bourbon

Ginger Julep

Leah Short — Thu, 31 Jul 2014 13:47:39 +0000

Oh how I love a good cocktail. No matter where I am drinking one, even if it’s on my couch, I feel like I’m somewhere special having a grand time. It could be simple like my go to Jack & Coke, or you can get fancy, like this Ginger Julep! I adore mint juleps and this one takes that classic drink and spices it up with ginger. There’s also a touch of orange juice to round out the flavors. The drink starts by making your own ginger-mint syrup. It’s really quite easy to make simple syrups and the flavor possibilities are endless. This one has mint, ginger, and orange peel. Once your syrup is ready and cooled, pour it in a glass with orange juice and good bourbon. Garnish with crushed ice and more mint and you’ve got one fancy cocktail! (Even if you’re like me and drink it on the couch in your yoga pants.)

Read more on Ginger Julep

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Cranberry Culprit

Leah Short — Thu, 29 Nov 2012 15:06:03 +0000

In my last post, I shared with you a recipe for homemade Cranberry & Citrus Sauce. While it may have changed my canned sauce ways, the only reason I made it in the first place was for a cocktail. You know where my priorities are! This Cranberry Culprit intrigued me because I’d never heard of making a drink with cranberry sauce. The homemade sauce is really easy to make, but if you want, you can also try it with the canned stuff.

So, how’s it taste?

The first one I made, I was too lazy to squeeze on the lime juice. Which makes absolutely no sense since I made the cranberry sauce from scratch, but heaven forbid I cut and squeeze a lime! In my head it made perfect sense at the time. I really liked my first drink, but without that squirt of lime, it reminded me of cough syrup. Drinkable, but just so so. I also didn’t strain the drink, which I didn’t mind at first, but then halfway through the drink the cranberry bits really annoyed me.

For my next drink, I added the squeeze of lime and strained it into my glass. Perfection! The lime really added that little something it was missing and removed the cough syrup aftertaste. I preferred it strained, too. No bits hitting my teeth so I was a happy camper. Whether your prepping your feast or looking for a way to use your cranberry sauce leftovers, put this drink on your holiday sipping list.

Cranberry Culprit

by Amy Wisniewski, Chow
makes 1 drink

Ingredients:

1 oz. Cranberry & Citrus Sauce (or other cranberry sauce)
1 oz. bourbon
1 oz. amaretto
Ice
2 oz. ginger ale
Lime wedge

Directions:

1. Combine cranberry sauce, bourbon, and amaretto in a cocktail shaker and muddle until most of the cranberries and citrus are broken up.

2. Fill the shaker with ice, cover, and shake vigorously. Pour the contents into a highball glass (straining optional), and top with ginger ale. Squeeze the lime wedge over top and serve.

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Ginger Cider Bourbon

Leah Short — Wed, 21 Nov 2012 17:33:55 +0000

Tomorrow’s the big day! Are you ready for Thanksgiving? Let me introduce you to Ginger Cider Bourbon in case you need a boost! This is a great Fall tasty beverage and super easy to make. You can make a huge batch or single servings depending on your needs. Garnish with an apple wedge and you’re ready for the holidays!

So, how’s it taste?

It’s odd, but I don’t like apple cider, I like the flavor. Which makes zero sense. I won’t drink a glass of it, but I’ll turn them into cupcakes and they’re the best I’ve ever had! I love hot apple cider if it’s smothered in caramel. So maybe I just don’t like it by itself, but with other flavors. I think that’s why this drink works. I love ginger ale and I love bourbon. Both of those go so well with the cider. I swear there’s almost a deep caramel aftertaste because of the sweet from the bourbon. I will warn you that this drink is rich. I enjoyed slowly sipping on mine, but one was enough. It’s not super sweet, and that would depend on your brand of bourbon too, but it’s sweeter than what I like in a cocktail. I think playing with the ratios would suit me better too. When I try this again, I think I’ll up the ginger ale a bit and lower the cider. Of course, upping the bourbon wouldn’t hurt either.

Ginger Cider Bourbon

by The Tampopo Post

Ingredients:

2 parts ginger ale
2 parts apple cider
1 part bourbon

Directions:

1. Mix all ingredients and serve over ice. Garnish with an apple slice, if desired.

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German Chocolate Pecan Pie Bars

Leah Short — Fri, 19 Oct 2012 17:07:11 +0000

I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned my love affair with pecans before. They are in my top five list of food weaknesses. If I’m using them in a recipe, you can count on me eating a fair amount of them while I’m baking. I’ve also been known to buy a bag of pecans just to munch on! So any dessert that’s full of pecans is screaming my name. I jumped at the chance to make German Chocolate Pecan Pie Bars. It’s a merging of those flavors you love in German Chocolate desserts and Pecan Pie!

So, how’s it taste?

Oh gosh where do I start? For a pecan-lover like me, they are amazing. These bars have so many pecans in each bite! I like how some are pecan halves and some are bits and pieces. Pecans everywhere! The combination of the ooey gooey middle with crunchy pecans and sweet coconut. It’s that classic German chocolate trio. But wait, there’s more! Underneath the ooey gooey is a layer of chocolate. One and half cups of chocolate morsels are melted over the crust. That’s a lot of chocolate folks. The crust is similar to a chocolate shortbread, and I’m not a fan of shortbread, but it works here. The crust is kind of plain, but that’s ok with all the richness happening on top of it.

I added an optional kick of whiskey to my bars. The recipe calls for bourbon, but I usually use Jack Daniel’s Whiskey instead. Jack didn’t really work in this recipe. It added kind of a funny taste, instead of a yummy whiskey accent. I think a nice bourbon would have worked much, much better…or leaving out the alcohol would be great too. The mixture does get a bit thin adding in the extra liquid. My bars were more gooier.

Baking the crust threw me off a little, too. When you put the crust mixture into the pan, it’s loose and it doesn’t come together. I thought no way would this bake into a crust. But all that butter throughout it makes it come together. Only in a small part on the edge did I have some powdery areas.

A million thumbs up to this recipe! The flavors are perfect for Fall baking and a nice twist on pecan pie.

German Chocolate Pecan Pie Bars

Southern Living, September 2012
makes 24 bars

Ingredients:

3 cups pecan halves and pieces
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup powdered sugar
3/4 cup cold butter, cubed
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate morsels
3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
3/4 cup light corn syrup
1/4 cup butter, melted
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup sweetened flaked coconut
1/4 cup bourbon, optional*

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Bake pecans in a single layer in a shallow pan 8 to 10 minutes or until lightly toasted and fragrant, stirring halfway through.

2. Line bottom and sides of a 13x9-inch pan with heavy-duty aluminum foil, allowing 2 to 3 inches to extend over sides. Lightly grease foil.

3. Pulse flour and next 3 ingredients in a food processor 5 to 6 times or until mixture resembles coarse meal. Press mixture on bottom and 3/4 inch up sides of prepared pan.

4. Bake crust at 350F for 15 minutes. Remove from oven, and sprinkle chocolate morsels over crust. Cool completely on a wire rack (about 30 minutes).

5. Whisk together brown sugar and next 3 ingredients until smooth. Stir in coconut and toasted pecans, and spoon into prepared crust.

6. Bake at 350F for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden and set. Cool completely on a wire rack (about 1 hour). Chill 1 hour. Lift baked bars from pan, using foil sides as handles. Transfer to a cutting board; cut into bars.

*If adding the optional bourbon, whisk it into the brown sugar mixture in step 5.

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