Nectar

Something else to make and give... I wish that I had more to say about these cookies - some sort of historical context about my life. But all I can tell you is that they are the best shortbread cookies I've ever eaten. That will have to do.

PECAN SHORTBREAD DIPPED IN CHOCOLATE (& sprinkled with Sea Salt)

Makes 3 dz cookies.

1 1/2 c. butter

2/3 c. sugar

2 t. vanilla

2 c. flour

5 T. cornstarch

1/2 t. baking powder

1/4 t. salt

2 1/2 c. finely ground pecans

12 oz. semi-sweet chocolate

1 T. olive oil

sea salt

Cut a piece of parchment paper to fit two baking sheets. Flour one lightly and set both aside.

Beat the butter, sugar and vanilla together until light and fluffy. Sift the flour, cornstarch, baking powder and salt together - then add slowly to the butter mixture until thoroughly incorporated. Add 1 cup of the ground pecans to the batter and continue to mix. Scrape the dough out onto your prepared floured baking sheet. Using you hands to shape the dough into a long brick about 2-3 inches high and 10-12 inches long. Cover the dough and baking sheet with saran wrap and refrigerate for 20-30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 325F.

 

Using a knife or dough scraper, cut the dough into 1/2 inch slabs and place them on your second baking sheet - they can be placed fairly close together as this dough does not spread. Bake for 20-22 minutes - until the cookies turn gold on the edges. Let cool 20 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack. 

 

It's best to wait overnight to the shortbread to harden a bit before dipping - if you are in a hurry, give the cookies at least 3 hours. Put the other 1 1/2 c. of ground pecans in a shallow, open bowl. Prepare a small bowl of sea salt. When you are ready to dip, melt the chocolate slowly in a small saucepan over low heat stirring constantely to prevent scorching. Add the olive oil and whisk it in until the chocolate is smooth. Dip each long end of the cooking into the warm chocolate, scrapping any excess off on the sides of the bowl, then dip into the ground pecans until the chocolate is covered. Set down on a prepared piece of parchment paper and sprinkle the chocolate/pecan section of the cookie very lightly with sea salt. Continue until all cookies have been dipped. Let set for at least a few hours - until the chocolate is no longer soft, before packaging.

 

I love the idea of giving mugs to close friends. Really special, handmade ones so that every time your friend sips from their coffee or tea, you are with them. A wonderful extra little touch is sliding a half dozen of these cookies into the mug before wrapping - a delicious little surprise...

 

Back soon with one more make & give recipe and a playlist to close out the week. Have a lovely day!

 

Good day friends. Now that my minimal holiday shopping is out of the way, I can focus on the fun part - making & baking. The rest of this week, I will be posting ideas to make & give featuring easy to follow recipes and packaging ideas. Up first... Biscotti.

As a kid, I never really liked Biscotti, I always preferred a softer, chewier cookie. Then I discovered cappuccino in my early twenties while living in Italy. For a number of years I lived on a little island anchored off the coast of Northern Sardinia called La Maddalena. Moving there was my first experience with Italian culture and I fell helplessly in love - with the country, the food and eventually, my husband. And dunking long, crispy cookies into perfect pillows of milk and liquid gold. I spent mornings waiting for the boat that would take me to yet another little island for work, savoring my morning ritual while surrounded by men throwing back countless espressos. This crunchy love has remained one of my go-to recipes and I've been making and giving them for many years now.  I hope you enjoy!

p.s. For a variation, see my recipe back in 2008 on Design*Sponge.

 

DOUBLE-CHOCOLATE & ROASTED-ALMOND BISCOTTI

Makes 2 dozen.

1 c. sugar

1/2 c. olive oil

2 eggs

2 t. almond extract

1/2 c. cocoa powder

1/4 t. salt

1 1/2 t. baking powder

2 c. flour

1 c. almonds (sliced and roasted)

1 c. chocolate chips (ground)

Preheat over to 350F.

