Summer Cocktails with Moscow Muled

Hello dear reader! I hope the summer has been treating you well. Here in Seattle, the summer has gone way too fast, but we’ve been enjoying every moment as much as we can. Hikes, road trips, tons of great meals and of course, cocktails with friends. I’ll post more about our adventures soon, but wanted to share an easy cocktail recipe for you to enjoy in the last few weeks of summer, which is only made more beautiful by these copper mugs from my friends over at Moscow Muled!

See? SO beautiful, right? I know, I can hear you now, but that’s not a Moscow Mule in that mug! And you’d be right – these strawberry-lime margaritas just pop when poured into these babies.

These aren’t your Dad’s Moscow Mule mugs, they are hand forged, lined with food grade nickel (none of the leaching from standard copper), with welded handles, so they last. They also keep your drinks colder, longer. Function and form? Yes, please. They hold 16 ounces each, which is just perfect for this late summer and sitting in the hammock. Ready to give this a try? Read on!

Momma’s Strawberry-Lime Margarita
Serves two, nicely
The key is to freeze your strawberries in advance, which avoids ice and in turn a watered down cocktail (who wants that??)

For the margarita:
.5 lbs Strawberries, fresh
1.5 lbs Strawberries, frozen in advance
1/4 cup lime simple syrup (See below)
2-3 ounces tequila

For the lime simple syrup:
Simple syrup is your easiest cocktail addition – it’s always 1 to 1 (1 part sugar to the same amount of liquid).
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup lime juice
Heat the lime juice on low heat until hot, add sugar and stir until sugar is completely dissolved. Cool completely before using, and store in your refrigerator until used.

Put it all together:
Add the fresh strawberries, the lime simple syrup and tequila into the pitcher of a blender and blitz until the strawberries are blended up. Add the frozen berries and pulse until smooth. Pour evenly among your mugs and enjoy!

Simple, right? I’m telling you guys, this is the easiest drink you’ll have this summer. Not a tequila person? No worries!! This is also REALLY good with rum or whiskey, or without alcohol for those who just want a refreshing mocktail!

I’d love to hear your thoughts! Leave your comments below.

Yours in strawberry bliss,
Raina

PS-while this is a sponsored post, I do fully support this local company and have enjoyed these mugs thoroughly. As always, I’ll never share any product with you that I do not fully support and have tested myself. Cheers!

So full and grateful

Initially, I started this post to share my yearly menu and a cocktail recipe with all of you, but as we near Thanksgiving, I can’t help but think about how grateful I am this year. Mom is doing well with her cancer treatments, Izzy is thriving in school, work is busy and I have a roof over my head. I am healthy, happy and loved. There is just so much to celebrate and to be thankful for. I hope all of you are doing well, and are finding moments to be grateful!

This year, I am hosting Thanksgiving at my house, and while it’s just a small gathering, I’m going all out! I may be an overachiever, and diet be damned, it’s going to be good. Here’s the line up and a couple recipes for you as well, should you need ideas!

Thanksgiving 2018 Menu:

Breakfast:

Wild mushroom, leek and ham quiche
Coffee and a lot of it to get me through this cooking

The Main Event:

A 22 lb turkey – I’ll be slathering a butter/dried wild mushroom mixture all over this beast, as well as under the skin directly on the meat
Chanterelle mushroom dressing
Candied yams – none of that canned stuff, oh no – actual yams, coated in butter and brown sugar
Green beans with bacon
Mashed potatoes
This amazing cranberry sauce, which combines fruit and booze – you can’t go wrong.
Rolls
Deviled eggs
All coated in a gravy made from those delicious turkey drippings.

Dessert:

Golden Delicious heirloom pumpkin pie
Irish apple tart

On Tap:

Ledger David’s Savignon Blanc
Wind Gap’s old vine Grenache
Sidonio D Sousa’s Espumante Brut Nature Special Cuvee, because you always need something bubbly
And lastly, my new favorite, what we’re calling The Fall Fling – read on for the recipe!

The Fall Fling
1/2 ounce of St Elizabeth Allspice Dram (or other allspice liquor)
1/2-1 ounce of bourbon
1 cup apple cider
1 squeeze of lemon
Ice

Combine all ingredients, shake and pour through a strainer, easy right? I garnished mine with cherries that have been soaking in bourbon (which are technically for Christmas, but REALLY freaking good), but you can pick any garnish you want.

cocktail

Mmmm…..This holiday is looking to be delicious! What are you all cooking and eating this year and what are you most grateful for?

All my best to you and yours,

Raina

 

Spice and Happiness With Demitri’s

There are a few things that I know-

  1. There’s nothing better than a sunny day in Seattle
  2. Happiness is a house full of friends gathering to cook, drink and chat while a herd of small children occupy themselves.
  3. A Bloody Mary and Margarita bar makes the first two things, well, even more perfect.

