Author: Dave the Hubby

Sidecar

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Margie decided this would be her elegant bar drink when she wasn’t going for something with Scotch.  It has a very Roaring 20s feel to it.

Ingredients:

  • Juice of ¼ Lemon*
  • 1 oz. Triple Sec
  • 1 oz. Brandy

Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.

*A medium lemon will produce about 3 Tbsp of juice; a large one 4 Tbsp (¼ cup).

Gimlet

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This is a gin drink that tastes remarkably not-all-that-ginny. Very refreshing on a warm day.

Folks who hang out in bars insist that a Gimlet can only be made with Rose’s Lime Juice. I’ve never been thrilled with that, preferring something made with fresh lime and sugar.

Ingredients

  • 2 oz. gin
  • ¾ oz. lime juice
  • ¾ oz. simple syrup

Notes:

  • That works out to a 8:3:3 ratio.  You could also go 2-2/3 oz. gin and then 1 oz of the other two ingredients.
  • Mr. Boston calls for 1½ oz. gin, 1 oz. lime juice, 1 tsp. powdered sugar, shaken and strained.

 

Margie’s Marinated Leg of Lamb

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Our usual Easter Dinner treat. This started with an official lamb marinade recipe, but Margie takes some shortcuts that work just great.

Ingredients:

  • 1 leg of lamb (about 5 pounds), boned and butterflied (cut the net off the rolled boneless leg and flatten)

Ingredients (Marinade):

  • ½ cup firmly packed parsley
  • ½ cup firmly packed fresh mint
  • 4 large cloves garlic, peeled and halved
  • 4 green onions (including tops) cut into 1″ pieces
  • 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
  • 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
  • ½ tsp dried thyme
  • ¼ tsp dried crushed rosemary
  • ¼ tsp pepper
  • Official matrix:
    • 1/3 cup olive oil
  • Unofficial matrix:
    • ¼ cup olive oil
    • ¼ cup red wine

Official Directions:

  1. Place all marinade ingredients except oil in food processor. Blend until finely chopped.
  2. Slowly add oil to form paste. Rub marinade on lamb and refrigerate 2 hours or over night.

Margie’s Directions:

  1. Start with mint, garlic, and whatever other fresh or dried  herbs you have around. Do a rough chop on the herbs.
  2. Put in large zip-lock back and add the vinegar, lemon juice, oil, and wine
  3. Marinate lamb in bag as long as desired.
  4. The liquid from the marinade can be cooked down for a sauce or glaze.

Source: The California Wine Country Herb and Spice Cookbook – Montevina Winery

There are several ways to cook this lamb – flat on the barbecue is the best.  Go for an instant thermometer reading of 145° for medium rare, 160° for medium.  Slightly undercook as it needs to rest for 15 minutes and will continue to “cook” a bit – raising the temperature 5 degrees.

Ginger

Butter Almond Cake

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This cake was created by Marcella Sarne, who entered it in a baking context sponsored by C&H Sugar and won, to the tune of a grand-prize custom kitchen. Sprinkling salt over the batter together with the toasted almonds and sugar is genius. Covered and stored at room temperature, this cake keeps well for several days.  (October 2019) Margie made the cake with almond flour and gave this advice:  Next time I would increase flour by 1/4 or 1/2 c and drop the oven to 325°. She made it in a pie pan.

Ingredients:

  • 3 heaped tablespoons sliced almonds
  • 3/4 c (1½ sticks) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
  • 1 1/2 c granulated sugar, plus 1 tablespoon for finishing
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 tsp pure almond extract
  • 1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
  • 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • A pinch of sea salt flakes, like Maldon

Directions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 350˚ F.
  2. Butter and flour a 9-inch fluted tart pan with a removable bottom. (or 9″ round cake pan)
  3. (Spread the sliced almonds in a single layer on a baking sheet and toast them in a preheated oven for 5 to 7 minutes, until fragrant. They should color only lightly.)
  4. Whisk together the melted butter and 1½ cups sugar in a large bowl.
  5. Add one egg, whisk until fully incorporated.
  6. Then add the other and whisk some more.
  7. Add the almond extract, vanilla and salt, and whisk well, until smooth.
  8. With a rubber spatula, fold in the flour until just combined.
  9. Spread the batter evenly in the prepared pan and scatter the toasted almonds, sea salt flakes, if using, and 1 tablespoon sugar over top.
  10. Bake for 35 minutes, until the cake peeking through the almonds takes on a faintly rosy color (this cake blushes more than it browns), and a tester inserted into the center comes out clean.
  11. Cool on a rack until nearly room temperature, then ease the cake out of the pan and cool the rest of the way.

Serves: 8 to 10

Source: Marcella Sarné, winning a C+H Sugar baking competition.

This cake comes out a brownie consistency, so can be served in wedges or in bite-sized chunks. Serve plain or with fresh fruit.

 

Margie’s One Bowl Brownies

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Sure, you can use the recipe on the ingredient box, but where’s the fun in that?