Prepare a large baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

Whisk together sugar, olive oil, eggs and almond extract. Once everything is thoroughly mixed, whisk in the cocoa. Sift together the flour, salt and baking powder and add to the wet ingredients. At this point the batter is fairly stiff and it's best to use the paddle attachment of a stand mixer to beat the final ingredients, the almonds and chocolate chips, so that they are fully incorporated.

 

Scrape the dough out onto the prepared baking sheet and shape into a long flat log approximately 15 inches long and 5-6 inches wide. If you have smaller baking sheets, you can divide the dough in half and create two logs. Place the sheet in the oven and bake for 30 minutes. Prepare another baking sheet with parchment and set aside.

 

Remove from the oven and let cool a minimum of 20 minutes. Carefully, using a serrated knife, cut the log into slices as illustrated. Place each cookie down on your new baking sheet. Once the entire log has been sliced, bake the cookies for 7 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes then carefully turn each cookie over to it's opposite side and bake additional 7 minutes. Let cool completely before packaging.

 

I tend to make ours really long and they are a perfect fit for the 2-quart mason jars. I finished ours with a glittery snowflake. And below... a playlist. Of course.

 

LA DOLCE LUCE

Ore D'Amore : Mike Patton

Wandering Kind : Laura Veirs

Step Into the Light : The Clientele

Love and Happiness : Al Green

Golden Years : David Bowie

The Ship Was Built To Last: The Duke Spirit

Dive In : The Horrors

No Man Is An Archipelago : British Sea Power

Blue Blue Ocean : Echo and The Bunnymen

Rome : Phoenix

Listen here.

 

Today I would like to share a new feature on Nectar, "Be My Guest". Every once in a while I will invite one of my favorite foodies to share a favorite seasonal recipe and a favorite playlist (favoite is one of my favorite words by the way). Our first guest is not only an amazingly talented photographer, she is also a very good friend. I've known Jen online for several years, but we became close when we moved to Brooklyn. She photographs with passion and soul and has transformed the way we look at artisans with her incredibly beautiful The Makers Project. 

 

Jen says: "Growing up, every winter, my dad would make a batch of his famous Hot Buttered Rum. He was usually strictly a beer man, but that would change during the colder months. He would make a large batch of the hot buttered batter and store it in the freezer, taking it out to indulge on the coldest of nights. I always thought the idea of drinking hot butter was awful and didn't join in these festivities, until last year, that is.  For some reason, last winter when I was visiting, the smell of the hot butter got to me. It smelled delicious. I decided to try a sip of the concoction. Wow-it was amazing! It was very decedent, and only to be enjoyed on the rare occasion and on the coldest of the cold nights.

This year I decided to put my own spin on it and add a bit of maple and ginger syrup, two of my favorite winter flavors. This will make a batch large enough to share a few drinks with friends, but not too large as to over-indulge." 

MAPLE GINGER HOT BUTTERED RUM

1 c. sugar

¾ c. pure maple syrup 

2 c. brown sugar

2 cups butter

4 cups vanilla ice cream

2 Tbs Morris Kitchen ginger syrup (optional)

rum

water

nutmeg

Combine sugar, maple syrup, brown sugar, ginger syrup and butter in a 2-quart saucepan. Cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, until butter is melted (6-8 min). 

Combine cooked mixture with ice cream in a large mixing bowl, and whisk until smooth (1-2 min). Store refrigerated up to 2 weeks or frozen up to one month.

For each serving, fill one-quarter of a mug with mixture, add one ounce (or more) rum and three-quarters of a cup of boiling water. Sprinkle with nutmeg.

"Best when enjoyed listening to my mix for a cold winter’s night..." - Jen Causey

 

SONGS FOR A COLD WINTER NIGHT

One Day : Sharon Van Etten

White Winter Hymnal : Fleet Foxes

Reason To Believe : Bruce Springsteen

Howlin' For You : The Black Keys

Red, Red : Doug Burr

If You Need Me : The Rolling Stones

January Hymn : The Decemberists

Look at Miss Ohio : Gillian Welch

Terrible Love : The National

I Can See The Pines Are Dancing : AA Bondy

Come Talk To Me : Bon Iver

Listen here.

