The Lush Chef

Libations used: 3 Tbs apple brandy
Libations left over: None, but make yourself an American Trilogy...it's as American as this apple bread...
We're finally getting rain here in Southern California and it's been coming down with a vengeance. So on these rainy nights, I'm either making soup or baking bread.  Bread won out this week, and it was this recipe for Brown Butter Apple Bread from The Kitchn that won me over.  This is probably some of the moistest bread I've ever had and there are oodles of apples and pecans in it. You really can't go wrong when you see crème fraîche and apple brandy in a recipe for baked goods — and you do taste the brandy in this recipe.  I'm a fan of Laird's Applejack, but if you don't have any apple brandy in the house (I'll be sad for you), feel free to sub in regular brandy or bourbon.  For the apples, I used a combination of Granny Smith and Pink Lady.  Always do a mix of tart and sweet apples when you're baking, as it varies up the texture and the flavor.  In addition to the above varieties, The Kitchn also recommends Braeburn, Gala, Golden Delicious, Jonathan, McIntosh, and Honeycrisp.  I brought this bread to work the next day, and it was perfect paired with everyone's morning coffee, and a great way to kick off the week.  I can't wait to make this bread again with pears and other stone fruit too.

Brown Butter Apple Bread - makes 1 loaf
Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar 
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 cup crème fraîche
• 3 Tbs apple brandy (I used Laird's Applejack)
• 1 tsp vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
• 3 apples, peeled, cored and diced (I used 1 Granny Smith and 2 Pink Lady)
• 1/2 cup chopped, toasted pecans

- Preheat the oven to 350 and grease a large loaf pan with shortening or cooking spray.
- Place the butter in a medium skillet over medium heat, and melt until it turns golden brown and takes on a nutty aroma (swirl the pan around to prevent it from burning).
- Set pan aside to cool slightly (you don't want scrambled eggs).
- In a large bowl, add the white and brown sugars, and eggs.
- Add the butter into the large bowl and whisk to thoroughly combine.
- Add the flours, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon, stirring until just combined.
- Add the crème fraîche, apple brandy, vanilla bean paste, apples, and pecans and carefully stir to combine.
- Pour the batter into the loaf pan and smooth out the top.
- Bake for one hour, and allow to cool for 20-30 minutes before removing from the pan.

Sometimes Monday nights call for a stiff drink, and earlier this week was one of those Mondays.  I recalled a cocktail recipe that STREET's Morgan Fox told me about a couple of months ago because we bonded over rye whiskey and that herbaceous, boozy delight that is Green Chartreuse.  Perhaps in another life, I visited the Diamondback Lounge in the Lord Baltimore Hotel during the 1950s, because I'm pretty sure this drink was invented in my honor.  The drink first appeared in print in Ted Saucier's Bottoms Up from 1951.  Not only does it have two of my aforementioned fave ingredients, but there's Applejack all up in there too!  This very bracing and simple drink has multiple variations that play on the ratios of the spirits.  Some do 2 ounces of rye with 1/2 ounce each of Green Chartreuse (or Yellow) and Applejack, while others make it with 1 1/2 ounces of rye and 3/4 ounces of the remaining spirits.  Morgan told me to just do equal parts of each (like a Negroni!) - easy to remember and nicely balanced.  I have a feeling this is going to be my new fall and winter cocktail go-to.

Diamondback
Ingredients:

• 1 oz rye whiskey (I used Redemption Rye)
• 1 oz Green Chartreuse
• 1 oz Laird's Applejack

- In a cocktail shaker filled with ice, add all the ingredients and shake.
- Strain into a chilled coupe.

I haven't been blogging much lately, as work has been keeping this Lush rather busy, but I still find time to shake up a cocktail on a Monday or Tuesday night.  A great libation always helps me write a little better too!  Doesn't it help all great writers?

