the joy of juniper

“I really need a gin and tonic.” --Camilla Parker Bowles


A few days ago I did something I've never done: I attended a gin tasting event. It was fantastic. The Co-Founder and Director of Broker's Gin, Andy Dawson, facilitated the evening's events in College Station, TX (I even walked away with an autographed bottle of Broker's Gin). We sipped, we smelled, we swirled, we laughed, and we learned all about gin--with only one caveat: "Do NOT drink all of the gin in front of you." That was good advice, since we each were sipping from five different glasses of gin.

As the daughter of a good Brit, I'm a huge gin fan. Huge. In fact, it's my favorite spirit (and boy, do I enjoy some spirits). For an alcohol beverage to be classified as gin, it need only meet three criteria: (1) It starts from a liquid base mash/spirit (e.g., corn, wheat, barley); (2) it contains various botanicals/aromatics (the types and numbers vary, based on the brand of gin ... I learned that my gin preferences lean towards those gins with fewer botanicals); and (3) it's steeped with juniper berries. That's it!

Anyway, I loved every minute of it. And I intend to hold my own "gin tasting evening" at my house sometime in the near future. Good, good times.

sexy white wine sangria

There's certainly no shortage of sangria recipes floating around out there in the recipesphere; but on a hot, casual Saturday afternoon, I'm usually wanting white wine, rather than red. The club soda in this particular version really does it for me by skimming off the overly sweet and leaving behind a thirst-quenching crispness.

Alone or with your best sangria drinkin' guys & gals, this super refreshing and very simple (chances are good you already have most of the ingredients in your kitchen) winey goodness does the trick.

Sexy White Wine Sangria

• 1 bottle of Sauvignon Blanc 
• 1/2 litre of club soda (or ginger ale if you like it really sweet ... I personally do not) 
• 2 kiwis 
• 1/2 cup of raspberries 
• 2 limes 
• 1/2 cup of sugar 

Cut the kiwi and the lime into wedges. Pour the wine into a large, preferably glass, pitcher. Add all the fruit and the sugar then mix well. Cover and let it sit in the fridge for at least one hour. When you’re ready to drink, add the club soda and about two handfuls of ice. Mix again and serve immediately.

costco ♥

Bottles so big, they barely fit in the freezer.

(I don't have a ruler handy, but that Grey Goose is muy grande)

uncorked glass company

My favorite magazine, Garden & Gun, recently featured the Uncorked Glass Company in its December 2011/January 2012 issue. Always one to support local, Texas and/or southern businesses, I checked 'em out. I wasn't disappointed.

The Uncorked Glass Company handcrafts, unique, eco-friendly glassware from recycled wine bottles, donated from local restaurants and bars in Atlanta, GA. Our tumblers are handcrafted from 100% post-consumer materials in our effort to honor our “green” commitment.

They're beautiful, to boot. I love thick glasses, and these are perfect for any sort of table.

Uncorked offers their glasses in sets of four, with five color options and two sizes from which to choose.


The mixed set (4"/12oz. or 5"/16oz.) of 6 glasses comes with 2 amber, 2 green, and 2 gold glasses.

Wonderful.

easy enchiladas & margaritas

It's been the perfect lazy weekend. No work. No travel. No stress. Yesterday I wanted comfort food--Mexican comfort food. A quick convo with my sister yielded the perfect answer: Black Bean Spinach Enchiladas. It was like she crawled into my head and pinpointed my exact craving.

Before sharing the enchiladas recipe, first things first: Margaritas (who cooks without a cocktail/glass of something in hand?). One of my girls, Kayla, introduced me several weeks ago to the Skinny Girl margarita. A total and complete margarita snob, I was more than a little skeptical when she made the recommendation. But I went ahead and made a quick trip to the greatest liquor store on the planet and purchased a bottle. Wow--they don't suck. At all. I add mucho fresh lime to mine, but for a low-cal margarita, you won't be disappointed.

Back to the enchiladas.

Ingredients

10-12 small flour or corn tortillas (I used corn)

10 oz. package chopped spinach, thawed (you can use your microwave)

15 oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed

14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes with green chiles and spices, drained

3/4 cup scallions, chopped

19 oz. can green chile enchilada sauce

8oz. sour cream

3 cups shredded pepper jack cheese (I couldn't find shredded pepper jack, so I used jalapeno jack instead. Worked fine)

Garlic powder and onion powder (I left out the onion powder. Your call)

Salt and pepper

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400-degrees and get out a 9x13 inch Pyrex baking dish.

2. In a colander, squeeze out as much water from the spinach as you can by pressing the spinach with the back of a spoon. Place the spinach in a large bowl. Add the rinsed beans, drained tomatoes, most of the scallions, and a dash of garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper, to taste. Set aside.

3. Mix together the sour cream and green chile enchilada sauce. Spread about 1/3 of the sauce mixture into the 9x13 inch dish.

4. On a plate, place a tortilla and top with some of the spinach mixture and a small amount of pepper jack cheese. Roll into cigar shape and place into the baking dish, seam side down. Repeat until the dish is full.

5. Spread the rest of the sauce on top of the enchiladas and top with the remaining cheese and scallions. Bake for about 30 minutes or until hot and bubbly. Wait a few minutes and serve.

I served my enchiladas with lime cilantro rice (white rice with chopped cilantro and fresh lime juice). It was a perfect mate.

back-to-school juice box

In honor of the students beginning to trickle back into town, I was thinking about how much more enjoyable (and productive?) my work days would be if I occasionally popped one of these mar-GO-ritas into my daily lunch bag.

Made by Cordina, the pre-mixed, ready-to-go pouches of joy are touted as "great for tubing, boating, or relaxing at the beach or pool." (What? Nothing about kicking-back at the office? An over-sight, I'm sure).

