The Lush Chef

I'm definitely a whiskey gal, but come summertime, I crave gin and tonics.  With the recent opening of The Chestnut Club in Santa Monica and their menu of gin and tonics, I've been inspired to experiment a little at home.  The June/July issue of Saveur also had a whole slew of gin and tonic recipes, and this Spanish-inspired "Los Gintonic" caught my eye.  I always have plenty of Fever Tree's Bitter Lemon tonic in the fridge and this recipe happened to call for that, along with dry vermouth and a little lemon zest.  I especially love the crushed ice, which makes it feel truly summery.  Simple, refreshing, and potent — just what a gin and tonic should be.  I'll be making these all season long...

Los Gintonic
Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 oz gin (I used St. George Botanivore Gin)
• 1/2 oz dry vermouth (I used Dolin's)
• 3 oz Fever Tree's Bitter Lemon tonic water
• Strip of lemon zest

- In a shaker filled with ice, add the gin and dry vermouth.
- Shake, shake, shake and strain into a glass filled with crushed ice.
- Top with the bitter lemon tonic and garnish with a lemon peel.

Looking for a reason to justify having a drink?  Then add veggies to it. Your mom can't argue with that!  Liquor.com recently posted a few cocktails featuring spring peas, and since I had been picking up tons of snap peas at the market recently, I couldn't want to try one.  I opted for the Green Giant, because not only has this cocktail now replaced my bad memories of icky frozen Green Giant peas, but it has satisfied my spring and summer gin kick.  I used the earthy and spicy St. George Terroir Gin with Dolin's dry vermouth (one of my favorites).  As I sat enjoying this beautifully green and spring-inflected cocktail before dinner, my friend Louis suggested I used some of his Miracle Mile yuzu bitters.  I unfortunately didn't have any on me, so I opted for celery instead — why not add more vegetables to the mix?  It's a fun way to bring out a little more of the vegetal, grassy, and herbal flavor in the drink.  And also, everything is better with bitters.
Green Giant
Ingredients:

• 4 sugar snap pea pods, broken in half
• 8-10 tarragon leaves
• 3/4 oz simple syrup
• 2 oz gin (I used St. George Terroir Gin)
• 1/2 oz dry vermouth (I used Dolin's)
• 3/4 oz fresh-squeezed lemon juice
• 2 dashes celery or yuzu bitters (I used Miracle Mile), optional

- In a shaker, add the snap peas, tarragon, and simple syrup, and muddle.
- Add ice, gin, dry vermouth, lemon juice, and bitters, and shake.
- Fine-strain into a chilled glass filled with crushed ice.
- Garnish with a couple of snap peas and tarragon leaves.

With the long holiday weekend coming up, you'll inevitably be throwing a Memorial Day party or attending one, which means either way, you'll be contributing some booze.  Regardless of whether you're the host or a guest, you can amp up the weekend and impress your friends with a super simple punch. No one wants to be shaking or stirring up individual cocktails during a big party.  Well, maybe you do, but then everyone's waiting for a drink.  I also like to stir these punches up in those 2-quart beverage coolers and slyly cart them to the beach.  It's The Lush Chef way. The below are some of my favorite summer recipes.  Just be careful, because they go down easily...

This past March, my friend and I did a little urban distillery tour through Portland.  You can actually get a Distillery Row Passport for $25 with a $5 coupon at the airport and most hotels, so it's a pretty sweet deal.  Grab a passport and a fixed gear bike, and you're set.  Anyway, my friend and I were absolutely smitten with the Ginger Liqueur at New Deal Distillery.  

It's been weeks since I've played with my home bar as I've been having a bit too much fun going out and trying other people's cocktails!  Easter is coming up this Sunday, and we've been blessed here in SoCal with some amazing strawberries at the market, so I was eager to shake up a drink that centered around the fruit.  I had bought a bottle of St. George Botanivore Gin a couple of weeks ago, so I knew that had to go there in as well.  To French it up a bit, I added St. Germain and lavender simple syrup.  With the fresh squeezed lemon juice and a spring of mint, it's like a spring garden in a glass.  The beautiful pink color and mint makes this a beautiful and refreshing drink to make for the Easter holiday.  Batch this up in a pitcher, and you've got the perfect cocktail for a truly boozy brunch.

