citrus

Winter Citrus Sparkling Brunch Cocktails for Two

January 15, 2019 by elana Leave a Comment

This post was made in partnership with TruviaÂ®. Recipes and ideas are my own.

It’s January! Has your inbox become filled with emails that are telling you how to be your best self? Or how to lose some weight? Or how you can fix your life?? Are you just deleting them all because they’re all starting to make you feel…overwhelmed? I generally have avoided trying to make over my life every January and have instead opted to start thinking more about the state and quality of my life. I use January as a time to reflect upon the previous year, not rush into the future. Did I connect with family and friends last year? Did I treat my body right? If I answered no, then I’d think about what small ways I could make changes in my life so that I could improve the overall quality in the coming year.

Winter Citrus Sparkling Brunch Cocktail for Two with Truvia // stirandstrain.com These are no pressure approaches by the way. Being a business owner I have enough deadlines so the thought of adding to that list makes me cringe, so I look at these as fun assignments I will give myself and allow the space to let them happen. I also think of them as ways to incorporate more self-care into the day to day.

Winter Citrus Sparkling Brunch Cocktail for Two with Truvia // stirandstrain.com When I looked at 2018, I realized that while I was building new parts of my business, I wasn’t leaving much time to spend with friends and family. So for 2019, my assignment is to have more casual get-togethers at home. Nothing requiring lots of advanced planning, but an excuse to sit, eat and drink, and enjoy the company of friends and family. And I’ve already planned my first one with a longtime friend I feel like I barely got to see last year.

Winter Citrus Sparkling Brunch Cocktail for Two with Truvia // stirandstrain.com We’re calling it brunch, but really it’s an excuse to eat some pastries, buy some fresh flowers, and have some brunch cocktails. This is my ideal self-care weekend date.

We’ve teamed up with TruviaÂ® to help plan a brunch cocktail for two with their Natural Sweetener packets. You just need one packet, split between two friends, to get the ideal amount of sweetness in your brunch cocktail (One packet provides the same sweetness as two teaspoons of sugar). Truvia Natural Sweetener packets are zero-calories and made from stevia leaf extract. The packets are also convenient to carry around, in case your get-together involves a park or a camping trip (if that’s the way you do casual!).

Winter Citrus Sparkling Brunch Cocktail for Two with Truvia // stirandstrain.com For our cocktail we’ll make use of the delicious, seasonal citrus fruit that is everywhere right now. I’ve always loved how citrus is a winter fruit, bringing a burst of sunshine into all those grey, winter days. Hopefully this cocktail, made with citrus distilled gin, orange blossom water, lemon bitters, club soda, and Truvia sweetener, will bring a little sunshine into your day. It also goes very well with a pastry plate.

Winter Citrus Sparkling Brunch Cocktail for Two with Truvia // stirandstrain.com Now let’s get brunching!

Winter Citrus Sparkling Brunch Cocktails for Two

3 ounces gin, a new American style with citrus notes will work best
1 Truvia Natural Sweetener packet (if you prefer your drinks on the sweeter side, then you can use up to one packet per person)
1 ounce freshly squeezed orange juice
1/2 teaspoon orange blossom water
2 dashes lemon bitters
1/2 cup various citrus fruit segments such as Cara Cara oranges, blood oranges, clementines and kumquat halves
6 ounces club soda, chilled

In a shaker filled 2/3 with ice, pour in gin, the Truvia Natural Sweetener packet, freshly squeezed orange juice, orange blossom water, and lemon bitters. Shake well for 20 seconds and divide between two flutes. Add in your citrus of choice and top with chilled club soda. Cheers!

Winter Citrus Sparkling Brunch Cocktail for Two with Truvia // stirandstrain.com

Angosangrita beer - citrus - Angostura - hot sauce

March 30, 2018 by elana Leave a Comment

ThisÂ post was made in partnership with The House of Angostura. Recipe and ideas are my own.

My calendar of nonsense drink holidays tells me that tomorrow April 7th is National Beer Day! So what are we going to do here? Make a beer cocktail of course!

