Category: Sweet Vermouth

Mexican Manhattan

In the past, I have not been entirely complimentary about Cantina, by Paul Wilson.  This cocktail may change all that because it is DE-LIC-OUS!!!  The Mexican Manhattan may just be my new favourite cocktail!  I’m not sure if I am sad or glad that I am currently in the middle of Feb Fast.  If I wasn’t off the booze, I imagine I would by now have had many more than the one I have had.  My tastebuds are weeping, my liver is cheering.  I think it’s probably a draw!

Mexixan Manhattan2

The Mexican Manhattan cocktail combines the vanilla and spice flavours of anejo tequila with the sweet / tartness of Cherry Heering and the bittersweet of Sweet Vermouth to produce a cocktail that is complex and delicious. I think this is a cocktail to savour over an hour or so in order to really enjoy the flavour and aroma!

Mexican Manhattan3

The traditional garnish for a Manhattan and this Mexican Manhattan is a maraschino cherry.  I thought I had a jar of these in the fridge however when I checked?  Nada. Luckily, I had some candied kumquats in the fridge so I subbed these in.  I really enjoyed the citrussy element this brought to the cocktail.  If you are making it, however, feel free to use the more traditional cherry.

 

Cantina Update

My aim this year is to cook through the recipes I have left in Cantina, which at last count was 30.

I have made this cocktail and a slightly dumbed-down version of the Street Style Tostadas with Seared Tuna and Wood -Grilled Vegetables with a Finger lime crema. ( My veggies were grilled on the grill and my limes were of the non-finger variety.) This was however totally delicious!

Tuna Tostada

I have the following left to cook:

Eggs and Breakfast

  • Pistachio and Spiked Chocolate Hotcakes with Raspberry Crema.  I will probably make this as a dessert as I am not a huge fan of a sweet breakfast.

Masa Delicacies and Street Food

  • Street Corn with Goat’s Crema and Black Olives
  • Street Corn with Truffled Crema and Truffle Cheese
  • Mr Wilson’s Fish Tacos with Slaw and Two Sauces
  • Soft-Shell Crab Tacos with Guacamole, Shaved Fennel and Sweetcorn Salad

Soups

  • Ranchero Style Beef Broth.  This one has been on and off the list at least a dozen times.  I have decided not to make the accompanying Bone Marrow and Chimichurri Toast because whilst it sounds delicious, I feel it would make the dish too complicated.

Fish and Seafood

  • Dory Pescado Asado.  This is probably next on my list to cook.
  • Prawn Cazuela Veracruz
  • Soft-Shell Crabs al Pastor

Meat, Moles and Barbecue

  • Blood Orange and Avocado Salsa – you might be wondering why this is in the meat section.  It was meant to accompany a chicken dish which I did not like the sound of.  The salsa?  Sounds awesome!
  • Lamb Belly Ribs with Pomegranate and Flor De Jamaica
  • Low and Slow Beef Short Ribs with Cerveza Caramelised Onions
  • Glazed Mexican Spiced Lamb Chops with Ancient Grains and Pickles
  • Goat Barbecoa with Green Mole and Green Rice

Ancient Grains and Vegetables

  • Kale Caesar
  • Charred Broccoli with Salsa Mexicana

Desserts

  • Coconut Panna Cotta with Napa Style Strawberry and Mango Salad – I was going to make it this weekend but I realised that Napa Style means it has wine in it.  It would be a bit too tempting to have to open a bottle of Pinot Noir, which is my favourite red when I am trying to not drink!
  • Coffee and Tequila Creme Caramel.  This may come off the list.  It requires a spendy coffee flavoured tequila which I can’t justify buying in this, my year of frugality!
  • Pistachio Chocolate Souffle with Dulce De Leche Ice Cream
  • Salted Caramel Ice Cream Churros Tacos

Drinks

  • Rosella Royale.  This contains something called Pulque.  I have no idea what it is or if I can find it.  It may come off the list.
  • Tijuana Sunset
  • Frozen Lychee Margarita

So that means I only have 23 recipes left to cook!  Which seems do-able in 10 and a half months but  I know how complicated some of these recipes are…I’ll check back in again next month.

 

Mexixan Manhattan5

If you would like to join me in cooking any of these, the book is Cantina by Paul Wilson.

 

Have a great week!

The Salty Gin Hound

As you may already know, in our family we have a scent hound, Lulu and a half greyhound, Oscar.

Oscar Lulu 2

And now we have a third.  Welcome the Salty Gin Hound!

