Hot Whiskey Grog

I haven't felt the best lately. So I went searching for remedies, of course.

With St. Patrick's Day around the corner (at the time), and recently getting confirmation that I'm nearly a quarter Irish, I've been looking for some drinks to have some Irish whiskey with.

I found recipes for hot toddies. I saw some use whiskey, some use rum, some use bourbon. I had the whiskey on hand, so I started making one or two each evening for a few nights. When my whiskey ran out, I changed to rum.

I didn't have much of either liquor, so I had to get more.

But I got thinking about this drink. I even found an absolute Irish version as a Hot Whiskey, then figured it was pretty reminiscent of a pirate's grog or bumbo (the drink, not the baby seat).

After getting some more whiskey (because I needed it for St. Paddy's Day!), and we got some rum to have on hand for some other drinks, I got thinking about channeling my inner Irish pirate & mixing it all up!

Here's what I did:

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HOT WHISKEY GROG

Ingredients:

~ 1 Tbs brown sugar
~ 2 tsp honey
~ 1 tsp cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, ground clove (pick one or two) OR pumpkin pie spice OR gingerbread spice
~ 2 tsp lemon juice
~ 2 tsp lime juice
~ 1-2 Tbs whiskey (I used an Irish whiskey)
~ 1 Tbs rum (NOT flavored!)
~ 1 slice lemon, cut in half
~ approx 8 whole cloves - enough to have 1 clove per section in the lemon slice
~ 1/2 C very hot water
~ 1 small mug or Irish Coffee mug


Directions:

* Run very hot water in the mug, especially if it the glass Irish Coffee mug, swish it around & dump it out to warm the mug

* Add in the brown sugar, honey, ground spice(s), lemon & lime juice into the bottom of the mug

* Add in the liquors

* Take a clove & insert it into each section of the lemon slice, which should be cut in half; add lemon halves to the mug

* Add in the piping hot water (you can do this with boiling water on the stove or in a tea kettle OR use a Keurig to pour in the hot water for you)

* Take a spoon & stir

* Sip & enjoy!


Yield: 1

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NOTE:  I have done this with steeping green tea in it, I've added additional vitamin C (i.e., orange juice or Welch's orange, pineapple & apple juice), and I've done it where I've added both. The additions are good, but having it as listed is yummy, too. Also, enjoy on St. Patrick's Day, Talk Like a Pirate Day, when you're feeling yucky, or on a cold night. Oh yeah...and all the measurements are approximate - eyeball it all & enjoy; don't get too caught up in the measurements...I kind of guessed.

This drink is warm, comforting, medicinal & yummy! It appeals to my Irish side plus my inner pirate! Whiskey AND rum; lemon juice, lime juice, the spices; the brown sugar & honey - it all has the makings of a toddy AND grog or bumbo. And I do believe it's helped me feel better, too.

ENJOY!

Mimosa Hurricane

It's Carnival time, folks!

I love when Mardi Gras comes, and we end up enjoying things like Dirty Rice, Red Beans & Rice, Shrimp Boils, Red Beans & Dirty Rice...
You get the idea.

To celebrate, I figured out how to fix up another Carnival/Mardi Gras staple: King Cake! (cheater recipe HERE)

I made it last year, too, along with a staple drink: Hurricanes!

Now then, since we were celebrating with the kiddos, and it was a Tuesday night, I decided to make them mocktails instead of cocktails. And they were delicious!

But it got me thinking about something...

Since my King Cake (or Carnival Cake if you don't have the baby...at least that's what I'm calling it) is a glorified cinnamon roll that I've enjoyed for breakfast the next day...and a Hurricane has orange juice in it...
Hmmm...
Mimosas are served at breakfast/brunch time, and they contain orange juice in them...

So...why not make the Hurricane into a Mimosa to enjoy with your King/Carnival Cake in the morning, with a small tweak?? Switch out the rum for Champagne!

Here's what I did:

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MIMOSA HURRICANE

Ingredients:

* 1/4 C orange juice
* 1/4 C pineapple juice
* 1 T lemon juice
* 1 T lime juice
* 1/2 - 1 T white sugar
* 1/2 C Champagne/white sparkling wine
* crushed ice
* splash grenedine
* garnish: orange slice/wedge, lime slice/wedge, maraschino cherry, pineapple chunks, etc.

