foodguy's blog

Adults Only Halloween

I miss the Treats we had as kids. Nearly every house in our neighborhood handed out some form of homemade treat. We had cookies (wrapped in crinkly cellophane), popcorn balls, caramel apples, taffy in colored wax paper and home made fudge. It was the rare house that gave out store bought candy...they were the rich folks on the block.

This year we have that rare and wonderful treat of having Halloween on a weekend. For adults who never had enough dress up time as kids, there's nothing better. Enjoy the holiday and have with some of my favorite spook-tacular drinks.

 

Bad Brains Shooter

3/4 oz. red Curacao
3/4 oz. Bailey's

Fill a small shot glass with the red curracuo then simply pour in the baileys over the back of a spoon. This is a really cool looking shooter. When the baileys hits the glass it sort of curdles and looks like a little brain suspended in a jar of red blood.

 

Spooky Juice

Ingredients:

1 oz Vodka (Absolut)

2 dashes Blue Curacao

1 dash Grenadine

Fill with Orange juice

Stir together with ice.

 

Great Pumpkin Punch

1 large Pumpkin (flat bottom preferred)

1 part Apple Cider

2 parts Ginger Ale

1 part Spiced Rum (Capt. Morgan)

Hollow out the pumpkin and fill with the punch. Float a few pieces of dry ice in just as the guests arrive

 

How To Use Dry Ice in Cocktails

Dry ice is compressed carbon dioxide gas. The same gas all animals exhale during breathing. The smoke is not harmful. Although possible getting too much gas could deprive someone of oxygen and cause light headedness. Don't be overly concerned about kids or adults breathing the smoke unless they continue for a long time.

More to the fun stuff. When putting Dry ice in any drink or pot it will bubble UNTIL the drink freezes around the dry ice chunk. The ice is so cold the drink freezes and the smoke stops. To solve this use smaller pieces of dry ice, warm the drink so it does not get too cold. When using dry ice start with warm pop and water. The initial effect will quickly cool the drink and have a big show.

Do not add the dry ice ahead of time. Wait until the crowd shows since the effect of the dry ice is short. Keep the unused dry ice wrapped as much as possible and buy right before the party. In your freezer dry ice will evaporate and just disappear from it's packaging. So don't store it expecting it to keep. You may unexpectedly find it gone.

When using dry ice in punches or drinks there are some cautions to keep in mind. Accidentally drinking a large piece of dry ice could cause some serious harm. Dry ice when handled directly can seriously burn you. It's like a freezer burn or frostbite.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Purchase your dry ice right before your party/event. many stores at Halloween let you reserve the amount you need. Dry ice will dissipate quickly. Storing dry ice (Even in the freezer) will not keep for more than 8 hours. Therefore plan on purchasing only what is needed and using it right away.

 

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Nothing Like A Little Good Taste

 

There are five basic steps in tasting wine: color, swirl, smell, taste, and savor. This is also known as the five S's: See, Swirl, Sniff, Sip, Savor. During this process, a taster must look for clarity, varietal character, integration, expressiveness, complexity, and connectedness.

A wine's color is better judged by putting it against a white background. The wine glass is put at an angle in order to see the colors. Colors can give the taster clues to the grape variety, and whether the wine was aged in wood.

 

With a little help from our friends at Wikipedia, here is a simple table of common descriptions most commonly associated with certain wine varieties. Click on the link above for a full description of how to taste wines.

