FrogPrincesse

I probably should have infused a whole bottle, because it's going very fast. I made my best attempt at replicating Gareth Evan's Rum DMC (walnut-infused S&C, Appleton, Cynar, lime juice, maple syrup, orange bitters) for the challenge, as Plantes Vertes had guessed. Also I made a walnut Mai Tai with batavia arrack and more of the walnut-infused S&C, walnut orgeat, pecan bitters, etc. Details here.

I've been playing with my bottle of Batavia Arrack lately. This cocktail by Misty Kalkofen caught my eye. Pleasure and Pain: Batavia Arrack, Branca Menta (Fernet-Branca), walnut liqueur (Charbay black walnut liqueur), Bénédictine. It originally calls for Branca Menta which, from what I gather, is Fernet-lite (more minty/sweeter/less bitter); but I thought I might as well go all the way with Fernet. Lots of spice and nuts, then it goes into more bitter and metallic flavors, almost acidic, with a walnut Bénédictine finish. Still pretty tame if you are into that kind of thing.

Same glass but a different swizzle to accompany the blistering heat wave in San Diego. This one is for Hassouni. Dolores Park Swizzle (by Thad Vogler of Bar Agricole) with La Favorite rhum agricole blanc, lime juice, cane syrup, maraschino liqueur, St. George absinthe verte, topped with Peychaud's bitters and mint. The licorice from the absinthe & Peychaud's accentuate the earthy qualities of the rhum agricole. It's quite delightful, but anything with rhum agricole usually is.

I have decided to use my Suze a bit more instead of hoarding it at the back of a refrigerator shelf. It is delicious stuff, with a bitter and woody taste that is quite addictive. Plus it is French so of course it is perfect in every way. Anyway, I had this very nice aperitif last weekend, the Little Valiant (Will Thompson) with 2 oz Lillet blanc as the base, 1 oz Suze, a touch lemon juice (3/4 tsp - not oz!), orange bitters (Regan's + Fee's, one dash each), pinch of salt. The salt (I used kosher flake salt) is sprinkled on the (single large) ice cube, a la Bitter Giuseppe/Search for Delicious, so the drink changes personality as the ice melts. It goes from light and citrusy to briny, with enough bitterness in the background to keep things interesting.

No love for kale? The kale actually made the dish. The texture was nice and the broth very flavorful. The other stuff was just icing on the cake.

Here is the Boiled kale on toast that I made this winter and previously posted in the Dinner thread. Boiled kale doesn't sound especially appealling. You end up with a pot full of greyish green material floating in liquid, surrounded by semi-toxic fumes. The opposite of sexy. First impressions aside, this dish was surprisingly good. The boiled kale was served on a piece of toasted rustic bread that was dipped in the kale broth. Shaved Parmigiano was tucked under the duck egg for a little extra burst of flavor. There is something deeply comforting about this dish.

Soba, That seems like the kind of food you would enjoy based on what I've seen you post. I would also recommend the books by Suzanne Goin if you don't already have them. She acknowledged Judy Rodgers as an influence on the way she develops recipes.

I received a large orange cauliflower and a bunch of broccolini in my farmer's market bag, so I decided to try the Pasta with spicy broccoli and cauliflower from Zuni. I liked the technique where the vegetables are sliced thin and browned to create flavor, with the other elements added towards the end so they maintain a sharper flavor (sliced garlic/anchovies/etc). The end result was a little oily, even though I had reduced the amount of olive oil that the recipe called for. Also there was something in the flavor that kept bugging me which I realized was the fennel seed. For me it distracted from the other flavors, even though I only used a pinch or two. I will completely skip it next time. Excluding the fennels seed, I noticed that the various aromatic elements (olives, garlic, anchovies, capers) are actually what is used to make tapenade and that's why they make sense together. I garnished with toasted breadcrumbs as recommended in the recipe which gave a nice texture. My favorite tapenade recipe incorporates almonds as well, and now I am kicking myself because I had some fresh green almonds that would have been nice in there, as a counterpoint to the sharper flavors in the dish.

Very impressive (bonus points for the bois lélé!). How do you plan on transporting your gear to the event?

I would ask for some fruit eaux-de-vie as suggested above. I am not sure where you are located, but in the US they can be hard to find and you don't get the same selection for sure, plus they are easily twice the price. The quality is excellent - I have various ones from Etter and a very nice pear Williamine from Morand.

Group hug! :-)

You're a bit early but I am ready for you.

You are both welcome to a glass & a hug tonight, my place at 7.

The Ortensia with equal parts Highland Park 12, Punt e Mes, Aperol, and a (bitter) orange twist. A Negroni with scotch... and it was really good. Because Aperol is not as bitter as Campari, I think it's important to use Punt e Mes rather than any sweet vermouth in this drink. In other news, Negroni week is only a few weeks away with a lot of bars participating this year.

You learn to develop a tolerance for that sort of thing ... and you make sure to get something else next time (like beer or wine!).

I love la Favorite too, but I don't think I am ready to commit. For mixing, J.M and Neisson are also great. And for Ti Punch, Clement Canne bleue or l'Esprit Neisson. They are all fabulous for various reasons.

If I could only keep one white, it would have to be a rhum agricole!

A golden beet salad with green apple and goat cheese from a few weeks ago.

Tom Walker's Maid in Cuba last night, as a nod to his win in the Bacardy Legacy Competition. 2 oz rum (Havana Club añejo), 1 oz lime juice, 1/2 oz simple syrup, shake with a handful of mint and 3 slices (Persian) cucumber, fine strain into a coupe rinsed with (St. George) abinsthe, top with club soda, cucumber slice garnish.

3/4 oz apricot liqueur? I don't think I can do that :-)

Just regular walnuts.

Cool, and good to know about the bitterness (did you have to keep tasting it to figure this out? ). I was thinking of infusing walnuts into alcohol as well, but I was looking at rum if you see where I am going with this.

Because you are not paying attention :-) I just received some passion syrup in the mail so it may be time to make one again.

PV - you have to spill the beans and share your walnut infusion recipe. Because there is a MxMo challenge that's perfect for this! Last night it was Déjà Vu all over again for various reasons that have little to do with cocktails. This one by Riccardo Semeria has armagnac (cognac can also be used - I went with Delord Armagnac Napoleon), French vermouth (Dolin), Benedictine, absinthe (St. George). I love any occasion to mix with armagnac. The taste of this cocktail is very intriguing. Nothing really dominates and I kept detecting new aromas with every sip. Apparently the inspiration behind this drink was the Bombay No. 2 from the Savoy Cocktail Book.