Beer can be a pretty versatile ingredient in cocktails (you can even substitute it for an egg white in a sour!) but sometimes you want to play up the beer part more and not break out the hard liquor. Today we’ve teamed up with Angostura to show how their bitters can make a bold new spin on one of those classic drinks a lot of people think of when they hear “beer cocktail”: the Michelada.

A Michelada can vary greatly depending on who’s making it, but mainly it consists of beer, lime juice, hot sauce, spices… lots of delicious bits. I decided to take that spicy base and mash it up with the idea of Sangrita (no, I spelled that right, it’s not sangria), the side shot that accompanies tequila and translates to “little blood”. Sangrita is usually, but not always, a tomato based drink. Here, instead of a tomato base, we’re using a good dose of Angostura. Sound crazy? Crazy delicious!

Beer cocktails are warm weather cocktails in my opinion, and this weekend it’s getting a little toasty around SoCal so I thought now is a good time to crack open a beer and mix up one of these. It’s another great way to use Angostura bitters in a drink other than adding an accent to a cocktail.

Have you guys made a drink that uses a lot of bitters? Let me know! And if you try this, tag us and let us see! Cheers!

For the Sangrita:

2 ounces freshly squeezed lime juice
2 ounces freshly squeezed orange juice
4 ounces freshly squeezed grapefruit juice
1-1/2 ounces Angostura Bitters
1-2 dashes hot sauce (more or less to taste)
Pinch salt

For the Cocktail:

4 ounces beer
4 ounces Sangrita
Garnish: lime juice and spicy salt mix (equal parts salt, chili powder and black pepper)

In an airtight non-reactive container, pour in lime juice, orange juice, grapefruit juice, Angostura, hot sauce and the pinch of salt. Stir together and set aside until ready to use or refrigerate up to a week.

Rim a double rocks glass with lime juice and spicy salt mix. Add ice. Add sangrita mix to the glass and pour in beer. Stir gently to combine.

If youâ€™d like to learn more about Angostura and their products, please visit them atÂ www.angostura.com

{Now Closed} Giveaway // Cuisinart Compact 16 oz Juice Extractor And a Sparkling Non-Alcoholic Citrus-Ginger Drink!

December 19, 2017 by elana 29 Comments

This post was made in partnership with PC Richard and Son. Recipe and ideas are my own.

I’m not sure when frozen juice concentrate stopped being a thing, but it was definitely what I grew up on in the ’80’s. The sploosh as the frozen cylinder hit the Tupperware pitcher, and then, for me, the satisfaction of feeling like I “made” something healthy and helped out in the kitchen (give me a break, I was 9). However, the first time I had real, freshly squeezed orange juice, well, let me tell you, that taste was something else. Fresh juice? You mean it all doesn’t come from a can?

I might be losing some of you younger readers. You guysÂ get juice. The real stuff. You are not afraid to juiceÂ anything.Â And better yet? You like to make drinks with it.

So today I’m partnering with PC Richard and SonÂ to give one lucky Stir and Strain reader a machine to make all their juicing dreams come true: a Cuisinart Compact 16 oz Juice Extractor.

Take this guy for a spin the next time you’re planning brunch at home, looking for a healthy post-workout drink, or in need of juicing a lot of citrus for a party! It’s compact size means it can live right on your counter top and is ready whenever you need it.

For Christmas morning I’ll be prepping a refreshing sparkling non-alcoholic drink for all the family with a little help from my Cuisinart Compact Juice Extractor. A nice mix of fresh citrus with a kick of ginger, sweetened with maple syrup and bubbles courtesy of some sparkling water. I can juice all the citrus and ginger together and then just add in the sweetener and finish with sparkling water.

1/2 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
1″ knob of ginger, skin on, juiced or finely grated
3 tablespoons maple syrup
sparkling water to taste
citrus wheel for garnish

In a pitcher, combine juices, ginger and maple syrup. Stir to incorporate maple syrup. Add in sparkling water to taste. Garnish with citrus wheels.

Ready to get juicing? Enter below for your chance to win a Cuisinart Compact 16 oz Juice Extractor (retails $100) and get up to 11 entries to win. Open to US residents only. Giveaway ends December 23, 2017 at 11:59 PST. For more information on PC Richard and Son, please visit them atpcrichard.com. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Let’s Get Fresh! what to make and drink with all that winter citrus

January 3, 2017 by elana 1 Comment

Winter is officially citrus season, which always seemed so bizarre to me. Why would this bright, summery feeling fruit be aÂ winter crop? Maybe to cheer us all up during those dark winter days? Well, drink (or make!) a few of these citrus concoctions and you’ll be smiling soon.

