A Drink and a Smoke

I spent some time on Difford's Guide Friday afternoon looking for recipes that would help me use up a bottle of Pimm's No. 1.  It's not that I don't like Pimm's (actually it's pretty tasty, if a bit tame), it's just that it isn't that handy - that bottle is taking up precious real-estate on my bar that could be better occupied by any number of spirits or liqueurs.  In the process, I came across a recipe for the Breakfast Club cocktail.  The original calls for cold lapsang souchong (a smoked black tea), white rum, honey, and orange marmalade.  Lacking white rum and still possessing a bottle of quince syrup, I modified the recipe a bit to suit my pantry.

A Drink and a Smoke
Shake and strain:
3 oz. aged rum
1.5 oz. cold lapsang souchong tea
1/2 ounce quince syrup

The smokiness of the tea works beautifully with the aged rum, Barbancourt 3-star in this case.  The overall reduction in ABV and and the sweetness of the quince syrup bring out the vanilla flavors in the spirit.  This is perfect cocktail for someone who doesn't want anything too boozy.  While the smokiness of the tea and the viscosity of the quince syrup make this a wonderful winter cocktail, but I could drink these all summer served tall over ice.

Vin d'Orange

Lillet is a French, wine-based aperitif which I have never had the pleasure of tasting.  So, when I saw a recipe for vin d'orange - a supposedly Lillet-like infusion of wine, citrus, and spices - posted on Serious Eats, I filed it away for safe keeping.  Star.  Keep as Unread. Never got around to it.

When another vin d'orange recipe appeared on Imbibe, it really lit a fire under me.  After a vanilla-bean-, meyer-lemon-, and navel-orange-laden trip to Costco, I was on my way.  I had also recently purchased a case of budget-friendly, but slightly over the hill white and rose wines, so I had everything I needed.

I know a lot of time is spent talking about how important it is to use fresh, high-quality quality ingredients.  Not this time.  I used a vanilla bean leftover from roasting pears and the wine was not one I would generally serve to guests.  Regardless, the final product was delicious and a big hit out our recent Ottolenghi dinner - another story altogether.

Vin d'Orange
Place in a large jar, and let sit, covered, one week in a cool and dark place:
1 bottle dry rose wine
1 meyer lemon, quartered
2 navel oranges, quartered
1/2 cup vodka
1/2 cup sugar
1 cinnamon stick
1/2 vanilla bean
Strain after infusing.  Drink chilled.

UPDATE: works great in a Twentieth Century.

Spiced Pear Martini with Core Vodka

Still playing around with last night's pear puree, so I turned to my last few drops of Core vodka, figuring the apples and pears would play nicely together.  Core is distilled from 100% Hudson Valley apples - we picked up a small bottle when we were there in September.  I'm not generally a vodka enthusiast, but Core is a great product.  It's a little hot, but wonderfully viscous and somehow tastes more like caramel apples than fresh fruit.

Spiced Pear Martini
Shake and strain:
3 oz. Core Vodka
1 oz. Martini and Rossi Biano Vermouth
1/2  oz. spiced pear puree

Good drink - the caramel flavors in the vodka works well with the spices in the puree.  A touch of acid and maybe some Peychaud's bitters next time, but definitely something worth making again in the fall or winter.

Pear Puree and Spiced Pear Punch

My father bought me a case of Royal Riviera pears for Hannukah.  Well, lucky for me, Harry and David made a mistake and and shipped my gift twice.  That meant twice as many absolutely delicious pears, but it was more than the wife and I could finish.  So, in need of a project, I opened up the November/December 2010 issue of Imbibe and made the pear puree and a modified spiced pear punch.

For the puree:
Peel, halve and core 5 pears (I used a mix of red anjou and Royal Riviera), and place in a small roasting pan. 
Add 8 star anise,
12 cloves,
6 cinnamon sticks,
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise and seeds scraped,
4 tbsp sugar,
1/4 c. apple brandy, and
1/4 c. rhum agricole. 
Roast 30 minutes at 350. 
Remove spices and puree.

For the punch (modified for a single serving and to suit what I had at home):
Shake and strain-
1 shot Laird's 7 1/2 year apple brandy
1 shot Bokma genever
1/2 shot Amaretto di Amore
1 shot Yogev Cab/Zin Rose
1 shot pear puree
1/2 shot lemon juice

Punch was very good - apple brandy and genever mix surprisingly well.  Original calls for prosecco, which probably would have been better.

Another use to consider: pear bellini.