.

“That smells like my dad’s liquor cabinet,” said one friend after taking a sniff.

She may have a point, but I really love this cocktail. So, since then, I’ve kept ordering them. Like at Charcut a couple of weeks ago.

Later, out of curiousity, I looked up the recipe and saw how easy they are to make.

So when the cocktail urge struck, I bought a bag of ice, made some simple syrup and stirred myself a drink.

Bourbon Old-Fashioned

Typically, the recipe calls for straight orange, but I happened to have a couple of blood oranges lying around, so I used slices of that. Of course, use what you have on hand. Although I usually have Maker’s Mark, I recently bought a bottle of Buffalo Trace, which I’m enjoying a lot.

1 sugar cube
3 dashes Angostura bitters
1 orange slice
splash of soda water
ice cubes
2 1/2 fl. oz. bourbon

In a double old-fashioned glass (or, in my case, whatever glass I have lying around that is clean), combine the sugar cube, bitters, orange slice and soda water and muddle together. Add a handful of ice cubes, then the bourbon. Stir well.

Makes 1 drink.

Drinks

Sidecar

May 15, 2012 2 Comments

I love a good retro cocktail.

Though, truth be told, some times I like just about any kind of cocktail. At Milk Tiger Lounge — where, let me tell you, they make a mean cocktail — I’m particularly prone to ordering the Champs-Élysées. Or, uh, several.

Ahem.

And sometimes I’ll order a Sidecar.

But, where the Champs-Élysées is made with ingredients I’m unlikely to ever have in my liquor cabinet — yellow chartreuse is a good example — those in the Sidecar are pretty standard: Cointreau, Cognac and lemon juice.

The thing I don’t usually have is, strangely, ice. My freezer sucks all the moisture out of it and leaves tiny, misshapen cubes with a disgusting aftertaste. So, I rarely make shaken cocktails at home, since it seems a bit silly to buy a giant bag of ice for a drink or two and then have it take up valuable space in my freezer. But I had friends over for dinner last weekend and I knew that gin and tonics would be in order and that would mean ice. And that meant some leftover ice. And that meant it was cocktail time.

Enter the Sidecar.

It’s tart, yet sweet, citrusy and smooth.

And it goes down dangerously easy. Please consider yourself warned.

Sidecar

3/4 ounce Cointreau
1 1/4 ounces Cognac
3/4 ounce lemon juice
sugar and additional lemon juice for sugaring the rim

Rub the rim of the glass with lemon juice and then dip in sugar.

In a cocktail shaker filled with ice, add the Cointreau, Cognac and lemon juice. Shake well and strain into prepared glass.

Bee’s Knees

Honey Syrup

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Sake-tini no. 1

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Sbagliato

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Right Word

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Negronino

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Sidecar 75

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