Mother’s Day Cocktail Roundup 2016

April 30, 2016 by elana 1 Comment

Well guys, it’s been two years since I’ve done one of these, so here’s your 2016 cocktail roundup for all your Moms. Drink up!

Sparkling Lemony-Suze Cocktails

Sparkling Pomegranate Caipirinha

Fresh Ginger Amaretto Sour Cocktails

Smoked-Rosemary Rum Punch

BrÃ»lÃ©ed Grapefruit and Mixed Citrus Punch with Vanilla and Piloncillo Reduction

Sparkling Pomegranate and Cocchi Rosa Cocktails

A Pitcher of Pisco with Grapefruit, Lime and Thyme

The Pineapple Hop Cocktail // stirandstrain.com

The Pineapple Hop, a beer & pineapple shrub cocktail

A Pitcher of Pisco with Grapefruit, Lime and Thyme

March 12, 2015 by elana 1 Comment

Welcome back to brunch week on Stir and Strain. Today’s cocktail gets mixed up by the pitcher and also includes a long standing feud between two South American countries.

That’s right! We’re batching up some pisco!

Why pisco today? Well, one reason is that it’s been awhile since I’ve made a cocktail on here with it. And two, well, I swallowed the pisco kool-aide (err.. punch?) so to speak.

Back in January I attended the second annual Golden State of Cocktails here in Los Angeles. Three days filled with seminars, demonstrations, booze, tacos, science, more booze, some bar crawls, educational booths, and so much more booze. While there were some fantastic seminars attended, the talk on the history of pisco stood out the most for me. It made me… really excited about pisco. I can’t say for certain what it was exactly that made this particular talk so great:Â the enthusiastic speakers? The bottled punch? The sample after sample of pisco? Whatever it was, I knew I was hooked on the spirit and had to start using it more. Hey, the title of the seminar was “The World’s Most Mixable Spirit”. (And if you’d like a little more history on it, I touched on a couple points in my Serious Eats post you can read.)

So obviously I needed to start mixing with it. Consider this your gateway cocktail into the world of pisco (that is if you are still on the fence about drinking a Pisco Sour due to the egg white. OH, hey. I made a vegan version of that you should try). Here I’ve paired the pisco with the very much in season grapefruits that I had accumulated over the last several weeks from the farmer’s market. Yes, sometimes my seasonal cocktails are just a reason to get rid of some fruit I’ve over-bought. Then I spiked it with a little thyme and a splash of lime.

For the Grapefruit Syrup:

Zest from one medium grapefruit
1 cup freshly squeezed grapefruit juice from 2 to 3 grapefruits (see note above)
1 cup granulated sugar

Combine grapefruit zest, juice, and sugar in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, remove from heat, cover and let stand for 1 hour. Strain into an air-tight container. Refrigerate until ready to use or up to 1 week.

For the Bottled Cocktails:

3 sprigs fresh thyme
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
3 ounces freshly squeezed lime juice from 3 limes
9 ounces pisco, such as Encanto
4 1/2 ounces Grapefruit Syrup
6 sprigs fresh thyme for garnish

In the bottom of a mixing glass, muddle together thyme and salt. Add lime juice and stir. Fine-strain into a 24-ounce carafe or swing-top bottle and then pour in grapefruit syrup and pisco. Cap and gently shake to combine. Refrigerate until chilled, at least 1 hour.
For each cocktail, add one large ice cube to a double rocks glass. Pour in 2-3/4 ounces of the bottled cocktail. Gently stir and garnish with a sprig of thyme.

It’s a bright, delicious cocktail that you can easily have along whatever brunch-y dishes you might be cooking up. But still palatable for a pre-dinner drink too if that’s more your thing.

