Recipes and Art
Back in January 2011, I watched an episode of The Best Thing I Ever Ate. It was a drink-based episode, and one drink stood out – the Herbaceous Mojito from Daddy O in New York. It sounded so refreshing and interesting, using house-infused cilantro vodka and roasted jalapeño simple syrup to create a spectacular cocktail.
Fast forward 2 weeks, and Ryan and I find ourselves stranded in Newark after missing our flight to St. Maarten. We decided to make the best of it, and decided to go to Greenwich Village, find the bar, and order the drink. The bar is fantastic, and it’s clear from the menu that the staff clearly knows its way around an expertly crafted cocktail. Though the drink isn’t on the menu, we ask for it anyway. This is clearly not uncommon, as we see the cocktail being created at the bar quite frequently. The drink is spectacular, perfectly balanced between sour, sweet and spicy. Though we first tried the cocktail in the dead of winter, it is perfectly refreshing in the summer. To tide me over until I get to go again, I created this recipe that closely approximates the drink. Though there are several components, it is well worth the effort.
Cilantro Vodka
1 bunch cilantro, rinsed, stems and wilted leaves removed
1 bottle vodka
Filter the vodka 10 times through a Brita water filter – this will make the vodka taste smoother. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. While it comes to a boil, create an ice bath. Dunk the cilantro in the boiling water for 30 seconds, then plunge into the ice bath for about a minute. Spin it dry in a salad spinner, or dry the best you can using a lint-free towel or paper towels.
Stuff the cilantro into a large Mason jar. Pour the vodka over. Let the cilantro infuse the vodka for 2 to 2 and a half days – any longer and the cilantro will break down. Strain the vodka. Pour the vodka back into its bottle and store in the freezer.
Roasted Jalapeño Simple Syrup
5 jalapeño peppers
1 cup sugar
2 cups water
Preheat the broiler to high. Set the jalapeño peppers on a baking tray and broil until the skins are blackened, anywhere from 5 to 10 minutes. Remove to a plastic container. Cover and let stand for 10 minutes. Remove lid. Peel the skin off of each jalapeño and set on a cutting board. Coarsely chop the roasted jalapeños.
Combine the sugar and water in a small saucepan. Stir once to be sure the sugar is moistened. Over medium heat, without stirring, bring the mixture just to a boil. Turn off the heat and add the chopped roasted jalapeño peppers, including the seeds. Let steep for 5 minutes and taste. If the syrup has a strong amount of heat, strain into a glass jar. If the syrup needs more heat and flavour, let steep for 5 more minutes, or until desired flavour is achieved.
Simple Syrup
1 cup granulated sugar
2 cups water
Combine the sugar and water in a small saucepan. Stir once to be sure the sugar is moistened. Over medium heat, without stirring, bring the mixture just to a boil. Turn off heat and let syrup stand for 10 minutes. Decant into a glass jar or squeeze bottle.
Herbaceous Mojito
Makes 2 cocktails
4 lime wedges (1 lime)
2 handfuls of fresh cilantro
a generous amount of ice
2 tbsp (1 ounce) jalapeño simple syrup
2 tbsp (1 ounce) simple syrup
4 tbsp (2 ounces) cilantro vodka
1/3 cup (3 ounces) pineapple juice, fresh, if at all possible
1/3 cup (3 ounces) fresh lime juice
club soda (optional)
Fill 2 highball glasses with ice. In a large container or glass, muddle together the lime wedges and cilantro (if you don’t have a muddler, use anything with a sturdy handle and bash everything around). Add the muddled mixture to a cocktail shaker. Add ice, jalapeño syrup, simple syrup, cilantro vodka, pinapple juice and lime juice to the shaker. Shake until too cold to continue shaking. Strain into the highball glasses. Top each with a splash of club soda, if using. Garnish with a few sprigs of cilantro and serve.
Years ago, I was watching an episode of Iron Chef America where the secret ingredient is chocolate. Since I work so much with sweet ingredients, I tend to find these episodes the most interesting, and this particular episode was no exception. Bobby Flay made a spice rub for venison in this episode, and it sounded so good that I wrote down all the ingredients immediately so that I could try to create my own in the future.
My list lay dormant until yesterday, when we had a huge slab of pork thawed in the fridge, just waiting to be seasoned. I decided to finally attempt my own version of the Iron Chef”s spice rub, and I’m incredibly happy with the results. The original list contained espresso, cocoa, chili powder, cinnamon, and garlic powder, but I decided to omit the cinnamon and add some salt. I opted for a quick dry-aging in the refrigerator (about 3 hours) and the results were succulent and flavourful. I can’t wait for barbeque season, when the grill will serve to really highlight the flavours of the rub!
Smoky Mocha Spice Rub for Pork, Steak, or Venison
1 tablespoon espresso powder
2 teaspoons cocoa powder
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
Whisk all ingredients together in a small bowl. Pat the surface of the meat dry with a paper towel. Pour rub over meat and press to adhere. Repeat on all sides of the meat.
Place a small rack over a shallow dish. Set meat on the rack and refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 8 hours. Cook meat as desired. Enjoy!
| Überwald Elixir |
This makes 1 1/2 to 2 litres of juice, depending on how much you can extract from your oranges.
Green and Black Fruit Salad
Makes 2 generous servings
1/2 pint container of blackberries
2 kiwifruits, peeled and diced
A large handful of grapes, halved
1/4 honeydew melon, peeled, seeded and diced, or balled with a melon baller
2 tablespoons Green Tea and Lime Syrup (recipe below)
In a large bowl, combine the blackberries, diced kiwifruits, grapes, and melon. Toss together to evenly distribute the fruit. Drizzle the syrup over and toss to combine. Serve.
| Green Tea and Lime Syrup |
The syrup will keep for a few months in the fridge. The syrup can also be used to flavour and sweeten cocktails and tea.
Amidst all the sweet muffins I make on a regular basis, I began to feel the need to include a savoury flavour or two. I happened across a recipe in Baked: Explorations (those cookbooks are phenomenal) that had potential, but I wanted to tweak it to suit my palate and what I had in the fridge and pantry at the time. The resulting muffin is sweet and salty, and tastes somewhere between a biscuit and a muffin.
Parsnip, Cheddar and Black Pepper Muffins
adapted from Baked: Explorations
Steamed Parsnip Purée
4 to 5 medium parsnips
Fill a sauté pan or saucepan with about 2 inches of water. Set a bamboo steamer on top.
Peel the parsnips and coarsely chop. Place on the rack of the bamboo steamer. Cover and place over high heat. When the water comes to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low and steam parsnips for 8 to 10 minutes, or until fork-tender.
Add parsnips to the container of a blender and pulse to make a smooth purée. Let cool before using in muffins.
Muffins
1 cup steamed parsnip purée
3 tablespoons sour cream or buttermilk
2 eggs, at room temperature
1/2 cup butter, melted and cooled slightly
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 1/4 cups grated Black River Maple Cheddar
Preheat the oven to 400º F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners.
In a medium bowl, combine the parsnips, sour cream, eggs, and butter. Mixture will be very thick.
In another bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, salt, pepper and sugar.
Add flour mixture to the parsnip mixture and stir to combine. The batter will be very thick.
Fold in the grated cheese.
Divide muffin batter evenly between muffin cups. Bake for about 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the centre of a muffin comes out clean.
Makes 12 muffins.