*All photos by Jen Causey.

Thank you so much for sharing this recipe and music with us Jen! Look for our next guest in the New Year!

The new issue of RUE really put me in the holiday spirit and I thought I would put together a little list of some of my favorite things around the kitchen this year. And a holiday playlist to put you in the mood as you surf the snow-crested waves of the internet...

MARSHMALLOW WORLD

Let It Snow! : Les Brown & His Band

Baby, It's Cold Outside : Ann-Margaret

I've Got My Love To Keep Me Warm : Dean Martin

Winter Time : Steve Miller Band

Fairytale of New York : The Pouges

Little Saint Nick : The Beach Boys

Ring Those Christmas Bells : Peggy Lee

2000 Miles : Pretenders

Chanukah Song : Adam Sandler

Swingle Jingle : Lionel Hampton

Santa Baby : Eartha Kitt

I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus : The Ronettes

Marshmallow World : Darlene Love

This Year's Kisses : Nina Simone

What Are You Doing New Year's Eve? : Nancy Wilson

Listen here.

 

Like most writers, I love being surrounded by my books - their comforting presence is in every room. Here is a list of some wonderfully unusual and beautiful cookbooks for the book lover and cook on every list...

~ The photographs alone put Quay: Food Inspired by Nature at the top of this list.

~ I peeked at They Draw And Cook in the bookstore this week - I love the combination of illustrations and recipes so much.

~ A pretty penny (or several hundred) but it looks so fascinating and Taschen can do no wrong: Modernist Cuisine: The Art and Science of Cooking.

~ When I first started really learning to cook in my early twenties, the CIA's The Professional Chef was gifted to me and it's since become my kitchen bible.

~ I LOVE Sweet Myrtle & Bitter Honey - we've made a lot of the recipes and it always transports us to our little apartment in Palau, Sardinia.

~ Larousse Gastronomique is another classic and has been on my wishlist for nearly 15 years.

~ I would buy Flavour Thesaurus for the cover alone.

 

More ideas... food and goodies...

~ We love our Bialetti's - we even travel with them. Den prefers espresso so he has this, and I prefer cappuccino's so I use this one.

~ I have a huge crush on this measuring jug.

~ When we attended the Indie Craft Parade in Greenville, SC this fall, we discovered, then immediately fell in love with Sweeteeth. Peanut Butter & Chiplote is my favorite.

~ Only a few more days to get your order in with my friends Jenna and Mark - the marshmallows are to DIE for.

~ Last year my mom sent us a Zingerman's Olive Oil Cake. I think I ate the whole thing in a closet so I didn't have to share.

~ The label will get me everytime and this Tequlia is no exception.

~ Love the tea towels {and clutches} from Hammocks & High Tea.

~ I heart paper straws.

~ And these gold brushed bowls are seriously worthy of giving.

But the best? The best is to make something with your hands, your heart and happiness. You could try my Rosemary & Wine Applesauce or Rosemary & Honey Simple Syrup!

Have a wonderful weekend!

I'm so proud to be a part of the family at RUE Magazine and the holiday issue KILLS it - it's so over the top beautiful. My girl Marissa's recipes in this issue are so, so, delicious - I know, because after I recreated them for the shoot, we ate with abandon. And I have to tell you, I've never eaten a brussel sprout in my entire life, my mother never liked them so we never were put through that form of torture. But oh these - oh these brussel sprouts are heaven. And the cocktail - oh my goodness! So here we go...

POMEGRANATE HOLIDAY STAR  

(Makes 2 cocktails)

3 ounces vodka

1 ounce Lillet blanc

2 ounces pomegranate syrup* (recipe follows)

2 ounces fresh lemon juice

3 drops of Angostura or old-fashioned bitters

Champagne or prosecco float

Garnish with a sage leaf and 4-5 pomegranate seeds

Pomegranate Syrup

In a small saucepan, add ½ cup sugar and ½ cup water.  Simmer gently until sugar is completely dissolved.  Allow to cool.  In a blender, blend the seeds from ¾ of a pomegranate with the simple syrup.  Strain syrup in a bowl and discard any pith from the seeds.  Transfer syrup to a bottle for pouring.