Hibiscus-Tequila Cooler

April 23, 2014 by elana 4 Comments

As much as I love throwing together some cocktails when a friend or two stops by, when a small crowd starts to gather I freeze up, spill liquor all over the place and add salt when it should have been sugar. That’s why I love pitcher cocktails for crowds at my house. Besides turning to all thumbs, I’d rather be mingling, drink already made in my hand, then trying to mix and half listen to a story being told to me. Anyone else like this?

Spring and Summer tends to pack the weekends with parties, and this bright, floral pitcher cocktail is just SO refreshing and delicious you could serve it at least a couple of times before changing it up. Now, I know this is calling for limes. Don’t let that ingredient mean you’re passing this up! You can easily switch out the lime for other citrus combinations;Â grapefruit and lemon, kumquats, tangerines… as long as you get a fragrant, slightly sweet and not too sour flavor.

Another nice fact about pitcher drinks: they can mostly be assembled beforehand and topped off before the party starts. Less stress this summer; you are welcome.

Note: my pitcher is on the small side, serving about 6. If yours is much larger this can easily be doubled (or hell, tripled). And be careful with the hibiscus! This little flower goes from tangy to bitter super fast so don’t walk away and forget about it when you’re steeping.

Hibiscus-Lime Syrup:

1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
1/3 dried hibiscus flowers
zest from one lime
2 ounces lime juice from 2-3 limes

Over medium-high heat, bring sugar and water to just under a boil. Remove from heat and add hibiscus and lime zest. Stir, cover and let steep for 15 minutes. Strain, let cool and add lime juice.

For the drinks:

1 lime, sliced thin
1 cup hibiscus-lime syrup (recipe above)
1 cup tequila, Herradura Tequila Silver used here
2 cups tonic water, chilled

For the drink: In a pitcher, add lime slices, syrup and tequila. If not using right away, store in refrigerator. Otherwise, add tonic water and stir to combine. Serve over ice with lime wedges.

Tart and tangy, the hibiscus-lime mixture provides a lift to the vegetal nature of the tequila. The tonic gives a hint of bitter and sweetness to the final drink, along with a nice effervescence. If tonic is too overpowering for you, club soda can be substituted.

I originally posted this recipe on the Serious Drinks site.

Mixology Monday: Southeast Asian Style Tonic Syrup for a Gin and Tonic

January 20, 2014 by elana 4 Comments

Update: it has come to light that some precautions must be taken with making your own tonic at home using cinchona bark. Remember to TRIPLE filter until no solids are left. Please read this article if you are new to making tonics at home.

It feels so good to check something off my “To Make” list. And thanks to Mixology Monday, I got to do that today. Some time ago I happened upon an article about making your own tonic syrup. I forget where now, but I immediately added it to my ever fluctuating list of projects I assign myself. Making the syrup seemed the obvious choice this month as HIGHBALLS! was the assigned theme by Joel over at the Southern Ash blog. What is Mixology Monday you might be asking yourself (if you are new around this site)? Well, every month a group of cocktail (and food bloggers…we’re not picky) get together and face a challenge presented by whoever is “hosting” this online cocktail party that month. To check out what we did last year, please check out the archives over on the MxMo site, there were quite a few epic drinks. Everyone submits by the deadline and we eagerly await the roundup to see what everyone came up with, and secretly friend-hate on those that did a better job than you. It’s all about community.

One of my favorite Highball drinks is a Gin & Tonic (also Amaro Highballs but we’ve already covered that on here), and what better way to feature this drink than with an amazing homemade tonic syrup? What is your go-to Tonic Water? Do you like some of the more exotic ones like Fever-Tree or Q-Tonic? Or do you go with plain ol’ Canada Dry? No judgement here; I’ve had them all. Before I became aware that you can actually MAKE your own, I was a big fan (still am) of Fever-Tree’s Indian Tonic Water. It had more character than I had experienced in other tonic waters and added a nice, spicy flavor profile to a G&T. In making my own, I wanted to capture some of that spiciness, but also introduce more bolder flavors into the mix. The tonic ingredients moved away from what I thought of mostly as “Indian” spices (cardamom, coriander) and moved more into the broader category of “Southeast Asian” (kaffir lime leaves, ginger).