 

Red grape variety Common sensory descriptors Cabernet Franc tobacco, green bell pepper, raspberry, freshly-mown grass Cabernet Sauvignon blackcurrants, eucalyptus, chocolate, tobacco Gamay pomegranate, strawberry, red fruits Grenache smoky, pepper, raspberry Malbec violet, fruit, beer Merlot black cherry, plums, tomato Mourvèdre thyme, clove, cinnamon, black pepper, violet, blackberry Nebbiolo leather, tar, stewed prunes, chocolate, liquorice, roses Norton red fruit, elderberries Petite Sirah (Durif) earthy, black pepper, dark fruits Petit Verdot violets (later), pencil shavings Pinot Noir raspberry, cherry, violets, "farmyard" (with age), truffles Pinotage bramble fruits Sangiovese herbs, black cherry, leathery, earthy Syrah (Shiraz) tobacco, black/white pepper, blackberry, smoke Tempranillo vanilla, strawberry, tobacco Teroldego spices, chocolate, red fruits Zinfandel black cherry, pepper, mixed spices, mint

White grape variety Common sensory descriptors Albariño lemon, minerals Breidecker apple, pear Chardonnay butter, melon, apple, pineapple, vanilla (if oaked, eg vinified or aged in new oak aging barrels) Chenin Blanc wet wool, beeswax, honey, apple, almond Gewürztraminer rose petals, lychee, spice Grüner Veltliner green apple, citrus Marsanne almond, honeysuckle, marzipan Melon de Bourgogne lime, salt, green apple Muscat honey, grapes, lime Palomino honeydew, citrus, raw nuts Pinot Gris (Pinot Grigio) white peach, pear, apricot Prosecco apple, honey, musk, citrus Riesling citrus fruits, peach, honey, petrol Sauvignon Blanc gooseberry, lime, asparagus, cut grass, bell pepper (capsicum), grapefruit, passionfruit, cat pee (guava) Sémillon honey, orange, lime Trebbiano (Ugni Blanc) lime, herbs Verdicchio apple, minerals, citrus Vermentino pear, cream, green fruits Viognier peach, pear, nutmeg, apricot

Toast The Halls

It’s time for holiday gatherings with friends and family. If its your turn to host Christmas or Hanukah dinner and your bar is empty. Read on ...

Things You'll Need

MIXES and GARNISHES

· Rose’s Lime Juice

· Cranberry Juice

· Frozen Strawberries

· Cherries

· Olives

· Limes

· Lemons

· Whipped Cream

· Hot Chocolate

· Coffee

THE BOOZE

· Rum (for Egg Nog, Tom & Jerry etc)

· Vodka (Cosmos, Martinis etc)

· Bourbon or Canadian Whiskey (Old Fashioned)

· Brandy

· Kahlua

· Rumpleminze

· Cointreau

· Red Wine (Tempranillo, Malbec and Pinot Noir are very in this year)

· White Wine (Chardonnay, Viognier, Pinot Grigio)

FUN ACCESSORIES

· Red and Green Sword Picks, Straws and Napkins

· Umbrellas

· Martini Glasses

· Wine Glass Charms

You can buy decent wine for about $10 a bottle. Ask the people in the liquor store…they should give you some great ideas.

Hot chocolate is a must-have for the holidays. For a kick, mix in Kahlua or Rumpleminze with the hot chocolate and top with whipped cream.

After dinner, your guests will probably be a little tired. Serve coffee to perk them up. Add Kahlua to the coffee and you have great after dinner cocktails.

Make punch with juice, fresh fruit and vodka. For example, you could use cranberry juice, vodka, watermelons, oranges, berries and other fruit to make a fabulous punch.

EGG NOG

4 egg yolks
1/3 cup sugar, plus 1 tablespoon
2 cups half and half cream

1 cup whole milk
3 ounces rum or brandy

1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
4 egg whites*

In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the egg yolks until they lighten in color. Gradually add the 1/3 cup sugar and continue to beat until it is completely dissolved. Set aside.

Heat the milk and the half and half cream in a medium saucepan over high heat. Bring just to a boil. Remove from the heat and stir in the nutmeg. Gradually temper the hot mixture into the egg and sugar mixture. Then return everything to the pot and cook until the mixture reaches 160 degrees F. Remove from the heat, stir in the booze, pour into a clean mixing bowl, and set in the refrigerator to chill.

In a medium mixing bowl, beat the egg whites to soft peaks. With the mixer running gradually add the 1 tablespoon of sugar and beat until stiff peaks form. Whisk the egg whites into the chilled mixture.