 

 

BRUSSELS SPROUT SALAD WITH FRESH GRAPES, TOASTED HAZELNUTS, PECORINO ROMANO AND POMEGRANATE VINAIGRETTE

2 lbs Brussels sprouts  (1/3 of them to be quartered and roasted with a tablespoon of olive oil; 1/3 – ends cut off, remove whole leaves, blanch leaves for 10 seconds, set in ice bath, dry and allow to cool; 1/3 to be cleaned and sliced raw super thin– or shaved with a mandolin)

1 small bunch red grapes, halved

¼ - 1/3 cup hazelnuts, toasted, skin removed and lightly crushed/chopped

½ cup fresh grated pecorino Romano

2 tablespoons pomegranate seeds

extra drizzle of pomegranate molasses and shaved pecorino Romano for serving

Pomegranate Vinaigrette

1 teaspoon minced shallot

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

1 teaspoon pomegranate molasses

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste

Place roasted Brussel sprouts on bottom of serving dish, toss remaining ingredients and most of dressing, top with shaved Romano and drizzle remaining dressing over the top before serving.

 

RISOTTO WITH MUSHROOMS, CIPPOLLINI ONIONS & ROASTED CHESTNUTS

½-3/4 pound chestnuts, finely chopped (about 1 cup after roasting and peeling) *see note below

5 1/2 cups low-sodium or homemade chicken, beef or vegetable stock/broth (*the beef stock will give it a richer, deeper flavor or for a vegetarian dish, use vegetable stock)

3 tablespoons plus 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

2 cups cippollini onions, thinly sliced

4 cups mixed mushrooms (such as cremini and chanterelle), roughly chopped

4 or 5 sprigs of fresh thyme

2 cups arborio or carnaroli rice

1/2 cup dry white wine

salt to taste

a good dose of freshly grated black pepper

2 to 3 knobs of unsalted butter

5 to 6 ounces of grated Parmesan or grana padano cheese, plus more for serving

Preheat oven to 400F.  Using a sharp knife, make a large ‘X’ on one side of the chestnuts so skin will be easy to remove after roasting.  Roast for 20 minutes.  Set in a bowl with towel covering chestnuts to keep them warm.  Work with nuts in small batches to remove the shells. Chop chestnuts and set aside.

In a small saucepan, add stock/broth and keep warm over low heat. 

In a large, heavy saucepan or Dutch oven, heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil and sauté onions over medium heat until softened and golden brown, about 8 to 10 minutes.   While onions are sautéing, add remaining tablespoon of olive oil to a large skillet.  Saute mushrooms, chestnuts and thyme until softened, 5 to 7 minutes over medium heat.  Set aside.

Add rice to the onions and saute 5 minutes until glossy.   Add 1 cup of stock to rice and stir continuously until well-absorbed.  Continue to add 1/2 cup of stock at a time, stirring until absorbed.  Add in mushrooms-chestnut mix at the mid-way point, after 3 cups of stock have been added.  After all stock and wine has been added, add salt, pepper, butter and half of the Parmesan or grana padano.  Stir until well-blended and then add remaining grated cheese.  Serve with additional cheese.  

Text and recipes by Marissa Lippert; photos by me.

In case you missed it on Friday, this recipe was featured over at Design*Sponge. I thought I would add it to the site as well so that someday - when I get organized - I can add this to the DRINKS category on Nectar - someday ;) In the meantime, I hope you enjoy this and I wanted to address a few of the comments about tempering the eggs. It's NOT difficult at all - additionally, comments are spot on when they say that you can skip this step entirely. However, I wanted to ere on the side of caution when dealing with raw eggs. We are using what's left of ours for French toast this weekend - I will keep you posted on how that turns out as well - that is - if there is any left from making midnight milkshakes with it!