Prep time: 15 minutes
Total time: 50 minutes

Ingredients

  • 4 squares Baker’s Unsweetened Baking Chocolate
  • ¾ cup (1½ sticks) butter
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 3 eggs (4 eggs at altitude)
  • 1 tsp almond extract
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1 cup flour
  • 1 cup sliced almonds
  • ½ cup maraschino cherries, chopped

Directions

  1. Preheat the oven to 350ºF.  Grease a 9×13 inch baking pan.
  2. Microwave the chocolate and butter in a large bowl on High for 2 minutes, or until butter is melted. Take out and stir until chocolate is melted.
  3. Stir in sugar, eggs, vanilla, and almond extract.
  4. Add flour, almonds, cherries; mix well.
  5. Spread mix into the pan.
  6. Bake 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick in the center comes out with fudgy crumbs. (Do not overbake!)
  7. Cool in pan on wire rack.

Makes 24 brownies … depending on how you cut them up

Source: Baker’s Chocolate box, plus additions (cherries, almond extract, almonds instead of pecans)

 

Caipirtweenha

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This is a “tween”/teen “virgin” version of the Caipirinha.  I invented it to serve our (at the time) 11-year-old daughter whilst Margie and I were drinking the boozy version.

Ingredients

  • 2 oz Club Soda
  • 1 Lime
  • 2 tbsp Ultrafine (Baker’s) Sugar (or Simple Syrup equivalent) (see notes)
  • Liberal Splash of Sprite (or similar lemon-lime soda).
  • Crushed ice

Instructions

  1. Take a lime, cut it in half lengthwise, remove the white pith in the center.
  2. Cut the lime half in half lengthwise, then cut laterally into four smaller wedges.
  3. Put lime wedges in a lowball (“rocks” or “old-fashioned”) glass
  4. Add sugar.
  5. Muddle the lime and sugar.  Get as much juice out of the limes as you can without squeezing the bitter oils out of the rind.
  6. Fill the glass with crushed ice.
  7. Fill the glass with club soda (should be roughly 2 oz.).
  8. Add a splash of Sprite
  9. Mix well (ideally, use a larger glass or shaker over the top and shake well).
  10. Garnish with lime slice (optional).

Notes

  • It’s pronounced “cuy-per-tween-ya.”
  • The amount of sugar is somewhat to taste.  Various recipes call for 1-3 tbsp. Simple syrup can be used, but part of the fun in a Caipirtweenha is a bit of unmuddled sugar at the bottom of the glass.
  • Some folks swear by lime slices instead of wedges.
  • For refills, I add a half-lime (since there’s usually plenty of juice left in the remainders) and another tbsp of sugar (ditto), muddle in the existing glass, then follow the rest of the recipe (club soda, liquor, Sprite).
Source
  • Dave the Hubby invented this.

Caipirinha

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The “National Cocktail of Brazil,” we fell in love with the Caipirinha via the good graces of our local Fogo de Chao restaurant.  It’s a relatively easy recipe, bounded largely by the proportions you use.

Ingredients

  • 2 oz Cachaça (or, alternately, white rum — see notes)
  • 1 Lime
  • 2 tbsp Ultrafine (Baker’s) Sugar (or Simple Syrup equivalent) (see notes)
  • Splash of Sprite (or similar lemon-lime soda).
  • Crushed ice

Instructions

  1. Take a lime, cut it in half lengthwise, remove the white pith in the center.
  2. Cut the lime half in half lengthwise, then cut laterally into four smaller wedges.
  3. Put lime wedges in a lowball (“rocks” or “old-fashioned”) glass
  4. Add sugar.
  5. Muddle the lime and sugar.  Get as much juice out of the limes as you can without squeezing the bitter oils out of the rind.
  6. Fill the glass with crushed ice.
  7. Fill the glass with cachaça (should be roughly 2 oz.).
  8. Add a splash of Sprite
  9. Mix well (ideally, use a larger glass or shaker over the top and shake well).
  10. Garnish with lime slice (optional).

Notes

  • It’s pronounced “cuy-per-een-ya.”
  • Cachaça is a rum-like spirit from Brazil, also known as aguaridente. It is similar to rum (and is stocked in better liquor stores next to it), but is produced directly from cane juice rather than from molasses.  You can use white rum instead, but it’s not quite as good. (In theory you can also use vodka in this recipe, making it a “Caipiroska,” but that just sounds vile.)
  • The amount of sugar is somewhat to taste.  Various recipes call for 1-3 tbsp. Simple syrup can be used, but part of the fun in a caipirinha is a bit of unmuddled sugar at the bottom of the glass.
  • Some folks swear by lime slices instead of wedges.
  • For refills, I add a half-lime (since there’s usually plenty of juice left in the remainders) and another tbsp of sugar (ditto), muddle in the existing glass, then follow the rest of the recipe (ice, liquor, Sprite).
  • There are a lot of caipirinha recipes out there. This one is simple.