FrogPrincesse

Second year making my yuzu and Meyer lemon marmalade (this time with Cara Cara oranges and a touch of Famouse Grouse). The lemons gels like crazy so I had a nice yield of 13 jars, starting with 2.7 kg of fruit.

If it's this beauty it is not a kirshwasser. I recommend pouring down the drain immediately. http://www.dekuyperusa.com/flavor/dekuyper-cherry-flavored-brandy

I can't think of any cocktail that would "hide it", but it's a great addition to fruit salad.

I think your expensive eaux-de-vie would get lost in the punch - these are best for sipping. I'd go with Laird bib + apricot liqueur 2:1 to get some nice fruit flavors without too much sweetness.

The pictures help a bit. From the last one, the light specks look like sugar crystals to me. If they were dark I'd be more worried.

Solid ingredients (sugar, tea, bay leaf) as opposed to the liquid ingredients (water, booze). Hard to tell without seeing these "flecks". What do they look like? In the future, it's best to make your syrup, store it in the fridge, and not premix it with the whiskey if you are worried about spoilage. Though I agree with you that it's unlikely that mold would grow in this type of environment (booze + sugar). You said that the syrup was thick. How thoroughly did you mix? Maybe you have a glob of syrup left in there that is spoiling.

My falernum does something similar. In my case I know it's not sugar crystallizing and I don't believe it's mold either (I've seen mold and it looks very different). The sediment stuff I suspect is due to flocculation - fine particles (from the solid ingredients used in the recipe) that were not completely filtered out and that, over time, clump together forming larger particles which eventually fall to the bottom of the bottle via sedimentation. If that's the case, then it's still safe to use. Just be careful to pour it slowly so the sediment doesn't transfer into your drink.

The cocktails I make are typically 3 or 3.5 oz pre-dilution. Dilution adds about 20%. The coupes I use the most often are 4 and 5 oz. I use the 4 oz for stirred drinks (Martinis, Manhattans) and 5 oz for Daiquiris. For parties I use smaller coupes so I can serve a group more quickly. Of course that means that a second round comes a bit sooner, but at least the drinks don't have time to warm up before they are finished!

I think it qualifies. It is the brewery that started the craft beer movement in San Diego, it's independent, and the quality is still there! https://mobile.nytimes.com/2012/05/27/travel/san-diegos-thriving-craft-beer-scene.html

To each their own! Without Bread & Cie, I don't think I would have lasted very long in San Diego!

@ChrisTaylorDid you substitute dry vermouth for the blanc on purpose? Curious!

Both of course!

David Lebovitz's Chocolate Crack Cookies

I linked to my pictures with step by step instructions which still work. Here is the full recipe from Babbo. It's well worth buying the book!

The recipe was from Babbo. It's pretty easy. Founding the pork jowls is the difficult part, at least for me!

More expensive here although it's a local catch, but totally worth it!

That halibut looks so good! One of my favorite fish. From dinner last night, carbonara with home-cured guanciale (from a pig I've butchered myself in a butchery class). Bliss. http://www.mariobatali.com/recipes/spaghetti-alla-carbonara/

Pastel Vasco (Basque cake) made with an apple plum butter instead of blackberry compote. I used Plantation Barbados 5 years for the rum. I've only had it "as is" so far and it's delicious, full of flavor. This is still of my favorite and most used cookbooks!

Pretty! I think a lot of people made their Southsides with lime well before Death & Co though!

Oh I've made that one too (and reported in the Daiquiri thread). I got it from the Absinthe Cocktails book, before Death & Co came out. I enjoyed it as well!

I've done some browsing/reading, but no actual cooking yet! The recipes seem involved but I am also interested in trying the sub-recipes (condiments etc) on their own.

Glad you liked it. I'd join you but my mint is in poor condition unfortunately...

Here is a summary of my horchata experiments. https://www.google.com/amp/s/tartinestotikis.wordpress.com/2016/10/03/horchata-diaries/amp/ And here is a good reference article on horchata by Arielle Johnson. http://www.latimes.com/food/dailydish/la-fo-horchata-recipes-science-20170719-story.html

He has good products so I am sure it's fine! I've had his other syrups (cinnamon, vanilla, passion fruit, ginger) but not the falernum since I make my own. It's not very difficult to make if you are so inclined!

Chocolate pots de crème I went with the recipe from Joule rather than my trusted recipe and this was a mistake. My only change was to use crème fraiche instead of heavy cream, otherwise everything was per recipe. This was very dense and way too rich to the point that nobody couldn't finish it.