 

BLACK SPICED RUM EGGNOG

(makes 6-8 servings)

This recipe offers a special little kick with Black Spiced Rum - our favorite is the Kraken - the label immediately sold me, but the deep, dark complexity of the flavors wed me to this rum forever.  However, this recipe can easily be made kid friendly by omitting the rum. It lasts in an air tight container in the refrigerator for a week and up to two weeks with the rum in it.

 

Ingredients & Steps:

4 c. whole milk
1 c. half+half
1 c. heavy cream
4 oz. black spiced rum
1 T. honey
1 t. nutmeg
1/2 t. cinnamon

Combine all ingredients in a medium sauce pot and bring to a simmer stirring continuously for about 5 minutes. It's important to stir regularly to keep the milk from burning or a skin from forming on the top. Turn up the heat, keep stirring until the milk begins to gently boil, then remove from the heat and set aside.

6 egg yolks
1/4 c. sugar
1 t. vanilla

Whisk the egg yolks with the sugar and vanilla in a stand mixer or with an electric mixer until the yolks are glossy and pour in a smooth ribbon. Add a cup of the milk mixture to the yolks and whisk until fully incorporated. Continue to add the milk in one cup portions to the yolks until they are thoroughly combined. It's important to do this slowly - called tempering - so that the hot milk does not cook the yolks. Once you're done mixing, place the bowl into the refrigerator to chill for at least one hour.

 

When the milk and yolk mixture is ready, pull it out of the fridge and set aside.

6 egg whites
1 T. sugar

Whisk the whites and sugar together until medium peaks form. Add about a quarter of the whites to the yolk and milk mixture and whisk gently - careful not to whisk the air out of the whites, but fully incorporated. Add the remaining whites in three more parts to the yolks and milk. Once fully mixed, refrigerate until thoroughly chilled before serving.

A little extra... the perfect topping:

1 c. heavy cream
1 T. + 1 t. sugar
1 T + 2 t. black spiced rum

Whisk ingredients together in a chilled mixing bowl until medium peaks form. When serving the eggnog, top with this delicious cream and a dash of nutmeg.

 

 

I'll be back later this week with more recipes and music!

A quick cookie post for you today. We are on our way to Florida for a wedding but could not leave without sharing the latest incarnation of my peanut butter chocolate chip cookies. This time I've thrown some oatmeal in and ground the chocolate chips so that the chocolate creates ribbons of flavor in every bite. The little ladies loved them. I hope you do too.

PEANUT BUTTER, CHOCOLATE & OATMEAL COOKIES

1 c. butter (salted)

1 c. sugar

1 1/4 c. peanut butter

1 c. honey

2 eggs

1/2 t. vanilla

1 t. baking soda

1 t. baking powder

1 t. salt

2 1/2 c. flour

12 oz. chocolate chips (ground or finely chopped)

1 1/2 c. oatmeal

In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and creamy. Add peanut butter and honey and mix thoroughly. In a small bowl, whisk eggs and vanilla together, then add to butter mixture and mix. Stop the mixer and using a spatula, scrap down to the bottom of the bowl to ensure everything is being combined. In another small bowl, sift together the baking soda, baking powder, salt and flour. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the dry ingredients. When fully incorporated, add chocolate and oatmeal - beat until mixed.

 

Preheat oven to 325 F. Chill cookie dough for at least 30 minutes. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper (spray a bit of non-stick cooking spray to the sheet first to keep the paper in place) and scoop the dough out with an ice cream scoop or large soup spoon. Do not flatten the cookies. Bake for 16 minutes and let cool slightly before transferring to a cooling rack to completely cool.