Since this was my first time venturing down the path of this DIY project I sought out someone who I trust implicitly with these homemade concoctions: Morgenthaler. (You can read his original recipe with the link below.) Ingredients were tweaked from his original to include other’s favorites and whatever I had in my spice cabinet that I thought would be interesting. Spoiler alert: it’s pretty interesting. Also, tasty.

Southeast Asian Style Tonic

adapted from Jeffrey Morgenthaler

4 cups water
2-3 dried Kaffir Lime Leaves
4 whole green cardamom pods, lightly crushed
1/2 tsp. whole allspice berries
1/2 whole star anise
1/4 tsp. whole white peppercorns, lightly crushed
1/2 tsp. whole coriander seeds, lightly crushed
1″ knob of ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
~~1/4 cup~~ cinchona bark powder (update: cut this back to 2 tablespoons)
1/4 cup citric acid
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
zest and juice from one lime
zest and juice from one lemon
zest and juice from one orange

7 oz. sugar
1 oz. vodka, optional

Combine all ingredients except sugar in a medium sauce pan. Stir to combine (a slight skin may form over the top, don’t worry, that will dissipate once the boil starts). Heat over high heat until a rolling boil is reached. Reduce to low and let simmer for 20 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature. Strain through a fine strainer and cheesecloth. Strain a second time through a coffee filter to remove any remaining sediment and a third time if solids are still left. You DO NOT want any remaining solids in your final product. Pour strained mixture back into a clean sauce pan over medium heat, after mixture warms, about 3-5 minutes, add sugar and stir to combine. Once sugar has fully melted, about 7-9 mintues, remove from heat. Let cool and then transfer to an airtight container. If not using right away, add one ounce vodka to syrup.

Gin and Southeast Asian Tonic

2 oz. tonic syrup (recipe above)
2-1/2 oz. carbonated water
2 oz. Gin, Hendrick’s used here

Build the cocktail by adding all three ingredients to a highball (or double rocks if you’d like one large ice cube) glass filled with ice. Stir gently to combine. Garnish with a small lime wedge.

Holy flavor bomb Batman! This syrup has a lot of spice and tartness going on, but one ingredients does not overpower the other. The citrus element here is very strong in the tonic and I found that adding lime wedges, which I usually squeeze in, were not needed. If you close your eyes and slowly taste, you can definitely point out the pepper, the coriander, etc. But it’s so refreshing and delicious you’re just going to want to gulp it down.

**If you have a hard time sourcing herbs in your neighborhood, Dandelion Botanical Company is a great online resource (and where I get the majority of mine).

Thanks to the Southern Ash blog for hosting this month and to Fred for keeping the dream alive. Check back here next week for the round up of everyone’s submissions.

Sparkling and Spiced Winter Sangria with Ginger, Cranberries, Black Pepper and Citrus

December 15, 2013 by elana 7 Comments

I don’t know about you guys, but I’m so ready for Christmas. After having to by-pass the two other major Fall holidays this year, all I want is to unpack my 200+ nutcrackers and put up a dang tree. Christmas shopping is already underway (it still counts if it’s for me and I say it’s ‘for christmas’) and I already broke out my Christmas DVDs. Now all I need is a drink.

It’s funny how with the invention of Pinterest that I realize that many other like-minded people are also dreaming of winter cocktails, and even further into that niche, they are thinking about winter sangria. Yep, I totally want to throw cranberries into all kinds of things lately, including this drink, but not quite the way you’d think to include them. If you’ve looked at my previous sangria recipes this year (which you can find here and here) you might notice that they tend to become quite layered. The reason is, if it’s not, I find it boring.

A few weeks ago I was invited to be part of the “media” who judged a sangria contest sponsored by Pavan liqueur. I won’t point out who, but some of the drinks I found to be just one-note beverages. They were flat; they were boring. That’s so sad. When I did like the drink, it was because the bartender had put a lot of thought into the layers that were making up the recipe. Flavor after flavor that both was interesting, worked as a whole, and was not boring. And that’s what I want when I am drinking sangria and when others might possibly be ingesting the drink too.

Fast forward to last week where I put the finishing touches on this sangria recipe I had been dreaming about and up it went on the Serious Drinks site. I will be posting some recipes this month on their site, so please jump on over there from time to time and check them out. Outtakes and the usual nonsense will be found here still.

