Admiral’s Rum and Brandy Punch

We were thrilled to discover that Imbibe Magazine (www.imbibemagazine.com) has featured our Admiral’s Rum and Brandy Punch recipe from our book Hot Drinks on their website. Thanks, Imbibe!

Our sure-fire, delicious punch is perfect to serve an apres-ski crowd or when gathering around the fire on a snowy winter day. The warm, sunny color is pleasing and inviting- we named this drink Admiral’s Rum and Brandy Punch after a West Indies-inspired combination of grapefruit, pineapple and rum.

HOME | RECIPES | COCKTAIL RECIPES Photo by Marshall Gordon                                                                                                 Admiral’s Rum and Brandy PunchTangy flavors of apricot, pineapple and grapefruit mingle with the subtle spices of rum and brandy in this warming winter punch.1 cup apricot puree 2 cups pineapple juice 1/2 cup white grapefruit juice 1/2 cup light rum 1/4 cup brandy Tools: saucepan Glass: heatproof punch cups or glasses Garnish: lime wedgesCombine the apricot puree and juices in a saucepan                             over medium heat and bring to a low simmer. Lower                                the heat and simmer gently for two minutes more,                                then add the rum and brandy.                                                                 Place a lime wedge in four heatproof glasses and                                divide the warm punch evenly. Serves four. Mary Lou Heiss and Robert J. Heiss, Hot Drinks                                      (Ten Speed Press, 2007)

Aperitivo Bloody Mary

Happy New Year 2010 to all our family and friends, colleagues and customers ! May 2010 be a healthy and joyful year for everyone.

This version of a Bloody Mary cocktail comes from our friends at the Italian firm of Acetum, who produces lovely and distinctive balsamic vinegar in Modena, Italy.  Acetum belongs to a consortium of balsamic vinegar producers who  submit their vinegars for classification to a group known as the AIB, Assaggiatori Italiani Balsamico. The classification system assigns a rating of 1 to 4 Leaves to each vinegar according to flavor and style, and it also suggests appropriate uses for each style of vinegar.  Please see the chart at the end of the post for more information.

This recipe is designed by Acetum for use with their fruity and tasty 4-Leaves Fiaschetta Balsamic vinegar, which is one of our best selling balsamic vinegars.

Aperitivo Bloody Mary

serves 1

chipped ice

1 & 3/4 ounces premium vodka

3/4 tablespoon 4-Leaves Fiaschetta balsamic vinegar

4 drops Tobasco sauce

7 ounces tomato juice

salt and pepper to taste

garnish: fresh lemon or lime slices, sprigs of fresh celery leaf

Fill a double old-fashioned glass 1/2 full with chipped ice. In another glass, add the vodka, balsamic vinegar and tomato juice, salt and pepper and gently stir with a long handled spoon. Taste, and adjust any of the ingredients to your preference. Pour the drink into the glass with ice, and add the slice of citrus to the rim of the glass.  Stand  the sprig of celery upright in the glass.

Holiday Hot Drinks:Atholl Brose

Happy Holidays to all our friends, family, customers and on-line readers. In the spirit of the holidays we are posting one of the specialty drinks from our book: Hot Drinks: Cider, Coffee, Tea, Hot Chocolate, Spiced Punch, Spirits ( Ten Speed Press,2007).  To have a look inside our book on Amazon.com, click here: http://tiny.cc/INpvZ

Atholl Brose

Legend has it that this concoction allowed the Earl of Atholl to defeat his enemies during a Highland Rebellion in 1475. The Earl had the rebels ‘well filled’ on this intoxicating beverage, after which they were easily overcome in battle. The oatmeal broth ( ‘brose’) provides a creamy and luxurious base for tempering the fire of the Drambuie and Scotch whisky. The addition of Scottish heather honey keeps the flavors of this hot drink authentic.

Serves 2
1 cup uncooked oatmeal
1&1/2 cups cold water
1 tablespoon Scottish heather honey
1/4 cup ( 2 ounces ) Drambuie
2 tablespoons ( 1 ounce ) Scotch whiskey
1/4 cup heavy cream, lightly whipped with 1 teaspoon sugar ( optional garnish)

Stir the oatmeal and water together in a small bowl. Cover and let sit for 1 hour, stirring gently every 15 to 20 minutes.