Anyway, when fall rolls around, that means I'm putting Applejack, a bonded apple brandy, in nearly all my drinks.  And I'm drinking apple cider morning, noon and night, so why not add that in a cocktail?  This little creation includes three iterations of apple with Applejack, spiced apple cider (Trader Joe's version is a fave) and an apple slice garnish.  The Grand Marnier balances out all that apple with some orange flavor and adds an extra boozy kick.  I lined the glass with some Vermont maple sugar that my parents gave me to create a festive look and add a little more sweetness.  Sooooo perfect on cocktails.  Thanks mom and dad!  If you can't get your hands on maple sugar, then a cinnamon sugar combo would work equally well.  Batch this up and serve as a punch during Halloween, or serve individually for a lovely pre-Thanksgiving dinner cocktail.  You might even make Matt Damon jealous...
How You Like Them Apples?
Ingredients:

• 1/4 oz lemon juice
• 3 oz spiced apple cider (I used Trader Joe's)
• 1 1/2 oz Applejack
• 1 oz Grand Marnier
• Maple or cinnamon sugar for garnish
• Apple slice for garnish

- Chill a martini glass and run an apple slice around the rim, so you can garnish it with the maple sugar.
- In a shaker, combine the lemon juice, apple cider, Applejack and Grand Marnier with ice.
- Shake and strain into your prepared glass.
- Garnish with an apple slice.

Today the Lush Chef is doing some much-needed relaxing with her family, and I hope all of you are as well.  But if you're in dire need of some Christmas cocktail recipes, here are a few of my favorites to sip on.  They're all hot cocktails, so hopefully you're in a cold climate, and even if you're not, they're sure to keep that holiday cheer going.

- Eggnog spiked with your favorite cognac, rum, whiskey, bourbon or brandy
- Wassail Punch with bourbon or whiskey
- Mexican Hot Chocolate with tequila
- Hot Apple Toddy with Applejack
- Whiskey Chai with rye whiskey
- Hot Pumpkin Buttered Rum with dark rum

For the first time in years, I won't be flying home to be with my family for Thanksgiving.  I'm sad to be missing this traditional meal with them and getting the Christmas tree a couple days later, but I'll still be having a delicious dinner and sharing it with people I care about here in SoCal.  I'm sure many of you have already planned out your Thanksgiving menu in it's entirety, and I typically do as well, but this year, the holiday snuck up on me.  Work kept me busy, but I also knew I would only be in charge of one dish and a cocktail, so I didn't need to plan too far in advance.  For those of you still looking for ideas, I bring you a very Lush Thanksgiving, with old family favorites and new recipes.

As one who calls herself the Lush Chef, you may not be surprised to find out that I turn to libations to help ease my colds and sore throats.  I've never had a good reaction to medicine as it leaves me with something worse than a hangover in the morning.  So I stick with something I trust, like whiskey or bourbon—I know exactly how I'll feel the next day and how much I can handle.  I relied on Hot Toddies to get me through many a film festival.  When you're required to network with filmmakers and press in Sundance or Toronto and you're on your last legs, a Hot Toddy will at least get you through the next few hours.

I could feel a sore throat coming on this past week, so instead of going out on Friday night, I stayed in and made myself this Apple Toddy.  Instead of baking an apple (because who feels like baking apples when they're sick?), I used some spiced applesauce that I had made last week.  This cocktail is so comforting, soothes the throat and helps you get to sleep at night.  The best part is getting to the bottom of this drink and scooping out Applejack-laced applesauce.  And guess what?  No sore throat the next morning. 

Apple Toddy - serves 1
Ingredients:

• Half a baked apple (Macintosh, Braeburn, Granny Smith) or enough scoops of applesauce to equal that.
• A big tsp of sugar, but only if you're baking the apple.
• 2 oz boiling water
• 2 oz Applejack
• Nutmeg to finish

- If you're going to bake the apple, core, peel and slice in half.  Place it in wet parchment paper and bake it at 350 for 30-45 minutes, or until completely soft.
- Rinse a mug with boiling water so it's nice and hot when you pour your liquids in.
- Put in half a baked apple and the sugar and muddle quickly together.  Or, just toss in my awesome applesauce (recipe below).
- Add 1 oz boiling water and stir.
- Add the Applejack and stir.
- Add 1 oz boiling water and stir (by staggering the additions, you keep the drink hotter).
- Sprinkle some nutmeg on top and nurse that cold away. 