 

WEEKEND VOL. II

Shower You Love : Kula Shaker

Breakin' Up : Rilo Kiley

Ancient Lover : Tigercity

Too High : The Music

At Last is All : I Love You But I've Choosen Darkness

Back To The Life : Spoon

Wooden Heart : The Duke Spirit

Behind Closed Doors : The Airlines

The Boys Are Too Refined : The Hush Sound

You Are The One : Shiny Toy Gun

Buildings & Mountains : The Republic Tigers

Undiscolsed Desires : Muse

Running Battle : Kasabian

Listen here.

I hope you had a lovely Thanksgiving. We had a wonderful time with my family and I really cherish the time I can spend with my nieces and nephew. We came home late Friday afternoon and relaxed with a roaring fire and a movie. Saturday morning we decided to head deep into the Smoky Mountains to a local tree farm to find our Solstice tree. Normally, we don't nod in the season until December is well underway. But our schedule this winter is a little abnormal - even for us - and this was the only weekend that we were not traveling, hosting and the last weekend the five of us would be together at home before the New Year. So Solstice tree shopping we went. It was our first experience at a "choose & cut" farm - and we loved it. The girls labored over their decision and in the end, we all agreed pretty quickly when we found our 8-footer hidden among the fields. We brought "Maralena" (Ayla named her) the tree home and dug out our homemade ornaments, painted pinecones and sipped hot chocolate the rest of the afternoon. Pretty special. Even if it is still November.

The hot chocolate was thick, rich and ridiculously delicious - most likely because I used Mast Brothers chocolate - I chose, Fleur de Sel which resulted in basically a salted hot chocolate. I am sure there is much more cost effective way of doing this - but I had the bars and seemed like a rather good idea...

 

SALTED HOT CHOCOLATE

5 oz. Mast Brothers Fleur de Sel

1 c. half+half

1 1/2 c.  skim milk

2 T. honey

1/2 t. vanilla

1/4 t. cloves

1 t. cinnamon

Finely chop the chocolate and set aside.

Combine all remaining ingredients in a medium sauce pot and stir until it boils gently. Add the chocolate and whisk until thick, remove from heat and continue to whisk until the chocolate is completely incorporated. Let cool slightly and serve. 

You can also chill it and drink cold.

 

MOUNTAIN MUSIC

Wild Mountain Honey : Steve Miller Band

Walk A Mile : Holly Golightly

Barton Hollow : The Civil Wars

And It Spread : The Avett Brothers

Darkness & Light : Golden Animals

Everyday : Vetiver

Maybe Mine : Good Old War

The Needle And The Spoon : Lynyrd Skynyrd

How Am I To Be : The Watson Twins

Blue Ridge Mountains : Fleet Floxes

Up on Cripple Creek : The Band

Long As I Can See The Light : Creedance Clearwater Revival

Riverboat : Howlin' Rain

Muswell Hillbilly : The Kinks

Listen here.

p.s. If you are familiar with my little publishing company, Fieryeyed Books, you might like to know that I've made our two sold out editions available again this week only... right here.

Happy Almost Turkey Day! I'm so, SO grateful for my blessed life. For my beautiful family, our health, our happiness, our love, our friends. This year I'm especially grateful to spend the holiday at my brother's home in Eastern North Carolina - to not have him deployed during this time of year is a rare treat and we will descend upon his home with arms full of love. And this cranberry sauce. I came upon this recipe at least 7-8 years ago in Bon Appetit and have changed it a bit over the years until it's really right were we want it. This year, after cooking the cranberries, I drained the excess syrup into a bowl before adding the shallots to the cranberries. The syrup will likely find it's way into cocktails and drizzled over pancakes this weekend...

 

PORT CRANBERRIES WITH BALSAMIC SHALLOTS

3 c. peeled and chopped and separated shallots

1 T. balsamic vinegar

1 T. olive oil

salt & pepper

1 1/2c. fresh cranberries (rinsed)

1 c. orange juice

1/2 c. port wine

1 1/2 c. sugar

1/4 c. honey

1/2 t. thyme

 

Preheat oven to 375F. In a mixing bowl, toss the shallots in the balsamic vinegar and olive oil, salt & pepper and pour onto a prepared baking sheet. Roast for 30 minutes for until the balsamic begins to caramelize the shallots. Pull from oven and set aside.