Ooo, La, La
Ingredients:

• 1 strawberry
• 1 oz lemon juice
• 1/2 oz lavender simple syrup - recipe can be found here
• 2 oz gin (I used St. George Botanivore)
• 3/4 oz St. Germain
• Mint leaf, for garnish

- In a shaker, muddle the strawberry with the lemon juice and lavender simple syrup.
- Add ice, gin, and St. Germain and shake.
- Pour into a glass.
- Slap a mint leaf between the palm of your hands and add to the drink as garnish.

Perhaps you're hosting a gathering for your single gal pals on Valentine's Day, or maybe you're a guy reading this blog and trying to figure out which drink to serve your lady before or after a romantic, home-cooked dinner.  I posted this recipe for The Red Rooster cocktail earlier this week, but if your friends or lady love aren't bourbon fans, then this Pomegranate Gin Fizz from The Kitchn might set the mood straight.  It's simple, fool-proof and hey, pomegranates do have aphrodisiac qualities.  Just pick yourself up some PAMA liqueur, a bottle of gin (I'm a fan of No. 3 London Dry Gin) and some club soda, and you're done.  It's a little bit sweet and a little bit bitter, so it won't overpower any dessert you have planned.

Pomegranate Gin Fizz
Ingredients:

• 2 oz gin (I used No. 3 London Dry Gin)
• 1 oz PAMA liqueur
• Club soda, to taste

- In a glass filled with ice, add all of the ingredients and stir.
- Yeah, that's it...

This past weekend, a group of us took our friend's boat out for the afternoon to relax, eat and drink just off the coast of Santa Monica and Marina Del Rey.  If there's a beach or a boat involved, you can bet that I'll be bringing a punch.  This Boat House Punch from Liquor.com was just screaming to be made because of it's name sake.  Plus, all of the citrusy ingredients made it perfect for day drinking.  There are so many of my favorite libations in this punch.  Aperol always goes well with grapefruit juice, and St. Germain has such a lovely floral flavor that blends nicely with gin and champagne.  Yes, it's faster to just buy juice and dump it in, but this punch will taste so much better if you squeeze everything fresh.  To jazz it up, I even juiced some blood oranges and used them for the garnish.  I hope there will more boat rides this summer, so I can make this punch!

Nothing like celebrating the 4th of July with a British punch.  Hey, it's a way for us to forgive, and honor various traditions, right?  The Garrick Club Punch was first served in the London club of that name around 1835, about four years after it's founding.  It's a great punch for any time of year, but it's especially refreshing in the summer.  According to my friends, it was like the best booziest lemonade they'd had.  Be sure to let those muddled lemon peels soak up the sugar for about half an hour.  This punch is traditionally made with maraschino liqueur, but if you don't have that on hand, you can substitute Grand Marnier, according to David Wondrich's update on the recipe.  I made it with Tanqueray London Dry Gin, only because I didn't have enough Bols Genever to spare.  I toted a couple coolers of this out to the beach and we finished it in no time.  There's no better way to celebrate the summer (and American independence) than with something classic, extra boozy and British.

Garrick Club Punch - serves about a dozen
Ingredients:

• 4 lemons
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 cup fresh lemon juice, strained
• 1 750 mL bottle of gin (I used Tanqueray London Dry Gin)
• 4 oz Grand Marnier or maraschino liqueur
• 24 oz chilled club soda

- Peel all the lemons with a vegetable peeler and make sure you avoid the white pith.
- Muddle the lemon peels with sugar in a 3 quart pitcher or punch bowl.
- Let the peels stand for 30 minutes.
- Add the lemon juice and stir until the sugar has dissolved.
- Add the gin and Grand Marnier and stir.
- Fill your pitcher or punch bowl halfway with ice and add the club soda.
- Stir and enjoy!

