Watts Up Cocktail

Cocktails have been on my mind recently.  There's a long list of recipes I'm hoping to mix up.  And I may have just subscribed to Imbibe magazine (Oops. Though I swear I have valid reasons!).  With spring emerging in Ohio, I'm ready for margaritas galore.  In fact, I have another margarita recipe for you next week.  But for now, let jalapeno, citrus, and tequila wake up your cocktail tastebuds--surely, they're a separate category--and prepare you for a season filled with margaritas, mojitos, and all sorts of summer drinks!

For you own fun, check out these two marvelous lists of cocktails:
50 Cocktails from 50 States from TheKitchn.com (originally from the NY Times)
20 Summer Cocktails with Fresh Herbs from TheKitchn.com


Watts Up Cocktail
from Everyday Food/Martha Stewart media
Makes 1 drink

*A note in advance... While this drink is delicious as is, it would be even more drinkable should you swap the minced jalapeno for either jalapeno-infused tequila or a jalapeno simple syrup.  How to make these are below, in the "notes" section.

Ingredients:
2 oz. silver tequila
1/8 - 1/4 tsp. minced jalapeno (seeds removed)
1 tbsp. lime juice
3 oz. grapefruit juice
1/2 tsp. honey
dash of chipotle salt (combine 3 tbsp. coarse salt with 1/2 tsp. chipotle chile powder)

You'll have plenty of leftover chipotle salt.
Store it in an airtight container.
I use mine - with some additional chile powder!- on roasted sweet potatoes.

Preparation:

Combine the diced jalapeno and lime juice in a glass.  Muddle (a muddler with a flat heat, like the OXO Steel Muddler, or the side of a large spoon work best here) briefly to release some of the jalapeno's flavor and heat.  Skip muddling if you're not a fan of pepper heat.

Add the remaining ingredients, stir, and enjoy!

Notes:

--You'll have extra chipotle salt. Store it in an airtight container and sprinkle on sweet potatoes or meat. It's a good thing.  Or continue to use it as an impromptu "sour mix" for your cocktails.  You can guess which one I went with...

--The chipotle salt takes the place of the ubiquitous and typically disgusting sour mix.  Here, against lime juice and grapefruit juice, the chipotle salt is amazing and balanced.  If you don't like sour mix in your margaritas, give this salt a chance.

--It turns out, I, like most other people, don't enjoy chunks of jalapeno in my cocktail.  Next time, I will skip the chopped jalapeno and swap in some jalapeno simple syrup (about 1/2 tsp. to 1 1/2 tsp. per drink).  Or better yet, made a stock of jalapeno-infused tequila.  There will be plenty of cocktails begging for its use!

To make jalapeno simple syrup:

• Wash and slice a jalapeno into rounds.  Remove the seeds and white interior ribs if you want less heat;  keep them if you're a hot-head like me!
• In a small saucepan over medium heat, warm equal parts of water and granulated sugar.  Stir occasionally, until the sugar is fully dissolved.
• Add your jalapeno slices to the simple syrup, cover with a lid, turn off the heat, and remove the saucepan from the burner.  Allow to sit for 10-20 minutes.
• Pour through a strainer to remove the jalapeno slices and store in the refrigerator for approximately 2 weeks.

To make jalapeno-infused tequila:

• Wash and slice 1-2 jalapenos into rounds.  Remove the seeds and white interior ribs if you want less heat; keep them if you want lots of heat.  Remember, the heat level varies greatly between individual jalapenos.....so choose wisely!  I'm a spicy food fanatic, and even after I removed most of the seeds and ribs here, I was still surprised by how spicy my tequila was.  The next batch, however, had a lot less potency.
• Place the jalapeno slices in a glass container and add between 1/2 cup - 1 cup tequila blanco (white tequila).  Allow the mixture to sit for 20 minutes (moderately spicy) to 40 minutes (very spicy, may be almost painful).  Pour the tequila through a mesh strainer to remove the jalapeno slices.
• Store your infused tequila in a sealed glass jar to prevent it from picking up any wonky flavors from the container.  

