Relaxed Weekend Meals: Friday

The past couple of weeks have been hectic for CW and me.  Consequently we decided that this past weekend was going to be a bit of "us" time, filled with nothing but relaxing together and spending some time getting massages, catching up on DVR, and of course, eating comfortable, easy to prepare, meals at home.

Friday night I was exhausted.  Luckily, my wife, CW, remembered that we had a bunch of leftover mixed greens and some white beans from a few days prior.  She was able to put together a nice little salad for us using them, along with the leftover radicchio, red peppers, mixed herbs, and Parmesan vinaigrette we had from The Meal that Inspired the Blog.  The result was quite appetizing to look at and tasty to eat. 

Naturally, the end of a hard week of work deserves appropriate liquid compensation.  While CW worked on the salad, I whipped up a little sipper using a grapefruit from our backyard tree and some distilled favorites we keep at the ready.   Recipe makes 2 cocktails:

LBW's Ginger-Grapefruit Sipper

4 ounces Vodka
1.5 ounces Ginger Liquor
4-6 dashes Orange Bitters
Juice of One Grapefruit **

Combine  in shaker with ice, shake vigorously, pour strained over ice.

** this was a small-medium sized grapefruit, for a really big grapefruit, may only need half of it


This first sipper was just the right cocktail to enjoy on a summer night with a light meal.  The grapefruit keeps it light and refreshing, while the ginger adds a touch of sweetness and spice, making a potentially sour drink more palatable.  Orange bitters added a bit of that tongue-puckering sensation that I usually describe as making a drink feel "more adult."  I realize that means nothing in terms of actually describing what it tastes like, but I don't really know what bitters tastes like.  What I do know, is that adding some bitters to citrus based cocktails makes the flavor a bit more "serious" and less fruity/sweet.   Through the years, I have found my taste changing so that I prefer dryer and less obviously sweet drinks; I think that bitters helps in this regard.

After dinner we were in the mood to continue our (still early - we act really old most nights) evening with another tasty sipper.  Note that I will often refer to cocktails as "sippers", which is kind of an inside joke between CW and me.  My wife started referring to them as sippers some time ago, which ends up being a misnomer in many cases, as CW has a recurring pattern of drinking things very quickly when they taste good.  It used to be that a straw was a prerequisite for her drinking quickly, but happily her skills have advanced to the point that all she needs is decent flavor and ethanol.  That combination doesn't often last more than a few minutes.  Yes, we love our "sippers."

For this round I decided to use some limes that we had (cocktails usually stem from whatever fruit is the oldest and needs to be used the soonest)  I wanted to add in a bit of a different flavor so I used some Genever style gin, along with the staple vodka, lime juice, some triple sec for sweetness, and a splash of cranberry (after discovering it wasn't quite sweet enough)  Again, for 2 cocktails:

LBW's "Dutch Cosmo"

3 ounces Vodka
3/4 ounce Genever Style gin
1 ounce Triple Sec
Juice of One Lime
1 ounce Cranberry Juice

shake well over ice and strain over the rocks or in chilled martini glass.

** feel free to add a bit more triple sec or cranberry to your desired sweetness


This cocktail has some semblance to the Cosmo, but the Genever gin adds a flavor punch that can take a bit of getting used to.  I first tried Genever in Amesterdam, while on vacation there in 2002.  There, it is often served ice cold as a small shot.  I had largely forgotten about the spirit until earlier this year when CW and I were enjoying a drink at Craft and Commerce, near San Diego's Little Italy. We had a drink called the Dutch Flower, made with Genever, St. Germaine, Cointreau, lemon juice, and absinthe.  Already gin lovers, we decided to buy some genever gin and incorporate it into concoctions at home.  Bols Genever, an iconic Dutch brand, can be hard to find here, so we found a similar spirit called Anchor Genevieve Gin.  Our first trials using it as a gin substitute were a bit rough, as it is a harsher spirit, with less herbal juniper flavor.  Used in smaller ratios however, it can add an unexpected kick to your cocktails.

Don't recall much else from Friday night after the Dutch Cosmo, though I think that's more a product of going to sleep early rather than the drinks being too weighty.  They are sippers, after all.