Last Saturday was World Gin Day, so apologies, dear readers for not posting this recipe sooner.  I actually tested it out a couple of weeks ago, but never had the chance to post it.  This is what happens when you blog on the side and have a busy, full-time job!  Anyway, it's better late than never, right?  I tend to crave gin in the spring and summer because of its herbal and fresh taste.  Witness my post from a couple weeks ago using Fever Tree Bitter Lemon Tonic for G&T's - my go-to summer libation now.  Since my return from Italy in early May, I've also been finding ways to incorporate amari in my cocktails in any way possible.  The Kitchn posted a great recipe idea during Valentine's Day for His and Her's Gin and Tonics.  Well, what if I want the dude's version?  It uses Averna, which is one of the sweeter amari, and is a fantastic way to end a meal.  It's what I would envision an Italian doing to his or her's standard gin and tonic.  So salute!

Gin & Tonic - Italiano Style 

• 1 1/2 oz gin - I used Tanqueray
• 1 oz Averna
• Orange slice or peel
• 1 1/2 oz or more of tonic water

- In a glass with ice, add the gin and Averna, and stir until chilled.
- Squeeze the orange slice or peel and drop into the glass.
- Top with tonic water and stir gently.

For my friend's bachelorette party last weekend, we were cooking and cocktail shaking up a storm in a gorgeous and sprawling ranch in Ojai.  The first night, after fighting through hours of Memorial Day traffic, we all needed something light and refreshing.  Martha Stewart's recipe for a Lillet Rosé Spring Cocktail was a perfect way to celebrate the bride-to-be — it was pink and girly, smacked of spring and matched our flower and palm-tree filled environs.  Next time I make this, I'll use fresh-squeezed grapefruit juice, but sometimes I allow myself to be a little lazy...We didn't have edible flowers on hand to garnish these drinks, but I'd recommend topping with some fresh raspberries or strawberries that mirror the flavor profiles in the Lillet Rosé.  I'm looking forward to whipping this up again for a girly brunch or Mother's Day celebration.

Lillet Rosé Spring Cocktail
Ingredients:

• 2 oz Lillet Rosé
• 2 oz grapefruit juice
• 1 oz gin (I used Tanqueray)
• Edible flowers, raspberries or strawberries, to garnish

- In a cocktail shaker filled with ice, add all the ingredients.
- Shake until well chilled and strain into a chilled coupe or wine glass.
- Garnish with flowers or berries.

As you're reading this, the Lush Chef is currently galavanting across Italy with her family and picking up all sorts of inspirations for tasty dishes and cocktails to share with all of you.  In preparation for that trip, I did a lot of cooking and cocktail shaking, so all of you wouldn't go through any kind of Lush Chef withdrawal.  This Italian Greyhound with Rosemary Sugar from the Family Style Food blog was the perfect libation to get me in the mood.  Yes, I've been doing a lot of gin cocktails lately, so bear with me.  I had a bunch of leftover grapefruit juice from making these Grapefruit Sparklers and used some of the fresh rosemary growing in my little herb pots outside.  I went and bought a bottle of Aperol, an Italian amaro, as I had a feeling I'd be craving Aperol Spritzs upon my return.  This cocktail is incredibly refreshing for the spring and summer, and it looks so pretty with the rosemary sugar.  It's perfect to serve at brunches or at daytime parties.  The combination reminds me of this Campari and Grapefruit Cocktail that I like to make, but a lot less bitter.  Saluté!

Italian Greyhound
Ingredients:

• 1 Tbs fresh chopped rosemary
• 2 Tbs sugar
• Grapefruit wedge
• 2 oz gin (I used No. 3 London Dry Gin)
• 4 oz freshly squeezed pink grapefruit juice
• 2 splashes of Aperol
• Rosemary sprig for garnish

- On a small plate or ramekin, combine the chopped rosemary and sugar.
- Run a wedge of grapefruit around the rim of a glass.
- Dip the rim of the glass into the rosemary sugar.
- In a shaker filled with ice, add the gin, grapefruit juice and a splash or two of Aperol.
- Shake and pour into your prepared glass.
- Garnish with a sprig of rosemary.

Here's another brunch-worthy cocktail that also harkens the fresh flavors of spring.  This Limoncello, Gin & Thyme Cocktail from FineCooking.com is also potent enough to carry over into dinner.  I didn't grill the thyme like the recipe originally called for, as I sadly don't have a grill, but this citrusy libation tastes just as good.  The limoncello is also getting me in the Italian mood, as I'll be traveling to that fair country shortly with my family.  So stay tuned lushes, as I'm sure to bring back from food and drink ideas from my jaunts through Rome, Florence and Tuscany.  For now, you can just make this cocktail until I return...