Classic Cocktails and Five Places To Love Them

We've all been through it, the the tragic attempt trying to be hip. Sooner or later we find our way and like magic it all just falls into place. Sadly though there are still a few of us out there, leftovers from the hedonist '90's who need to be told what to do. So thank your lucky stars here I am. I'm ready and able to set you straight on where to find a great cocktail and more importantly, advise you on which cocktail you need to order.

We all don't need to feel hip but most of us need to feel we belong. And there is no better way to feel like a member of the gang than when you order a martini. After all we've been taught and all we've seen in movies and on T.V. this surely must be the way to real sophistication. Now I'm not talking about those silly frilly fruity concoctions invented to make 22 year old girls feel like their own Barbie dolls on a date. I'm talking about the true king of cocktails. The gin and vermouth elixir, icy cold in a dewy glass with one or two simple (note no blue cheese stuffing etc) briny green olives anchored to the bottom of a plastic pick that pokes jauntily over the edge. Anything else that thinks its a martini is not !!! Its only a cocktail being served in a glass that may have at one time held the royal potion.

When you think of a Manhattan I hope you are like me and it brings images of Ruby Keeler dancing her way to stardom while Dick Powell croons. I know I'm dating myself, but what the heck. In order to truly enjoy a real Manhattan of blended whiskey, dry and sweet vermouth and a touch of bitters, you need to know who they are. And if by chance your only experience with a Manhattan is pouring some brandy over ice in a juice glass with a maraschino cherry for Uncle Dave at Christmas, then you need to take a step back and reflect on the meaning of your life.

Rob Roy was a 17th century Al Capone like gangster that won the hearts of Scots for his bravado and willingness to thumb his nose at authority. Why his name graces the second best way to drink scotch is anyone's guess. Except when it's made well with good scotch, the right touch of sweet and dry vermouth and an elegant swirl of lemon rind or even the lonely cherry, it does bring tears to my eyes. Suddenly I'm caught in the fog on the moors and I can hear the sirens call of Brigadoon.

I could go on but three cocktails is enough on anyone's tab. Now let's discuss where to get these ethereal delights crafted by bartenders who have the knack and ability to pour all the heart and soul they can into every glass.

Tops on my list is the bar at the St. Paul Grill. See Al or Spike and tell them I sent you. Either one will tuck you under you wing and take you on a cocktail journey to remember. Just book your room at the hotel upstairs in advance, just in case you take the long trip.

Next is Monte Carlo in the Minneapolis Warehouse District, the venerable bar that not only knows how to craft a cocktail, but how to hire the bartenders to keep the tradition alive. I've benn haunting the place for years and have rarely been disappointed.

I would be remiss and most likely shunned by my peers if didn't give high marks to Ike's Food and Cocktails in Downtown Minneapolis. Not only are the bartenders friends (yes I have many bartender friends around town), but they mix a great drink in a classic urban downtown bar atmosphere.

Manny's Steakhouse has big steaks, big lobsters, big spuds and if you try to partake in it all, you limp out after paying a whopping bill. The bar is the best spot to sample the atmosphere, food and of course cocktails of Manny's. The cocktail glasses match the enormity of everything else so just plan on one, or have a driver ready. By the way if we ever meet up there, ask me about the nude on the back wall. I'll tell you her story.

Last and certainly not least on this fanciful bar crawl is the bar you frequent all the time. The bar where everyone knows your name. The bar where the bartenders know exactly how you like your drinks. You don't have to be a candidate for Hazelden to know a place like that. A bar is only as good and the inhabitants within. Once you find your place or places like I have then you will understand how much enjoyment they can bring. I grew up in a family that owned and operated bars. To me they were places filled with people of every race and walk of life. As a young teen I heard stories of triumphs and pains of life. All of which I think prepared me for the man I was to become. The kind of man who can enjoy a carefully crafted cocktail in the company of good friends.