And while these grownup indulgences resemble the offspring of a late night rendezvous between a water bottle and a Capri Sun, these no-mix, no-blend, no-brainer cocktails pack a wallop, too. Says Sal, “What we use is 100% Blue Agave, where you get tequila, but instead of distilling we ferment the juice. That classifies us as a wine product. With each margarita, you’re getting the potency of two beers, or 8% alcohol!” Yee. Haw.Bonus points: If you just can’t finish your second, or more likely in my case sixth, Mar-GO-Rita, they’re resealable.

Here are the cuties behind mar-GO-ritas (per Best of Texas):

in appreciation of saturnus

aka, Saturday.

Apparently that's him on the left (so says Wikipedia, anyway); and how I love thee, Saturnus. Right now you're the hottest guy this side of Bradley Cooper.

I'm celebrating this particular Saturday, July 17, in honor of you, of course.

I brought a gift; but due to its highly limey and liquid nature, I was unable to wrap it. I hope you enjoy it as much as I [am]. It's a family delicacy--Uncle Greg's margaritas. I'm attaching the details, should you want to re-gift to your good buddy, Dies Solis/Sunday.

Greg’s (Old La Fonda) Margarita

Basic ratio of mixture: 1½:1:1

Individual Margarita:

1½ oz. of icy cold tequila, (use Silver for the “purist” drink)

1 oz. cold triple sec

1 oz. freshly-squeezed lime juice (cold), from FRESH limes

Shake or stir well, with ice, then remove the ice to avoid diluting the cocktail. Pour into cold margarita glasses. Serve (sip).

In Quantity (always more efficient):

To mix a quantity, use the same ratio above. For example: For 6 drinks, you would use 9 ounces of tequila, 6 ounces of triple sec, and 6 ounces of lime juice. For 12 drinks (you go, girl), the mix would be 18 ounces of tequila, and 12 ounces--each--of triple etc. and lime juice, etc.

Tips:

• If possible, store your tequila in the freezer to insure that icy cold condition. Refrigerate the triple sec and lime juice in preparation for use.
• Place the cocktail glasses in the freezer or at least the refrigerator to chill thoroughly prior to pouring.
• If utilizing ice when mixing the drink(s), be sure to remove any excess ice to avoid diluting the snappy flavors of the Margarita.
• Try to squeeze the freshest limes possible when collecting the lime juice. The juice can be squeezed a couple of hours ahead and refrigerated in a covered container until needed.

Embellish at will, depending on how daring you are.

Have a great time.

beer with your fries?

If your answer is "yes" and you're in South Beach, you'll soon be in luck. In mid-February Burger King will open a Whopper Bar in the trendy Miami neighborhood (Las Vegas, NYC, and LA are next on the list):

To keep up with Miami's night life, Burger King (BKC)'s new Whopper bar will offer American beer and Whopper sandwiches around the clock, staying open 24 hours a day, seven days a week . . . .

"That adds a new element to the Burger King brand," said Tom Forte, an analyst at Telsey Advisory Group. "It also creates a different mystique for going to a Whopper Bar versus a traditional restaurant."

Mystique? I'm not sure which is worse: Eating a Whopper or having to choose between Budweiser, Miller Lite and Bud Light Lime.

Though I can honestly say I won't be rubbing elbows with The King anytime soon, I do applaud BK for their forward-thinking ways.

(as was released a few months back, Starbucks is doing the same up in Seattle, piloting a wine/beer/coffee bar)

hot damn

Not unlike the rest of the country it's currently frigid in College Station, TX, with an arctic blast still on the way. I'm sitting in my office, freezing beyond words (I'll refrain from elaborating), contemplating going home and curling up with a toasty warm aperitif. I've narrowed down the options to one (maybe two!) of the following (from Cocktalia.com and FoodNetwork.com):

Hot Toddy

• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 teaspoon honey
• 1/2 cup boiling water
• 1 1/2 ounces bourbon whiskey
• Lemon wedge

Combine the cinnamon stick and honey in a heat-proof snifter. Top with the boiling water and stir to melt the honey. Add bourbon. Squeeze in the lemon wedge and drop it into the snifter.

Irish Coffee

• 1 raw sugar cube
• 1 1/2 ounces Irish whiskey
• 4 ounces coffee
• Fresh, unsweetened whipped cream

Pour the whiskey over the sugar in a stemmed Irish coffee glass and top with coffee. Ladle one inch of cream on top. Use 1 teaspoon of raw sugar if you don’t have cubes.

Hot Chocolate with Peppermint Schnapps

• 1 oz peppermint schnapps
• 5 oz. hot chocolate
  

Pour the peppermint schnapps into an Irish coffee cup/mug, add the hot chocolate, and stir. Top with whipped cream, garnish with some peppermint candy, and serve

And my personal favorite ...single malt scotch, Aberlour a'bunadh

Then again, a glass of wine wouldn't be too bad either.

Stay warm.

**UPDATE**: I did/am doing the Hot Toddy (and the wine). Perfection. And very toasty.

and down poured the night rain ....

It's cool and wet here in College Station on this first-Thursday-of-fall night.

As I type, a fantastic smelling roast (thank you, ABC Dragoo -- you inspired me, and I'm drooling in anticipation!) is braising in the oven.

The latest fall Yankee Candles are burning all around.

Thursday night college football on ESPN is alive and well on the TV.

My Boodles Gin with orange juice -- currently in hand -- is bringing a much-needed sense of warmth and relaxation to an overly-frazzled psyche. Temporarily, anyway, all dissertation thoughts are pushed back into the farthest recesses of my mind.

Sometimes you just have to sit back and count your blessings. And I am blessed.