Limoncello, Gin & Thyme Cocktail
Ingredients:

• 3 large sprigs of thyme
• 1/2 oz lime juice
• 1/2 oz limoncello (I used Pallini Limoncello)
• 1 1/2 oz gin (No. 3 London Dry Gin)

- In a shaker glass filled with ice, add 2 of the thyme sprigs, lime juice and the limoncello and muddle.
- Add the gin and ice and shake.
- Strain into a glass filled with ice and garnish with the other thyme sprig.

I'm finally starting to feel the warmth of spring in LA, which for some reason makes me set aside the bourbon and pop open the gin bottles.  During Easter dinner a couple of weeks ago, I was whipping up gin fizzes with mint and fresh eggs from my friend's chickens.  So after a long six days in Las Vegas for a business trip, I was craving a simple and refreshing gin cocktail for a nightcap.  The Bee's Knees is like the gin equivalent to The Gold Rush.  This classic Prohibition cocktail garnered its name from the popular phrase at the time of "the bee's knees" when lavishing praise upon someone or something.

The creator of this lovely little libation is kind of unclear though.  Some trace it back to the Ritz Paris' head bartender Frank Meier, who published the recipe in his 1936 edition of The Artistry of Mixing Drinks.  Either way, it definitely stemmed from the Prohibition days, as that honey and lemon must have done wonders to mask the gasoline taste of bathtub gin.  To make the honey syrup, add 1/2 oz of water to every 1 oz of honey to a small saucepan over medium heat, and keep stirring until the honey dissolves.  Just don't let it boil.

The Bee's Knees
Ingredients:

• 2 oz gin (I used No. 3 London Dry Gin)
• 3/4 oz lemon juice
• 3/4 oz honey syrup

- In a shaker filled with ice, add the gin, lemon juice and honey syrup.
- Shake and strain into a chilled coupe glass.

One of my favorite champagne cocktails to make is the French 75.  I was going whale watching a few weeks ago with some friends and wanted to bring a daytime cocktail.  I had been making blood orange bitters earlier that day which requires using just the peels, so I had ton of fresh-squeezed juice.  I decided it would be perfect for a twist on the French 75.  Instead of regular sugar, I used some lemongrass simple syrup, which matches nicely with those herbal and juniper notes you get in gin.  I made a big batch of just the gin, juice and syrup in a jar so the prosecco could be added later when we were on the boat.  Next time I make this, I'll need to juice more blood oranges.  I just added some regular orange juice to make up for the lack.  If you want to make this drink for just one person, then follow the recipe above.  We quickly downed this cocktail before the sun even set, but it was the perfect way to toast a productive day of seeing the whales.  I can't wait to make this again for brunch or another day of sailing.
Sunset French 75 - serves 10-12
Ingredients:

• 3 cup freshly-squeezed blood orange juice
• 2 cups gin
• 1/2 cup lemongrass or regular simple syrup
• 1 bottle of champagne or prosecco

- In a quart-sized jar or punch bowl, add the orange juice, gin and simple syrup and stir.
- If making in a punch bowl, add all the champagne or prosecco.  If making individual drinks, fill each glass halfway with the gin/juice mixture, then top with a slightly equal amount of champagne.

Still planning your Easter menu for this Sunday?  Need an alternative to lamb?  Whether it's a brunch or dinner, here are some ideas to help you celebrate the holiday and arrival of spring.

Wake up to Easter egg hunts to the smell of these Limoncello Breakfast Rolls.  Prep them the night before so you can quickly pop them in the oven before all the holiday action begins.