Strain the oatmeal broth into a saucepan using a fine-mesh sieve. Press the oatmeal against the side of the sieve with a wooden spoon until it is almost dry to extact as much oatmeal broth as possible. Discard the solids, set the saucepan over medium heat, and bring to a low simmer. Lower the heat, stir in the honey, Drambuie and Scotch, and simmer until just heated through, about 5 minutes.

Serve in espresso-sized cups or festive hot toddy-style glasses. Garnish with whipped cream or not.

Eau-de-vie Cocktails

As I flipped through my June 2008 issue of Food & Wine magazine, I noticed an article on a new trend in bartending mixology – crafting cocktails using eau-de-vie.  I chuckled to myself and remembered the day last fall year when Bob and I mixed and sipped and mixed and sipped some more as we tried to develop the prefect combination of spirits for an eau-de-vie recipe to feature in our book HOT DRINKS: Cider, Coffee, Tea, Hot Chocolate, Spiced Punch, Spirits. http://www.cooksshophere.com/products/hot_drinks.htm

We wanted to include a drink using eau-de-vie, a  family of liqueurs we have come to love and which we associate with our many wonderful food-discovery trips to France. In fact, years ago, we spent a delightful afternoon visiting the Clovis Reymond distillery in Villamblard, Perigord and dragged home six or so various bottles which we enjoy using in desserts, as after-dinner liqueurs, etc.

Eau-de-vie is clear brandy distilled from fruit. Please do not confuse these glorious brandies with simple fruit flavored brandy – that is like confusing artisan cheese with ‘you-know-what’ in a box. The best eau-de-vies possess rich, ripe concentrated fruit flavors and ethereal, intense aromas – a liquid expression of the fruit ( albeit with a burn and a kick). They are clear in color but fiery in taste, and have a high alcohol content.

Classified as brandy, these liqueurs are distilled 100% from ripe fruit such as pears ( Pear William ), cherries ( Cerise ), raspberries ( Framboise), yellow plums ( Mirabelle ), black currants ( Cassis), apricots ( Abricots). Eau-de-vie as the name implies, is often synonomous with France, in particular the orchard-heavy regions of Alsace and the Dordogne. But other European countries and several producers in the USA also distill this potent elixir.

It took a bit of crafting and fiddling for us to get the balance of flavors we wanted in the drink just right. When we finally said ‘This is it ’ we named our drink Pan-Asian Pear William. We added a touch of Japanese sake to smooth the alcohol ‘bite’ from the two brandies and add a faint sweetness. The drink was created to be enjoyed hot, but served chilled ( stirred with ice but served without ice ) in a stylish liqueur glass would be nice too in on a warm summer evening.

Pan-Asian Pear William

Serves 2

2 tablespoons ( 1 ounce ) junmai ginjo sake

2 tablespoons ( 1 ounce ) Pear Williams eau-de-vie

2 teaspoons Calvados

1/4 cup freshly-drawn water

Combine sake, Pear William, Calvados and water in a small saucepan over medium heat and bring to a simmer. Ladle into sherry glasses or small, clear glass cups and serve steaming hot.

It’s Holiday Party Time !!

Bring out your crystal glasses and prettiest dishes – it’s Holiday Party Time! Every host and hostess dreams of setting their holiday table with a smashing array of tempting, mouth-watering foods and desserts that are as inviting and tasty as the gorgeous creations that grace the pages of holiday food magazines.

For your holiday soiree, let us offer you a sure-fire, delicious and easy to make punch-for-a-crowd recipe from our new book of fifty drink recipes that is appropriately titled: HOT DRINKS.

We named this drink Admiral’s Rum and Brandy Punch after the West Indies-inspired combination of grapefruit, pineapple and rum.  To serve a crowd, scale the recipe up in proportion for the quantity of punch that you need. Recipe reprint courtesy of our publisher, Ten Speed Press, Berkeley, CA.

Admiral’s Rum and Brandy Punch

serves 4

1 cup apricot puree ( not apricot juice cocktail )
2 cups pineapple juice
1/2 cup white grapefruit juice ( not from concentrate )
1/2 cup ( 4 ounces ) light rum
1/4 cup ( 2 ounces ) brandy
4 lime wedges for garnish

Combine the apricot puree and juices in a saucepan over medium heat and bring to a low simmer. Lower the heat and simmer gently for 2 minutes more then add the rum and brandy.

Serve in heatproof punch cups of glasses. Place a lime wedge in each cup, divide the punch evenly among the cups, and serve warm.