Friday Cocktail - The Pink Lady

Here we are again at the end of a long week of learning just how many ways a man can make a woman feel small and powerless.  The Commander and Chief Groper of them all is still in power while heads continue to role everywhere but that office.  Just to add insult to injury, we actually have him on tape bragging about his grabbing, kissing, groping exploits.  We have a ton of women (here's the list) claiming that they were victims of his assault.  Yet, he stays...and stays...and stays.

Here, have a cocktail.  A bright, pink, creamy cocktail to celebrate being a woman.  Cheers and have a great weekend.

Friday Cocktail - Frozen Apple - News, Quirks, Insights and Other Odds and Ends - November 2017

What. A. Week/Month.

Right now I am toasting not being Matt Lauer or any guy for that matter, who didn't get the memo that acting like you are on spring break in college is not acceptable in the workplace.  Just in case you thought these harassment issues were just among powerful public men, think again.  This podcast, Hollaback Girl, makes it abundantly clear that many, many more have no clue how their actions frighten and disgust women.

Some other odds and ends that caught my eye...

My son is obsessed with Stranger Things.  Apparently, he is not the only one.  Yay for a non-profit benefiting from the hoopla:  Star Tribune

Friday Cocktail on Wednesday - Bulldog and What to Wear

Bulldog

Thinking the Friday cocktail should be up sooner rather than later given the holiday.  Or, perhaps this mixture would also be good on Friday to help with indigestion.  Either way, the name of this drink makes you think it would be shock to your system.  Quite the opposite.  Light tasting with citrus, a hit of gin, topped off with ginger ale.  An elixir to calm before, during and after the festivities.    

Friday Cocktail - Grand Galliano

I love our little Oak Park bookstore, The Book Table.  I can spend all day in that place and never get board, much to my son's exasperation.  "Mom, will we ever be leaving this place?"  As if I took him to jail and lost the key.  Oh, what a difficult life he leads.  Pain au Chocolat at Léa and then the bookstore.  To me, that is the perfect day.  To him, the first part is awesome and the second is torture.

Friday Cocktail - Apple Hot Toddy - Holiday Fun

The holidays are coming and I think it's safe to say that libations will be needed given the current political climate.

Do you have Rachel Maddow enthusiasts and family members who worship at the alter of Rush Limbaugh?

Let's say you don't have political issues in your circles of love.  Win!  Yeah, right.  No one gets off that easy.  We all have some version of the Grandmother, Aunt, Uncle, neighbor...your very own parents who love to bring up your weight (too low! too high!), the way they think you should raise your kid (tip: their way is the only way!), or thinks that talking about your dating life or biological clock are appropriate dinner conversation.  

Oy.  You might want to make a punch bowl full of this stuff and pray the serenity prayer:

"God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, Courage to change the things I can, And wisdom to know the difference."

Amen!

Also, quick tip.  It's never about you.  It is always, always about them.  Fear, self-loathing, insecurity and a range of other negative emotions are the ingredients for being critical and nasty towards others.

Blini's with Caviar and Champagne

Blini's with Caviar

Happy New Year!  If I was a serious blogger, I would have had this post up pre New Year's but I was too busy drinking champagne.  That said, who says that blini's or caviar or champagne have to be for a special occasion?  I say, if your kids are not around, that is reason enough to celebrate.     

A note on the champagne.  My significant other likes to remind me that although Verve Clicquot is excellent and their marketing team has been brilliant, it is not the only fantastic champagne in circulation.  There are many other excellent choices.  Yum.  Also, bubbly is best with something salty.  One of my favorite champagne accompaniments is french fries.  Yes, french fries.  That or potato chips, the above salty caviar or smoked salmon, cheese straws, cheese puffs...you get the picture.  If you can, make the appetizers yourself.  Everything tastes so much better when it is not bought pre-packaged from the middle aisles.  

The blini recipe is from Ina Garten and you can find it here.  I also used the crème fraîche and dill in her recipe but substituted caviar for the smoked salmon, which I was able to buy from Costco for a small fortune.    

Blini's with Caviar, Champagne and a Roaring Fire

The Bourbon Trail

Catching Bourbon from the Barrel at Jim Beam

Have you ever toured the Bourbon Trail in Kentucky?  You should.  It's a mixed drink of how Bourbon is made, some American history (prohibition is a nasty word in Bourbon country), how it came to be a very American drink and the laws that make it Bourbon.  The rolling green KY hills serve as a beautiful backdrop.  P.S., The dining scene in Lousiville is top notch and obviously, their cocktails have serious bragging rights.  We were there for two days and we made it to Jim Beam, Buffalo Trace, Woodford Reserve and Maker's Mark.