What better way to start off brunch with a cocktail or two?  Make use of all those blood oranges at the market with this Blood Orange, Ginger Beer & Tequila libation.  If you haven't hard-boiled all of your Easter eggs, then turn them into fizzes with a classic Gin Fizz or an Apricot Bourbon Fizz.  For an all day drink, the Kew Garden Cocktail with white rum, St. Germain, lime, cucumber and mint can easily be made by the pitcherful.  Give your Old-Fashioned a festive and spring twist by using a little St. Germain and lemon bitters in this Elder Fashioned.
Nothing says Easter like eggs, right?  This Leek & Pancetta Risotto with a Fried Egg on top is a great meal to serve at brunch, and you can cook up a large batch for guests.  Another simple pasta dish that can be served for brunch or dinner is this Chicken & Swiss Chard Pasta Bake, and you can offset all those Easter Basket sweets by using whole wheat penne.  Marcus Samuelsson's recipe for Red Grits & Shrimp is incredibly flavorful and a nice way to end the Mardi Gras season.  One of my dad's favorite pork preparations is this Pork Loin with White Wine, Fennel Seed and Mustard Sauce.  Whether it's Easter or another holiday, this usually makes an appearance on our table at least a few times a year.

Last year when the Lush Chef's parents came to visit during Easter, I served this Sticky Orange Cake with Vodka & Marmalade Glaze for dessert.  It's vegan, but that didn't stop all of us from devouring this moist cake.  It's simple and quick to make, and can be served for brunch or with pistachio or vanilla ice cream after dinner.  A couple of years ago, I also served this cooling Orange Moscato Pudding to my parents for Easter.  It's another light dessert to end a heavy holiday dinner.  Even though pears and Riesling are more appropriate for the winter, this Pear Riesling Sorbet is still a perfect spring dessert.  If you have any of that Limoncello still lying around from the breakfast rolls, then use the rest for a Limoncello Rosemary Cake.  The candied lemons and rosemary sprigs make such a festive and tasty decoration.

Back in the spring, my friend and I hosted a whiskey tasting, where we walked our buddies through the differences amongst bourbon, whiskey and scotch, and also taught them how to make Old Fashioneds and Gold Rush cocktails.  It was a huge hit and we vowed we'd do another similar gathering.  Well, it took us nearly a year, but this past weekend, we hosted a Bitters Cocktail Party to teach our friends about the beauty of bitters.  If you frequently read this blog, you'll know my passion for bitters - they're to cocktails as finishing salts are to food.  I'm fascinated by the history and also make my own line of bitters called Bitter Revenge.

For those who aren't big cocktail enthusiasts, bitters are still a bit of a mystery and most are only familiar with the major brands like Angostura and Peychaud's.  The bitters boom really started a little after the vintage and artisanal cocktail movement happened.  As bartenders started looking through old recipe books, they discovered all of these flavors for bitters that no longer were on the shelves, or even just created new ones.  Some enterprising cocktail lovers either tracked down old recipes or bought antique bottles of bitters with a few drops left so they could reverse-engineer the recipes.  Now, when you go into a liquor store, gourmet foods market or scroll through the menu at your favorite fancy cocktail joint, you'll see all sorts of flavors: orange, lemon, grapefruit, apple, celery, cucumber, lavender, coffee, chocolate and more.  It can be a little overwhelming to figure out how to accent cocktails with different flavors, so that's what we sought to teach.  


Rather than just throwing our friends blindly into pairings, we gave everyone a little direction by providing some basic cocktail recipes that highlight bitters, the best being an Old Fashioned because of it's simplicity and ability to really highlight the bitters.  We also had recipes for each kind of base spirit, so non-whiskey drinkers could have some options as well, and we kept them fairly simple.  Nothing had more than 3 or 4 ingredients and left room for experimentation.  Writing out the recipes on little cards (laminated are even better) encourage socializing amongst your guests without you having to explain recipes each time someone wants to make a drink.  We offered up Manhattans, Sazeracs, Martinis, Rob Roy's, Pink Gin (just gin and aromatic bitters), a Horse's Neck (bourbon, bitters and ginger ale) and Champagne Cocktails (we all agreed lavender was the best).