In a large sauce pan, combine the orange juice, port, sugar, honey and thyme - stir over medium heat until the sugar and honey have dissolved. Add the cranberries and stir until all of the berries are coated. Cook on medium heat for about 30 minutes, stirring often. When the cranberries begin to pop open and soften they are getting close. If you like a well-formed cranberry in your sauce, you can pull it off the heat once all of the cranberries have popped open, otherwise, continue to cook on medium-low heat for another 20 minutes. Drain the sauce off into a bowl and jar for future use as mentioned above. Mix the shallots into your sauce and let cool, then refrigerate until you are ready to serve. This sauce only gets better with time so make it a couple days ahead of time!

 

A little something for your weekend...

BLACK FRIDAY

Fixin' To Thrill : Drangonette

Listen Up! : Gossip

London Girls : The Vibrators

More Than Ever : Zoot Woman

I Don't Like Your Band : Annie

You Gotta' Teller : Zeus

Mission : Van She

Fake Gold : Tiger City

My Girl Is Calling Me : Chromeo

Life Ater Sundown : Glass Candy

One Minute to Midnight : Justice

TKO : Le Tigre

Oh You, Old Thing : Wolf Parade

Wild Eyes : Vivian Girls

Creator (Vs. Switch & FreQ Nasty) : Santogold

Listen here.

See you next week.

Happy Friday! It's been a crazy week here but I kind of relish in insanity - how about you? My parents arrive on our doorstep this evening for a long weekend before we all head to Eastern NC for Thanksgiving with my brother and sister's families. To have my brother home and not deployed over a holiday is a rare pleasure and we are looking forward to the reunion. In the meantime, we'll be sipping on these lovely little cocktails this weekend. My mama loooooves Martinis - she and I both prefer them sweet and I know she's going to go a little crazy for this one. Once you have the simple syrup on hand, this recipe is quick, easy and the Rosemary & Honey Simple Syrup is to DIE for. Stir it into your tea - ladle it over ice cream - it makes a great homemade holiday gift as well.

 

ROSEMARY & HONEY SIMPLE SYRUP

1 c. water

1 c. honey (we used a local Sourwood)

bunch of fresh rosemary

Combine the water and honey in a small pot over medium heat and whisk until the honey dissolves. Add the rosemary and cook over low heat for about 30 minutes. Remove from the heat, cover and refrigerate in the pot for a minimum of 30 minutes. Once it's cooled, use a fine sieve to separate the rosemary from the syrup. Discard the rosemary and jar the syrup.

ROSEMARY & HONEY MARTINI

(for 2 cocktails)

2 oz. vodka

2 oz. dry vermouth

2 oz. rosemary & honey simple syrup

Add 6-7 pieces of ice to a cocktail shaker, then add the vodka, vermouth and simple syrup. Shake vigorously and pour into two chilled martini glasses. Garnish with fresh rosemary. If it's a touch too sweet, add a bit more vermouth.

 

And for your Friday...

FRIDAY IS FOR COCKTAILS

I'd Like To Hate Myself In The Morning : Shirley Bassey

You Know I'm No Good : Amy Winehouse

I'm Beginning To See The Light : Bobby Darin

Close My Eyes : The Peekers

Rave On: M. Ward w/ Zooey Deschanel

They'll Be Some Changes Made : Ann-Margret

My Dearest Darling : Etta James

Les Yeux Ouverts : The Beautiful South

You Know What I Mean : Cults

Dirty Laundry : Bitter:Sweet

My Baby Cried All Night Long : The Ettes

Relax Max : Dinah Washington

All The Same To Me : Anya Marina

Baby (You've Got What It Takes) : Dinah Washington and Brook Benton

Manhattan : Ella Fitzgerald

Le Temps De L'amour : Francoise Hardy

Love Me Or Leave Me : Nina Simone

Things : Robbie Williams w/ Jane Horrocks

Listen here.