Or look at it this way, in proportion to your glass:
* 1/4 of your glass crushed ice
* 1/2 of your glass, over ice, with Champagne/sparkling wine
* 1/2 of your glass, over ice, with juices & sugar
* splash of grenedine


Directions:

~ In a Hurricane glass, add in some crushed ice

~ Top the crushed iced by pouring the juices, sugar, and Champagne/sparkling wine over the ice; stir together to combine

~ When time to serve, add the splash of grenadine; add garnish of choice (super fun to add a little umbrella & a big bendy or crazy straw, too!)

~ Consume with a slice or two of King/Carnival Cake


Yield: 1 serving


Notes:
+ Make a mocktail version by using a sparkling white grape juice or sparkling cider in place of the Champagne/sparkling wine

+ If you want to make a bigger batch of this, multiply by the number you want to serve for, heat the lemon & lime juices with the sugar in a sauce pan to make into a syrup, then add it with the orange & pineapple juices to a large pitcher or bowl; stir. Add in the juice to the glass (pour or ladle), halfway up, then fill the rest of the glass with the Champagne/sparkling wine. Top it with the splash of grenadine & garnish.

Tip: Don't have grenadine on hand? If you're using maraschino cherries for garnish, splash a bit of the syrup from the jar into your mimosa instead!

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While you're at it, fry up some andouille sausage to go along with your NOLA-style breakfast! Yum!

And if you had a great time with your meal the night before, imagine how delicious your breakfast/brunch is going to be in the morning!

Perfect for guests staying the night or for a girls'-get-together for brunch!

I mean...coffee is always great with it in the morning, too...but maybe have coffee with one piece of leftover King/Carnival Cake, and a Hurricane Mimosa with the other! (if there's any cake left...)

Cheers & Laissez les bon temps rouler!

ENJOY!

Thanksgiving Sangria

This year was the first year my hubby & I hosted ALL of Thanksgiving.

For the last several years, we have hosted my side for brunch, then we head out to his side for the afternoon/evening feast.

This time, we had the brunch with my side AND the afternoon feast with my hubby's side at our house. Worked for us! We didn't have to go ANYWHERE!! We took care of the large portion of the brunch, then we switched gears & cooked the meats (turkey and ham), I made the green beans in a deconstructed green bean casserole, hubby made his late father's jello salad, and I made my holiday cranberries (recipe HERE).

I had come across several beautiful drinks that folks had made for their own family feasts. Sangrias seemed to be a perfect topper to the dinner, and I'd had a lovely sangria at my hubby's & my favorite restaurant a few months ago. So I decided that we needed to keep chilled out with the family. I tend to stress out with so much prep, so I had hoped to chill myself out, mostly, and anyone of the big kids who wanted to join in, too.

I researched several fall sangria recipes, like I do, and came up with this:

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THANKSGIVING SANGRIA

Ingredients:

1 bottle Riesling

1/2 C apple juice (optional...cuz I just needed to empty out the jug & it worked)

1 1/2 C apple cider

1 1/2 C cran-apple juice

1 bottle sparkling apple cider

1/3 C granulated sugar

about 1 C fresh cranberries (or about half a bag)

1 red apple (your choice - I used Red Delicious), cored & chopped

1 yellow apple (like Golden Delicious), cored & chopped

1 pear (I used apple pear), cored & chopped

few sprigs fresh rosemary

1 can or bottle hard cider (added at the last minute)

Directions:

In a large pitcher (I used a gallon-sized pitcher), add all of the ingredients, minus the hard cider, stir well, cover with a lid, plastic wrap or foil, then let it steep in the refrigerator for several hours.

Right before serving, remove from the fridge, add in the hard cider CAREFULLY and slowly (I used Redd's Wicked Apple Ale). Give one more good stir.

Into cups or wine goblets, it would be easiest to ladle in the sangria & some fruit rather than pour from the pitcher. 

This is a good, big batch for a large group of people. 

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I was so hoping it would turn out OK. I've never done a sangria before. Before I could do some quality control, there were already a few diving right into it! And then I could hear them saying, "Mmmmm!! This is really good!!" And I know it must've been true since they went back for more! I did, too.

Note to self: start the sangria steeping the night before so there's an even better blend of flavors. I'll keep it in mind as I plan my Christmas sangria!

 Definitely a new tradition for the feast!! *CHEERS*

ENJOY!