Knob's Creek Bottling

Years of Storage in Burnt Barrels for that Distinct Taste

Friday Cocktail - Pimm's Cup for Wimbledon

Traditional Pimm's Cup

I am probably the only American who is from Chicago who is doing a post about our British friends across the pond as we head into the Fourth of July and on the heels of a Blackhawks Stanley Cup victory.  Guess what, I just mentioned both, so we can now get our English drink on to celebrate Wimbledon.

So, if you are going to Wimbledon, or if like me you are wishing you were at Wimbledon, you will want to mix up a Pimm's Cup and break out the cucumber sandwiches and strawberries and cream.  England's food can be hit or miss but there are a few things they do really well such as tea, scones, clotted cream and a Pimm's Cup.  Although, be warned, this is a drink that will knock you out if you are not careful. It is refreshing, tastes of summer fruit and icy cold.  Before you know it, you've downed a few of these and don't know your own name.    

Pimm's Cup
Yield: 1 Tall Cocktail

Ingredients:
2 oz. Pimm's No. 1
4 oz. sparkling/carbonated lemonade (you can also use 7-Up, Ginger Ale or lemon-lime soda)
Mint sprigs, cucumber slices, orange slices and sliced strawberries

1.  Add lots of ice to a tall, chilled glass
2.  Add the soda and Pimm's and stir
3.  Garnish with orange, strawberries, mint and cucumbers 

Friday Cocktail - Dark and Stormy, Bermuda and Tennis

Dark and Stormy

I am not sure I could possibly be any happier to be home or that it is Friday.  Even though I returned from the land where "all the women are strong, all the men are good looking and all the kids are above average", says Garrison Keillor, coming back from any trip makes everything from the smell of my car to my beat up couch blissful.  That's the great thing about business travel; you appreciate home more when you return.

So, I am sure the nagging question you are asking right now is, "What's with the photo of the drink with the tennis racquet?"  Well, what seems like long ago, I took a little trip to Bermuda with my college tennis team.  If there is one thing that Bermuda is known for it would be the Dark and Stormy...that and their pink buses.  So, was I playing tennis or was I drinking Dark and Stormy's the whole time?  Um, both?  See, that is the advantage of playing Division III sports, you can have your spring training in Bermuda and drink your Dark and Stormy too.  Good times.

Dark and Stormy
Yield:  1 Cocktail

Ingredients:
2 ounces dark rum
3 ounces ginger beer
1/2 ounce fresh lime juice (I honestly don't remember lime juice in the Dark and Stormy's in Bermuda but a few recipes I looked at included it.  I liked the taste so the lime stays, at least in my recipe.)

Method:
Combine the rum, ginger beer and lime juice in a tall glass with plenty of ice cubes.  Give it a stir and drink several after playing a good game of tennis.

 

Friday Cocktail - Sidecar, Mirror Images and Father's Day

Sidecar

First, Happy Father's Day to my Dad and my Grandfather.  Below are two generations of Dad's and one up and comer.  My little guy and I are fortunate to have my Dad who has boundless energy and will practice baseball whenever the mood strikes, is a master of water fun at the pool, is the MacGyver of making up games from scratch, will take a kid sledding until frostbite sets in and has an infectious laugh that reaches highest pitch when watching the late/great George Carlin.  He's a tough act to follow and that makes me one lucky daughter.    

As for the cocktail, I am having a Sidecar.  This is a pre-prohibition, Gatsby era drink that thankfully survived the cocktail brain drain the Eighteenth Amendment invited.  Gold in color with a balance of sweet and sour makes it perfect to celebrate the beginning of the weekend. 

My Grandfather

My Son

\

My Dad and My Grandfather

Friday Cocktail, Spiced Nuts, Goat Cheese with Honey and a Long Run

Happy Friday, Folks.  A cocktail will be in order this evening after a hectic work week.  I would have more than one if I could but I have 12 miles to knock out tomorrow morning.  Since last weekend my run had shades of the Bataan Death March, I am hoping to make it through this one with toenails intact, knees in place, nausea kept at bay and sustained energy levels so the last two miles are not of me practically walking, like last weekend.  I had a Christopher McCandless moment before I headed out for said run and did not bring any fluids or food/ gels/ sports beans with me.  P.S. My iPod ran out of juice right around mile 7.  So, poster child of prepared I was not.

So what got me to the end of that run?  Food, of course.  Specifically, thoughts of the Oak Park Farmers Market Doughnuts that are served, usually warm, until 1pm every Saturday through the summer and early fall.  I have a deep infatuation with those doughnuts and they were going to be my prize for finishing strong.  Unfortunately, they never even made it to my lips since I was in the doughnut line for all of three minutes before, out of nowhere, I started sweating profusely, my head started spinning and I felt like I was going to dry heave since there was absolutely nothing in my stomach.  I bent over, put my hands on my knees and tried to look normal.  Unfortunately, I looked like some rookie college kid who spent the last night drinking and just happened by the doughnut stand on the walk of shame.  I realized that if I did not get out of that line, the scene would go from bad to scenes out of "The Hangover".