Pies and Pints | Brussels Sprout Pizza

The tradition continues in week two of Pies and Pints!  My roommate turned me on to the glory of roasted Brussels sprouts, for which I am quite grateful.  Usually I'll saute some thinly sliced Brussels sprouts up with some bacon, dried cranberries, candied pecans.  Or--a newly discovered and newly beloved preparation from the blog Five and Spice--I'll pan roast sprout halves, adding kimchi in the last minute.  I seriously can't get over Brussels + kimchi.

But back to the pizza.  With our shared love of roasted Brussels sprouts, we thought it'd be a great idea to put them (along with some cheese) on top of a pizza.  As for the crust, we wanted to continue testing different recipes in our search for the Best Crust Recipe(s) Ever.

This week's Pies and Pints selections...

• Toppings:  Roasted Brussels Sprouts, Provelone Slices, Apple and Onion Slices, and shaved Parmesan

• Crust: Spelt Crust, adapted from Ancient Grains for Modern Meals by Maria Speck

• Beer:  Sierra Nevada's Ruthless Rye

Spelt Crust
from Ancient Grains for Modern Meals by Maria Speck
Makes 2 pizza crusts

Ingredients:
2 cups whole grain spelt flour
2 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. fine sea salt
1/2 tsp sugar
1 cup whole-milk ricotta cheese
1/4 cup whole milk
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 large egg
coarse cornmeal for dusting the peel and pan

Preparation (by hand):
Whisk together spelt flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar in a large bowl.  Make a well in the center.

In a small bowl, combine the ricotta, milk, oil, and egg.  Beat with a fork until smooth.  Pour the ricotta mixture into the well you made in the dry ingredients.  Combine with a fork, stirring from the center and gradually incorporating the flour from the sides until a fairly moist dough comes together.

Transfer the dough to a well-floured work surface.  Lightly flour your hands and briefly knead 5 to 7 turns to get a smooth yet slightly tacky dough.  Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature for 30-45 minutes to allow the brain in the flour to soften.

To roll out your dough, see Assembly instructions below.

Roasted Brussels Sprouts

Preparation:

Wash and halve each Brussels sprout, cutting it so that each half remains attached at the "base" part of the sprout. Heat about 1-2 tbsp. (depending on the amount of Brussels sprouts you are roasting) of peanut oil over medium-high heat (so a drop of water sizzles when added).  Place the sprouts in the pan, cut side down, and cook for several minutes until deeply brown.  Stir the sprouts and cook for a few more minutes (4-5), until the sprouts are just beginning to be tender and easily pierced with a knife tip.  Remove from heat to limit any additional cooking.

Assembling the Pizza:

Place your pizza stone or an upturned baking sheet in a cold oven.  Next, preheat to 400-450 degrees Fahrenheit.

Meanwhile, unwrap your dough, transfer to a lightly floured work surface, and cut into 2 equal pieces.  Lightly flour your hands and briefly knead one piece until smooth, about 7 to 10 turns.  Roll or pat your dough out until it is between 1/4 and 1/2 inch thick.

Generously dust an upturned baking sheet or pizza peel with cornmeal, so your dough doesn't stick to it and will transfer easily to the preheated stone/sheet.  Lay your dough on top of the cornmeal.

It's time to assemble the pizza!  On top of your dough, brush extra virgin olive oil and sprinkle minced garlic. Place a layer of provolone slices, then apple slices and onion slices (both made with a mandolin or very thinly sliced with a knife).  Next, add your roasted Brussels sprouts, roasted side up.

Generously dust the hot pizza stone or upturned baking sheet with cornmeal, so you prevent your pizza from cooking onto the stone/sheet.  Carefully transfer your assembled pizza onto the hot stone/sheet.  We've found that using a combination of lifitng the front edge with a spatula + sliding the remainder of the pizza onto the stone/sheet to work best.  And after a few times, you'll scatter a lot less cornmeal around the oven and floor, I promise!