My friend and I didn't want to break the bank on alcohol, so we told everyone to bring their favorite base spirit, which could be whiskey, bourbon, scotch, vodka, gin, rum or champagne.  We provided mixers such as lemon and lime juice, tonic and soda water, ginger ale, sweet and dry vermouth, Pernod (for the Sazeracs), oranges, lemons and limes for garnish peels, maraschino cherries, white and brown sugar cubes and a bunch of flavored simple syrups.  Because I'm the Lush Chef, I always have a bunch of simple syrups stocked in the fridge.  In addition to plain and rich simple syrups, I also provided honey syrup, ginger, lemongrass and spiced.  Also make sure you set out enough mixing glasses, shakers, jiggers/shot glasses, stirring spoons and citrus peelers for people to make drinks.  Besides regular ice, we also had some King Ice Cubes and whiskey stones on hand.

When trying the bitters, I recommend that people put a drop or two on their top of their hand to smell and taste it, so they really understand what the flavor is on its own and how it would best accent a cocktail.  Darker spirits tend to go best with the more aromatic and warmer flavors and clear spirits go best with the citrus and floral flavors, but a lot of times you can cross the line.  I've had many a good Old Fashioned with orange or lemon bitters.

We had the following bitters out for folks to try: Angostura, Peychaud's, Fee Brothers' West Indian Orange, The Bitter Truth's Jerry Thomas, Bar Keep's Lavender, my Bitter Revenge bitters in Blood Orange & Rosemary, Coffee Pecan, Meyer Lemon and Apple Cinnamon.  There's also a new company called Napa Valley Bitters, and the founder was gracious to send a dozen samples for all of us to try in unique flavors such as Cucumber, Tamarind-Lime-Chili, and Love Potion (aromatic).  I would even encourage your guests to bring their favorite bitters as well.

Here are some of my favorite brands if you're looking to stock your home bar:
Fee Brothers - One of the oldest brands out there, after Angostura and Peychaud's.  Their Whiskey Barrel-Aged Bitters are known for selling out as soon as they're stocked on the shelves.
The Bitter Truth - Their Jerry Thomas Own Decanter bitters are an aromatic homage to one of the most important bartenders of the 19th century.
Bittermens - They have fun names and flavors for their bitters like Xocolatl Mole, Boston Bittahs and Elemakule Tiki.
Bar Keep - They're organic and delicious.

Looking for a sexy cocktail to make for Valentines' Day today?  Or are you sitting at home nursing a drink by yourself, or with your nearest and dearest friends?  Whatever the situation, this classic cocktail is the perfect libation to stir up for today.

The Hanky Panky was created in the early 1900s at the American Bar in London's Savoy Hotel by head bartender Ada "Coley" Coleman for the actor Charles Hawtrey.  I love that a woman concocted such a classic drink during a time when the profession was male-dominated (and still pretty much is).  Here's Ada's account behind the creation and inspiration of this libation:

"The late Charles Hawtrey...was one of the best judges of cocktails that I knew.  Some years ago, when he was overworking, he used to come into the bar and say, 'Coley, I am tired.  Give me something with a bit of punch in it.'  It was for him that I spent hours experimenting until I had invented a new cocktail. The next time he came in, I told him I had a new drink for him.  He sipped it, and draining the glass, he said, 'By Jove! That is the real hanky-panky!'"

I've recently become obsessed with Fernet-Branca, like every bartender and rightful lush out there.  I love the small amount added, which gives this drink a saffron and herbal flavor.  It's just enough to stand out and doesn't overpower the drink.  In other words, it has a bit of a punch!

Hanky Panky 
Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 oz gin (I used London No. 3 dry gin)
• 1 1/2 oz sweet vermouth 
• 2 dashes Fernet-Branca
• Orange peel or twist for garnish

- In a mixing glass filled with ice, add the gin, sweet vermouth and Fernet.
- Stir and strain into a chilled coupe glass.
- Garnish with the orange twist.

In last week's Libation Education on Green Chartreuse, I promised all of you lushes another recipe with this "it" liqueur.  The Bijou Cocktail is a rather old recipe, created by legendary barman Harry Johnson and dating back to the 1890's. It's reminiscent of a Negroni, with equal parts gin, sweet vermouth and Green Charteuse, as opposed to Campari.  The name means jewel in French because the color of  liqueurs represents diamonds (gin), rubies (sweet vermouth) and emeralds (Green Chartreuse).  I've had the Bijou served at a couple of cocktail joints around town, and I've noticed they've played around with the measurements to appeal to a more modern palate.  It includes more gin and less of the other liqueurs so it's not so syrupy.  I actually like it both ways, depending on my mood, so I've included both recipes below.