For the cranberry-black pepper syrup:

3/4 cup water
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup fresh whole cranberries
Â½ cup whole black peppercorns

For the base:

1/4 cup of sliced kumquats, about 5-6 kumquats
1 satsuma tangerine, sliced
1 ounce of Shrub & Co. Spicy Ginger Shrub
2 ounces of cranberry-black pepper syrup
4 ounces of Pavan

For each drink:

4-5 ounces of Brut Cava, such as German Gilabert

For the syrup, combine water, sugar, cranberries and peppercorns in a medium-sized sauce pan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil and remove from heat. Cover and let stand for 30 minutes. Cool and fine-strain mixture through cheesecloth or a coffee filter into an air-tight container. Will keep refrigerated for one week, or add half an ounce of vodka to the mixture to prolong freshness up to 3 months.
For the base, combine sliced kumquats and tangerines in the base of an airtight container with ginger shrub, syrup and pavan. Refrigerate for at least two days and up to four days.
For individual servings, pour 1 and a half ounces of base into the bottom of a white wine or rocks glass along with any desired fruit from the base. Add ice cubes and top with 4 ounces of the Cava. Gently stir to combine and serve.
For a full pitcher, add the entire bottle of Cava to a pitcher containing the base. Stir gently to combine, and pour into individual serving glasses.

Lots of flavor with sharp, spiciness from the ginger and pepper. The dry cava balances out the sweet, syrupy base.

Gentlemen, this is a sangria drink for you too; it bites back. I served this drink at a private party this weekend and one guy had 6 servings. Granted, the alcohol content is not too high, but seriously: SIX. He dragged people over to try it and they were also converted. I’m convinced all of your guests will love this.

Yuzu Whiskey Sour

March 4, 2013 by elana 4 Comments

Right now while I’ve had quite a lot of time on my hands I’ve been looking for projects that I can bunker down and spend some time on. One of these projects was learning to make marmalade; a perfect solution to the citrus situation going on right now. The other night I took a class at a local restaurant/jam storeÂ Sqirl where I learned the art of making marmalade. At first completely overwhelmed, our teacher, the owner, guided us step by step until I felt like a pro. A parting gift was a jar of her small batch yuzu marmalade. Heaven. Also I thought, great for adding to a drink.

Once a long time ago I used marmalade in a drink and I patted myself on the back for thinking of trying it. And then I realized that my Eureka moment had been experienced by many aÂ cocktail maker. Oh well. Great minds think alike right?

Yuzu is a Japanese citrus that tastes similar to a sour orange and is very aromatic. The Sqirl marmalade has a nice bitter, sour and sweet flavor profile. You can sub in an orange marmalade that is more on the tart side and not too sweet to get similar results in this cocktail. Don’t sub the Yuzu bitters though, you’ll want to track these down online if your local store doesn’t carry them.

[Update, 2018: If you’re not a fan of egg whites or looking for vegan alternatives, SURPRISE! You have a lot of options now. You can use Aquafaba, or Instafoam to replace egg whites in cocktails.]

Adapted from Saveur
2 oz Old Grandad 100-proof bourbon
1 oz freshly squeezed lemon juice
Â½ oz simple syrup
1 tsp Sqirl Yuzu marmalade (or a bitter orange marmalade)
1 egg white
2 drops Miracle Mile Yuzu bitters

1 lemon strip for garnish

Combine all ingredients except your garnish in a Boston shaker. Dry shake for 30 seconds to incorporate the egg white. Add ice and shakeÂ vigorouslyÂ for about a minute. Double strain into a chilled coupe and garnish with the lemon strip.

Sharp and tart, this drink provides a nice contrast with a subtle sweet flavor and floral notes from the bitters. Those bitters also provide balance between the bite of the whiskey and the sour flavor of the citrus. Again I’m delving into the semi-scary world of raw eggs but fear not, that egg white adds a lovely creaminess to the drink with a rich mouthfeel. On its own, the Yuzu marmalade is quite tangy, but mellows out into the drink. Overall it’s surprisingly dry, not unlike my sense of humor.

Winter Citrus Sparkling Brunch Cocktails for Two

Winter Citrus Sparkling Brunch Cocktails for Two

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