Cook for 10-15 minutes, or until the crust is done and cheese is browned.  Carefully slide your pizza from the pizza stone/upturned baking sheet onto a pizza peel (or wood cutting board or another upturned baking sheet), using the spatula + slide technique.  Sprinkle liberally with shaved Parmesan, cut, and dig in!

Our thoughts on this week's selections...

• The Toppings:
• Roasted Brussels Sprouts, Provelone Slices, Apple and Onion Slices, and shaved Parmesan
• Loved the Brussels sprouts. Roasted, almost charred...but practically flavorless without additional seasonings. Alas, none of the other toppings did much to help in this area, so I can't even say this was my favorite part of the pizza.
• Provelone, apple, and onion....not much flavor here either. Sigh.  Total bust in the flavor department.

• The Crust:
• Not something I'd ever like to revisit. I like my pizza crusts to have both a crispy, crunch crust and a chewy interior.  This spelt crust had absolutely no crunchy crust or chewy interior. Just a lot of soft and crumbly bread, almost like a very dried out quickbread (blurgh!).  
• However, the fact this dough didn't use yeast meant it came together incredibly quick, thanks to no rise time

• The Beer:
• This is one of my first opportunities to try a rye beer, and I must admit to enjoying it! 
• There's a slight tang from the rye that makes this brew different and interesting.  Paired with its medium body (not too light or heavy) and generally balanced flavors, Ruthless Rye would go well with a variety of savory foods. One I'd be happy to drink again.

Guess we failed in the toppings and crust department...but there's always next week!

Pumpkin and Pineapple Cocktail

Alright, you probably think I'm a bit of a nutter for suggesting pumpkin plus pineapple. Maybe even for suggesting pumpkin be consumed outside it's traditional fall season.  Well, give me a chance!

It's spring, that transition between dreary winter and sultry summer.  So we need an app a drink for that (obviously).  And the Pumpkin and Pineapple Cocktail is just the ticket. It's got the warmth of spices, the slightest molasses note of dark rum, and the comforting depth of pumpkin puree.  Then a little something extra comes to the party in the form of pineapple, transporting you to sunnier days and a cabana on the beach.  In other words, pumpkin + spices are lightened up and taken to a whole new realm by tropical pineapple....and the tropical pineapple is likewise altered by the earthy flavors of pumpkin + spices, which prevent it from turning into a sickly sweet bomb.

As you're sipping this cocktail, you might find yourself thinking Woah. What is that? I need another taste... And another... Okay, I like this. I really like this.  Must. Have. More.   At least that's what I did, because the flavors were so unexpected yet so fun and delicious.  Give non-fall pumpkin and unexpected flavor combinations a chance!

Pumpkin Pineapple Cocktail

from Cookie + Kate

Makes 2 drinks

Ingredients:

7 oz. pineapple juice

3 tbsp. pumpkin puree

1 tsp. honey (add more or less to taste)

1 large lemon, juiced

1/4 tsp. vanilla extract

1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/8 tsp. ground ginger

dash nutmeg (freshly grated for the best flavor)

dash allspice or cloves

3 oz. dark rum (not spiced...dark rum, like Mrs. Meyers or Gosling's)

Preparation:

Pour all ingredients into a blender and blend well.  Into two glasses, pour over ice and, if you're feeling fancy, garnish with a dash of cinnamon on top. Cheers!

It's an unusual pairing, pumpkin and pineapple, so I have to admit, I was a bit nervous this might not be something I wanted to finish drinking (the horror!). But each sip was delicious! I was intrigued by how the slightest hint of molasses from the dark rum and the spices brought two very disparate players together.  I  loved trying a combination fresh and new to me, so much so that I couldn't put my glass down!

And if you're thinking pumpkin should only be consumed in the fall, I strongly disagree.  Make some pumpkin waffles/pancakes or a pumpkin milkshake (bonus for adding pumpkin cream liquor). Stir some pumpkin puree into your smoothie or  your yogurt.  It is so good and it should be seen more outside of fall!