Bijou Cocktail
Ingredients:
Traditional

• 1 oz gin
• 1 oz Green Chartreuse
• 1 oz sweet vermouth
• Dash of orange bitters
• Lemon peel, for garnish

Modern

• 2 oz gin
• 1/2 oz Green Chartreuse
• 1/2 oz sweet vermouth
• Dash of orange bitters
• Lemon peel, for garnish

- Combine all ingredients in a mixing glass with ice.
- Stir and strain into a chilled coupe glass.
- Garnish with the lemon peel.

This coming Sunday marks the season 3 premiere of "Boardwalk Empire," and how could the Lush Chef not be a fan of a show about Prohibition?  I've been enjoying cocktails with Green Chartreuse lately, which seems to be experiencing a resurgence (expect a Libation Education on it soon) and ran across a Prohibition-era cocktail recipe that contains it.  "The Last Word" was created at the Detroit Athletic Club back in the 1920's.  So proud of my home state!  The drink was then popularized, and the name perhaps inspired by, a vaudevillian named Frank Fogarty who introduced it to New York.  In 1951, it got published in Ted Saucier's cocktail book Bottoms Up!, but then the drink kind of disappeared after World War II.  When the classic cocktail movement started, a bartender in Seattle brought the drink back to life.

The drink contains equal parts gin, Green Chartreuse, lime juice and Maraschino liqueur.  I didn't have any Maraschino, but I had just bought a bottle of Averna (another Libation Education coming!) and thought this Italian bittersweet liqueur would be an interesting substitute.  The bitterness perfectly balances with the sourness from the lime juice.  I also added in a brandied cherry to still get a little bit of that flavor.  Nucky Thompson would be proud.  After all, he likes to have the last word.



The Italian's Last Word
Ingredients:

• 3/4 oz fresh-squeezed lime juice
• 3/4 oz gin (I used No. 3 London Dry Gin)
• 3/4 oz Averna
• 3/4 oz Green Chartreuse
• 1 brandied or Luxardo cherry

- Add all ingredients into a cocktail shaker with some ice and shake.
- Add a cherry into the bottom of a chilled coupe glass, and strain the drink in.

I rarely make cocktails from a blender, and it's probably because I associate them with really bad, sugary sweet piña coladas and strawberry daiquiris from places like TGI Fridays or Applebees.  But when summer hits, sometimes all you want is something really icy that packs a punch.  Tasting Table has been rocking it with the recipes the past few months, and their Strawberry Slushito balances that summer fruit in a simple syrup, along with one of my favorite bitter liqueurs, Campari (if you like this combo, try my Strawberry Campari Tart).  Their recipe makes a ton of strawberry simple syrup, but I just felt like it was too much to prepare if you're only going to blend two to four drinks.  I used half the amount of strawberries and a quarter of the simple syrup (you'll still have 1 cup of syrup) so I could really pump up the strawberry flavor.  The basil leaf gives this slushie libation an extra Italian kick.  If you read this blog often, you know how I like to post cocktail recipes for one.  Well, I feel like if you're using a blender and making a mess, you might as well just make two...because that's how many you're going to have.

Strawberry Slushito - makes 2
Ingredients for Strawberry Syrup:

• 1 cup strawberries, diced
• 1 cup simple syrup (1 cup water, 1 cup sugar)

Ingredients for cocktail:

• 3 oz gin
• 1 oz Campari
• 1 1/2 oz fresh squeezed lime juice
• A little more than 2 oz of the strawberry syrup
• Ice
• 2 basil leafs, for garnish

To make the Strawberry Syrup:
- Add the strawberries and simple syrup in a small bowl.  Cover and refrigerate overnight.
- Strain into a container (I like to use my little glass bottles) and discard the strawberries (or throw them on top of some ice cream).

To make the cocktail:
- In a blender, add the gin, Campari, lime juice the strawberry syrup (you can add 1/2 oz more if you like it a little sweeter).
- Fill the blender with about 2 1/2 cups of ice and blend until smooth.
- Pour into 2 glasses and garnish with basil leafs.