Food is such a big part of the holiday season, it would have been difficult to choose a recipe or two for this month's edition of Savor, our food segment. So we threw in the towel... the bar towel.
December features a slight deviation from food to drink, as we feature some seasonal cocktails. Food stylist and Savor partner Will Smith returns with Blake Henry, recently promoted from bar manager to general manager at Ashland's Brickroom. We take up several beverages, including a non-alcoholic alternative to the storied gin and tonic.
Here they are:
William’s French 75
2 oz London gin
¾ oz lemon juice (I like Meyer)
¾ oz simple syrup
...Mix above ingredients in cocktail shaker with ice, strain into champagne flute
Add 2 oz Champagne as floater
Garnish with lemon
William’s rum and Campari punch
1 cup simple syrup
1 46 oz pineapple juice
2 cups rum
1 ½ cup Campari
1 ¼ cup lime juice
¼ tsp salt
1 bottle 750 ml Prosecco or champagne
Ice cubes
Orange and lemon and cranberries for garnish
...Stir together all ingredients, garnish with fresh fruit.
Blake Henry’s Uncle B’s Coffee Cocktail
1 egg yolk
½ oz simple syrup
¼ oz coffee liqueur
¼ oz banana liqueur
1 ½ oz rye whiskey
...Add all ingredients to cocktail shaker with ice, shake well, strain into champagne glass.
Garnish with cinnamon.
Tsui ("swee") Mocktail-A Gin & Tonic substitute
Pour into Old Fashioned glass:
⅛ cup lemon juice
¼ cup ginger beer
1 - 2 Tbsp. herbed simple syrup (see below)
Add ice to the amount enjoyed
Fill remainder of glass with sparkling water or tonic water.
Stir and serve (adjust above amounts to taste)
Thyme Simple Syrup (or Rosemary or other herb)
Yields about 5-6 ounces
½ cup granulated sugar
½ cup water
2-3 sprigs of fresh thyme
1. Add all ingredients to a small saucepan. Turn heat to low and stir until sugar dissolves.
2. Simmer an additional 5 minutes, or until syrup coats the back of a spoon. (While simmering, watch carefully so it doesn’t boil over or burn.) It will thicken a bit more when cooled.
3. Remove from heat. Take out the thyme sprigs and allow syrup to cool completely before using. Store leftover syrup in a jar in the fridge for up to 2-3 weeks.