Recently, I had this trifecta come together perfectly when I gathered a few of my chef friends together. Our kids were antsy from all the rain and being cooped up indoors for way longer than any parent can handle. We had been craving a chance to get together with the need to celebrate the sunshine with a good cocktail (or two). I sent the solution in text form: “Come over to my house. Margaritas, Bloody Mary’s and steak tacos. I’ve got you covered”.

Like a moth to a flame (or an over tired parent to a chance at a break), my friends flocked. We laughed, as we ate salsa and guac – “Do you remember the days we used to hit Capitol Hill, and get a proper drink?” We all nodded, recalling our days at any of the local dive bars, before kids, long hours and the gentrification of our favorite haunts changed our social calendars. We paused, and before any of us could get out a grumble or mutter something that made us sound like one of our parents, I came to the rescue. Well, me and Demitri’s, and I started mixing up a storm.

Who is this Demitri’s and why should you stop what you’re doing and seek them out?  Demitri’s is a Seattle based purveyor of gourmet cocktail mixers founded by Demitri Pallis, who like most of us, was tired of inconsistent cocktails, so much so that he started making his own mixers. That’s right folks – when you can’t get what you want, you do it yourself. What started as a need 30 years ago, turned into a hail mary for those of us who just want a good cocktail without leaving home.

Why else? They aren’t just local, but actually in my neighborhood – I see them hiring my neighbors. That kind of community approach is important to me. Plus, they use ingredients I can actual pronounce, with organic options and for those of you in the need – there’s gluten-free options, too. Also, since I can never commit to one flavor of anything, they have me covered with a variety of mixers like original, chilies & peppers, extra horseradish, and chipotle habanero. Still not convinced? Two words: Pepperoni. Straws. YES – a meat straw, It’s perfect! Lastly, you can find them almost everywhere, and if you can’t locate them close by, Amazon carries them too!

mixer

I put together my garnish skewers in advance – combining olives, pepperoncini’s, pickled cauliflower, and pickled okra. I’ve added blocks of cheese in between the pickles – it’s up to you, although a cube of blue cheese goes SO well with the extra horseradish mixer.  I also coated my glasses in advance with Bacon Salt Rimshot – their rim salt, to cut down the amount of waiting we’d need before enjoying.

pickled vegetables

 

Momma’s Bloody Mary
We made ours to order, so this recipe makes 1

8 ounces tomato or vegetable juice
1 teaspoon Demitri’s mixer (more if you like a stronger flavor)
1-2 ounces vodka (or an equal amount of tequila for a Bloody Maria)
Juice of a quarter of a lime
A few cubes of ice

The key to this is make sure your ingredients are all chilled in advance, there’s nothing worse than a warm cocktail. Mix all ingredients up, and pour into your glass, add in the pepperoni straw and your garnish. Stir, sip, nibble. It’s super simple!

cocktail guacamole salsa bloody mary

Since I know that once the Mary’s are gone, you’ll need something a little sweet, I have you covered there too.

Tangerine Dream Margaritas
Makes 4

2 cups fresh squeezed tangerine juice (approximately 8 tangerines)
6-8 ounces tequila
16 ounces of Demitri’s Organic Traditional Margarita Mixer
Juice of 2 limes
4 glasses, rims coated with Demitri’s Pomegranate Pineapple Lime Margarita Rim Shot (y’all need this stuff)
Garnish with tequila and chili powder marinated pineapple chunks (see below).

Spicy, Boozy Pineapple.
My pal Lauren came waltzing into my kitchen, eyes sparkling, like they do when she’s done something amazing. She held up a jar of something swimming in clear liquid and spices. “Here”, she said, “Smell!”. It was sweet, spicy, pungent and just what our cocktails needed. She had cored and diced a small pineapple, popped the pieces into a mason jar, added a 1/4 tsp of Tajin (a spice blend of salt, chili powder and dehydrated lime that you often find on grilled street corn), topped that whole thing with tequila and let it marinate. When you’re ready to use it, pull out a piece of pineapple and skewer it.

Combine all ingredients in a pitcher, pour equally into the 4 glasses. For your lushier pals, you can float some of that spicy tequila you used to marinate those pineapple pieces on top for an extra kick. Go on, we won’t judge you.

Sit back, sip and smile – You’re welcome.

cocktailtequila

 

So there you go! Easy, right? The great thing about those mixers? You don’t need to use them solely for cocktails. The chipotle habanero was an awesome addition to a marinade for the asada I used for my tacos. Two teaspoons of mixer, a 1/4 cup of red wine vinegar, a drizzle of oil a pinch of salt and a tablespoon of cumin and I was good to go. It’s truly versatile.

Of course, the disclaimer! I did receive compensation for this post – that being said, I will never recommend any product that I do not wholeheartedly trust and enjoy. Additionally, I may receive compensation through affiliate links, which keeps me in bacon and happiness.

Yours in your momma happiness, fueled by some pretty darned amazing cocktails,

Raina