The Bitten Word

Rhubarb Fizz

We're coming to the end of the time in between -- that point in the year when spring has begun stretching into summer, but fresh fruits have yet to show up.

After a winter spent gorging on apples, they've quickly lost their appeal. The apples we're buying have become inconsistent, and we're tiring of carrying them to work, or snacking on them at night. We thank you for your service, apples, but you're dismissed. 

But it's too soon for strawberries -- hopefully, that may change this week -- and we're months away from the delicious stone fruits of August. 

Rhubarb, however, is here. Frankly, it's a fruit* for which we have no great affections. Its raw bitterness can be difficult to handle. To counteract that, most recipes that include rhubarb tend to go overboard on the sugar, and the result is a too-sweet dessert that doesn't really taste like fresh fruit at all.

Nonetheless, we find rhubarb a welcome sight in spring. Tall and red and green, rhubarb is the first fruit soldier to the spring front. 

But still, what to do with it?

Poach it and eat it as dessert?

Use a tiny bit raw or briefly simmered in a salad with a sweet vinaigrette? 

Make a rhubarb compote or jam? Maybe, once the strawberries have come in. 

Martha offers a nice suggestion this month, albeit one that requires ample amounts of sugar and, if you're into it, booze. 

This is a Rhubarb Fizz. 

Satan's Circus

Bon Appétit (May 2013)

Sometimes, we just can't help but make a dish just because of its name. 

This time, we've fallen for a cocktail called Satan's Circus, featured in Bon Appétit as part of a story about hotel bars. Satan's Circus comes from the NoMad Hotel's bar in New York City.  

(Incidentally, a book called Satan's Circus is about "a square mile of Midtown Manhattan where vice ruled, sin flourished, and depravity danced in every doorway." Though NoMad isn't in Midtown, we're assuming the cocktail takes its name from that infamous neighborhood.) 

The drinks mixes rye, cherry liqueur, a chile-infused Aperol and lemon juice for a drink that has a wonderful heat. The spicy-bitter combination is really excellent.

We're not quite wishing you vice, sin, and depravity for your weekend ahead, but we recommend that you mix yourself a Satan's Circus and see where the weekend takes you. 

New York Sour

Bon Appétit (April 2013)

Sometimes you want a cocktail to take the edge off.

Sometimes you want one in order to try a new ingredient, or a new kind of alcohol.

And sometimes you want a cocktail just 'cause it looks really freaking cool.

Enter: the New York Sour. 

Dandelion-Lime Cooler

Adapted from Martha Stewart Living (April 2013)

Want to have a big sip of spring in a glass? 

Then mix yourself up a spring tonic, like these Dandelion-Lime Coolers. 

We spied a recipe for Sorrel-Lime Tonics in the latest Martha Stewart Living. They were practically neon in their greenness, and so unusual sounding, that we were eager to whip up a batch. 

The only problem? We couldn't find any sorrel -- the farmers markets were all out and there was none to be found at Whole Foods. So we grabbed something else springy and unusual-sounding -- dandelion greens -- and got to mixing. 

Sparkling Rum Punch

Southern Living (December 2012)

A couple days ago, we mentioned that it's the season for sweets.

That's true, but it's also the season of the champagne toast. Between the first raising of your glass at Thanksgiving dinner and the last mimosa toast on New Year's Day morning, there's enough "cheersing" going on to give you tennis elbow.

Here's a fun sparkling wine cocktail to mix things up. It's an unexpected combination of rum, orange and sparkling wine. 

Rum and orange juice sounds like something a pre-motherhood Snooki would've drunk with breakfast. But rum, orange juice and sparkling wine? That, friends, is a classy combination. 

This sparkling rum punch is a festive, sweet concoction, just the sort of thing you want to be able to whip up on a whim during the holidays when friends are coming by.

Cheers! 

Cherry Brandy Old-Fashioned

Food Network Magazine (December 2012)

The first time Zach had an Old-Fashioned -- or at least the most memorable time -- was the first Thanksgiving he spent in D.C. A friend, Heather, invited Zach and several other folks to her family's huge Thanksgiving dinner in Northern Virginia. Awaiting the guests when they arrived was a 5-gallon glass jug full of Heather's dad's signature Old-Fashioned cocktail.

There was much ladling, and ladling, and more ladling. Suffice it to say, things got a little hazy. Zach's night ended quite eventfully, when he fell asleep on the Metro at midnight and rode the Orange Line straight through D.C. all the way to the end of the line in Maryland. A cab was called. An ATM was visited. Heather's dad's Old-Fashioneds were forsworned.

We're sure you can handle yourself better when it comes to these Cherry Brandy Old-Fashioneds. But be warned. They are strong. And they are amazing.

Thanksgiving 2012: Gin Apple Cider

A recipe from The Bitten Word

Happy Thanksgiving Week! Have a cocktail!

This is our final Thanksgiving preview recipe.  We've told you the biggest Thanksgiving trends, cataloged all the recipes from this year's food magazines, and walked you through the 20 or so recipes we tried out ourselves.

Now it's time for a drink.

Cucumber-Lemonade Mocktail

Food & Wine (August 2012)

So.  

A mocktail.  

It's like...a cocktail, but...like...without booze?

Huh?

Oh, we kid, we kid. Sometimes a boozeless cocktail (otherwise known as, you know, a beverage) is just the thing for a refreshing sip on a hot afternoon.

We really enjoyed this Cucumber-Lemonade Mocktail, but we think the name is burying the lede.

Stuff We Like: John's Premium Tonic Syrup

While we were at the beach up in Provincetown, Mass. a few weeks ago, we popped into Perry's, a little deli and wine shop we like to visit when we're there. Besides booze, they sell a lot of premium food products -- think high end pastas, oils and pickles. 

On the front table in the store, we saw these tiny little dark bottles, with beautiful white labels: "John's Premium Tonic Syrup." 

We asked the owner about John's, and he started raving about how "it makes the best gin and tonic I've ever had."

We had to try it. So we picked up a bottle and hauled it back to our tiny little rental to give it a spin.

Grilled-Peach Old-Fashioned

Martha Stewart Living (July 2012)

Look, we hate to complain about taking a vacation, but here goes anyway:

Isn't the week back at work after a vacation the worst? You're digging out of hundreds of emails, scrambling to get caught up at work and all the while thinking about how this time last week you were sitting on a beach. Doesn't it just make you...want a cocktail?

Well, we certainly do. And we're looking forward to capping off this week with a nice, cool sipper. Perhaps we'll make a couple of these Grilled Peach Old-Fashioneds.