The Lush Chef's Apple Sauce - serves 8-10 and doesn't have any libations in it
Ingredients:

• 9 medium cooking apples (see above) peeled, quartered & cored
• 1 cup water
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon

- In a dutch oven or large saucepot, combine the apples, water, sugar and cinnamon.
- Bring to boiling and then reduce heat.
- Cover and simmer for 8-10 minutes or until apples are tender.
- Remove from heat and mash with a potato masher to desired texture.  You'll notice a lot of liquid at first, but once you start mashing it will combine nicely.

Now that the sun is setting earlier and the weather is getting chillier, sometimes all I want to do on a Friday night is stay in, watch a movie and have a cocktail.  When I saw this cocktail recipe come through my inbox via Gilt Taste, I couldn't wait to make it.  This Sidewalker, made by Damon Boelte from Brooklyn's Prime Meats, has so many elements of fall—apple brandy, maple syrup, beer (good anytime of year).  I wasn't sure how all the ingredients were going to come together, but I'm always willing to experiment.  There's been a resurgence of including vinegar or "shrubs" (a combination of vinegar, fruit and sugar) in cocktails as mixologists hit the history books for inspiration.  The flavor reminded me of a sour beer, and American Trilogy and I slurped this down with sushi while we caught the first couple of hours of Ken Burns' "Prohibition."

The Sidewalker - serves 1

• 1 oz Applejack
• 3/4 oz lemon juice
• 1/2 oz maple syrup
• 1/4 oz apple cider vinegar
• 1 bottle cold wheat beer (I used Blue Moon Hefeweizen)
• Lemon wedge, to garnish

- Fill a cocktail shaker or mixing glass with ice and pour the brandy, lemon juice, maple syrup and apple cider vinegar in and shake.
- Strain the mixture into a chilled, tall glass.
- Top with the beer and garnish with a lemon wedge.

No, I'm not referring to American director Ken Burns' stunning trilogy on Prohibition, but to a modern cocktail that very well could have hailed from that time.  This simple drink was introduced to me by a good friend who first had it at The Varnish, but it actually originated from the head barman Michael McIlroy at the members-only Milk & Honey in New York.  It's an American twist on an Old Fashioned and makes me think of the fall.  McIlroy recommends using 100 proof, bonded Applejack, but use whatever you have (we're not running a professional bar here, and 80 proof will do ya just fine).  I'm also a huge fan of Bulleit's (pronounced "bullet" not "boo-lay" - it's American, not French) fairly new rye whiskey because it's reasonably priced and great for mixing in cocktails.  Save the expensive stuff for sipping neat or plain on the rocks... 

American Trilogy - serves 1
Ingredients:

• 1 oz rye whiskey
• 1 oz Applejack
• Brown sugar cube
• 1/2 tsp soda water (or just water is fine)
• 4 dashes orange bitters (I like using Fee Brothers) 
• orange twist

- Put sugar cube in the glass, add orange bitters and soda water and muddle all together.
- Add the rye and Applejack.
-  Fill glass with ice and stir.
- Garnish with an orange twist.

Fall is here, so its seems appropriate that this month's libation education focuses on Applejack (no, not the cereal).  If apples and whiskey had a baby, this is what it would be.  Made by Laird & Company, which has been around since 1780, Applejack consists of 35% apple brandy and 65% neutral spirits that have a hint of apple and aroma.  According to a recent post on The Kitchn, Laird & Company was actually granted a federal license during Prohibition to make it for "medicinal purposes."  Mmm hmm...

This delicious libation is made at the peak of apple harvest, which is usually September until mid-November.  The pure apple juice is fermented naturally (it doesn't need any kind of yeast or starter) in big oak fermenting tanks for 7-30 days until all of the sugar has been fermented into alcohol.  The juice is then sent to the still where the distillation boosts the proof to about 160, where it ensures the maximum flavor and aroma.  After this, the apple brandy is cut with water and aged in oak barrels for 4-8 years.  Applejack tends to be made with a younger blend of this brandy (about 4-6 years).

Applejack is a lovely fall substitute for your traditional whiskey cocktails like Old Fashioneds and Manhattans, and I bet it would be killer mixed into a Hot Toddy or hot spiced cider.  It's also a main ingredient in American Trilogies, but you're all just going to have to wait for that recipe...