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National Daiquiri Day

partysugar — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 02:03:23 -0700

According to the generally accepted legend, in 1905 a mining engineer named Jennings Cox landed on the shores of a Cuban beach called Daiquiri. When he ran out of gin while entertaining fellow Americans, Cox invented the daiquiri. He had an abundant supply of rum, sugar, and limes and the drink was an invention of necessity. The daiquiri stayed local until a US Navy medical officer introduced it to Washington DC's army and navy clubs. Later, the drink was highly popularized by Earnest Hemingway who enjoyed the cocktail with twice as much rum at the famous Cuban bar, El Flordita. Rumor has it that he once consumed 16 daiquiris in one sitting! To make a classic daiquiri - it is National Daiquiri day! - read more

Classic Daiquiri
From Epicurious
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2 ounces light rum
1 ounce plus one teaspoon fresh lime juice
1/2 ounce simple syrup or superfine sugar

In cocktail shaker filled with ice, combine rum, lime juice, and simple syrup. Shake vigorously, then strain into cocktail glass.

Makes 1.

Print recipe with images | without images

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Frozen Blended Drinks: Love Them or Leave Them?

partysugar — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 04:00:18 -0700

I'm a fan of just about every type of cocktail, be it a tiki drink, modern classic, or wine-based concoction. However, I'm not too crazy for frozen cocktails like blended margaritas and strawberry daiquiris.

Sure, I enjoy the occasional piña colada poolside, but when it comes to frozen drinks, I normally stay away. They're sugary, too filling, and brain-freeze inducing.

How do you feel about them?

Source: Flickr User Cillian Storm

Must-Read: Market-Fresh Mixology

YumSugar — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 03:30:22 -0700

Regardless of whether or not we're in the midst of a food revolution, it's undeniable that over the last couple of years, cuisine highlighting fresh-picked produce has gained major ground. In fact, the principles of seasonality and slow food aren't just being applied to food. They're also key in what The New York Times calls the "farm-to-glass movement," where drinks are driven by produce at the peak of the season. If you aren't too familiar with the liquid locavore movement, one new book, Market-Fresh Mixology ($12.21), shows you the ropes. Learn whether it's worth seeking out when you read more.
Pros:

"Tool box" sidebar tells you what equipment you'll need to make each drink.
Introductory chapter primes you on tools of the trade, glassware, and essential bar ingredients.
Classic cocktail recipes include fun tidbits on the history of the cocktail.

Cons:

Some ingredients and garnishes - like gooseberries, juniper berries, and pumpkin liqueur - could potentially be hard to find.
Steps are listed in paragraph form rather than numbered.

Recipes: Depending on how experimental your palate is, some sippers - like the Carrot Chic, Spiced Beet Cocktail, and Fennel Cocktail - may be truly adventurous or a bit too exotic for you. Other eye-catching recipes:

Rhubarb Strawberry Collins
Fresh Strawberry Daiquiri
Kiwi Champagne
Fresh Tomato Bloody Mary
Homemade Cocktail Onions
Papaya Pisco Sour
Blueberry Lavender Mojito

Imagery: Most of the cocktails included in the book are accompanied by vivid, crisp photos.

Overall Rating: If you like to make cocktails at home and appreciate the farm-to-table philosophy, then this book would be right up your alley.

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Food Network Awards - I Somehow Managed to Sit Through The Whole Thing

YumSugar — Mon, 16 Apr 2007 10:48:41 -0700

Ladies and Gents, were you as disappointed in the Food Network Awards as I was? For having all those big personalities, it was pretty darn dull, don't you think? This picture of Paula pretty much says it all. I had it on in the background, otherwise I don't know if I could have sat through the whole thing. Although, I must say, as much as I was dulled-to-death by it, I was not nearly as irritated as our pal Anthony Bourdain.

The production itself--above and beyond the witless, ill-considered, just-plain stupid "concept" of an Awards show where most of the "awards" went to inanimate objects (accepting the award for Best Comfort Food is...Macaroni and Cheese!!), appliances or cities (Portland's mayor wisely did not bother to show),--the production values--were lower than whale shit. The food styling during the "Best New Appliance" looked like some kind of 1960's themed monkey effluence, dying, soggy, butt-ugly.

And yes, I know, Bourdain's "I totally hate on Food TV" schtick is a little off-putting and old-hat to some, however I still love every scathing word of it.

Did you watch it? What did you think? Tell me about it in the comments! Oh and did anyone else notice that they used the same music that Top Model uses??

And finally, if you want to know who won the metal cake statuettes (even though most of the recipients are inanimate objects), or see more red carpet imagesread more

Here are the winners, visit Food Network for a full list of nominees

"Hot" Chocolate - Andrew Shotts - Garrison Confections
Delicious Destination - Portland, Oregon
Play With Your Food - Jell-O Artist Liz Hickok
Icy Innovations - Moobella Ice Cream
Tasty Technology - PoliScience Anti-Griddle
Delectable Delivery of the Year - Zingerman's Z-Club
Super Market - Wegmans
Better Burger - Burgerville
Edible Entrepreneur of the Year - Alicia Polak for Khaya Cookie Company
Viewer's Choice: Fave Food Combo - Burger & Fries
Viewer's Choice: Fave Classic Read - Green Eggs & Ham
Viewer's Choice: Best Ball Park Eats - Citizens Bank Park (Philadelphia)
Viewer's Choice: Kitchen Appliance You Can't Live Without - Microwave
Viewer's Choice: Fave Cool & Classic Cocktail - actually, I missed this one... anyone know? My guess is going to be be Margarita (choices were margarita, mojito, daiquiri & martini)
Share our Strength Humanitarian of the Year - Floyd Cardoz of Tabla (I must say this was the one interesting, if not totally different, part of the show. Floyd seemed genuinely touched)
Food Network Hall of Fame - Julia Child
Culinary Dream Come True - Matthew Finkel (and I thought it was also interesting how they made him think it was a competition, even though he was the only candidate. I also loved how Alton started to let his true feeling for the giant metal cake statuette slip through)

And that folks, was honestly a waste of my time... I wonder what they'll do differently next year, because you know there's going to be a next year...

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