Salty Gin Hound

Mmmmm….the 6 week no alcohol challenge is over.  Welcome  back booze!   Possibly.  To be honest, I think having that break has changed the way I feel about alcohol and certainly the way that I want to re-engage back with it.  Oh, and we went to the dog beach, so whilst I prattle on about my six weeks of ahem “no” boozing whilst I sip my Salty Gin Hound, how about I show you some photos of our day at the beach?Dog Beach 280220162

The challenge was a lot easier to do than I thought it would be – I did take Valentine’s Day weekend off and I had the wine I spoke about last week which were both good breaks.  The February Fast website says that quitting alcohol can help you to increase focus, sleep better and lose weight. I  experienced all of that albeit not nearly as much weight loss as I would have liked  – primarily due to a dodgy foot that has limited my ability to go to the gym.

Dog Beach 280220163I felt really good not drinking – fitter, healthier, more focussed.  Having said that, I think it also made me a bit more moody.  I think feeling more in control of myself made me less tolerant towards people around me acting like dicks – whether they were drinking or not.  I feel it also made me a bit more introspective – which, you know,  it’s not like I wasn’t already halfway there to start off with!

I also really started to think a lot more about events from my past and try to resolve a few unanswered questions.  For instance, I spent way too many hours thinking about my first boyfriend, the one I spoke about in the Valentine’s Day post – why did he dump me?  How has that impacted the rest of my life and the choices I have made since then?  Etc, etc.  Ad nauseam.   It’s not like I came to any life changing (or even just any) conclusions about any of the things I was navel gazing about.  Except maybe that I’m ok with not knowing and I am totally ok with the way things have turned out.

Dog Beach 5Another thing I noticed after the sneaky vinos with my friend Aiden was how much alcohol can depress me.  Not in a way that makes me sad or maudling but just sucks my energy and motivation.  That evening I was like a zombie.  I had no energy or drive to do anything except veg out in front of the tv.  Not that I am averse to vegging out in front of the tv but I guess I want to do that when I choose to not because I can’t be arsed to so anything else.

Dog Beach 6

Another benefit was that we returned to one of our favourite  restaurants.  It is an Indian/Pakistani restaurant which, last year decided to become an alcohol free zone.  I  like to have a glass of wine when I go out for a meal; I think it helps to add to the ambience and the enjoyment of the meal, so we had not been there for some time.  Not drinking was the perfect opportunity to head back there for some of the best tandoori in Melbourne.

Dog Beach 7One of the tough points for me was cooking. Particularly on the weekend, if  I need to add some wine to a sauce or something, I will generally pour a glass for me.  Then we would have a glass or two with our meal.  Not pouring that “glass for the cook” was really hard the first few times!

Socially was also hard. Going out for meals or even to people’s houses for a meal. There was one evening we went to my mum’s and everyone else had a glass of wine with their meal and I had a Fanta, like a six year old.  Othertimes, I felt like I had to explain why I wasn’t drinking.

Next time maybe I’ll be cooler about it.

Dog Beach 10Because there will be a next time.  The benefits far outweighed the negatives.  I’m thinking I might do a four- six week stint every season.

Oscar & Lulu Dog BeachYou might  be wondering why, given the obvious benefits why I am not quitting altogether.  One reason is that I do enjoy the social aspect and I love doing the research and making the cocktails for history happy hour.

However, I think that I will be a lot more mindful about how I drink from here on in.

Dog Beach 17

Speaking of which….let’s talk about the Salty Gin Hound!

Gin, grapefruit juice and lemon with a splash of sweet vermouth!  Yum!  That is the Gin Hound.

Dog Beach 50

I had an awesome merlot salt which I used to rim the glass making it a Salty Gin Hound.  I also increased the lemon from the initial recipe, just cos that’s how I like it.

Dog Beach 19The Salty Gin Hound was delicious.  Just the right blend of sweet, salty, bitter.  So refreshing for a hot summer day!   It would have been perfect down at the beach with that tang of salt air on the breeze.

And speaking of salty hounds…we had the two schnooziest of schnoozers on the way home.  So tired after so much fun!

Dog Beach 20Salty Gin Hound 2Salty Gin hound 4

Print

Salty Gin Hound

Ingredients

Scale
  • 3/4 cup fresh squeezed grapefruit juice
  • 2 tablespoon lemon Juice
  • 4 ounces gin
  • 1 ounce sweet vermouth
  • Vintage Merlot or other salt to rim the glass

Instructions

  1. Sprinkle the salt on a plate.
  2. Wipe the rim of your cocktail glass with the lemon rind.
  3. Swirl into the salt to rim.
  4. Fill a cocktail shaker with ice.
  5. Add the gin, lemon and grapefruit juices.
  6. Shake, baby, shake.
  7. Pour over ice.
  8. Add a splash of sweet vermouth.
  9. Enjoy!

Have a wonderful week!

Signature 1 Vintage Valentine Quick as Wink2