No matter where in the world you live I’m sure by now you’ve heard the gleeful cries of us north westerners basking in the unseasonable warmth. It seems, for a time, we’ve skipped spring and moved right into summer. The kiddie pools have broken their winter hibernation, as have the bbq’s and picnic tables. Last night we even welcomed in s’more season with the neighbors as we all huddled around roasting marshmallows on bamboo skewers over our little Weber. I don’t think I’ve ever eaten a s’more before July. And the most exciting part about this sun, at least for Baron, is Lemonade season. We have a giant bag of lemons waiting to be squeezed and our little stand is nearly ready for customers.

For me the sun is a revival in energy, warming hope and the thawing of the winter months that color my mood, as well as the sky, a sort of dull, hopeless hue.

I feel silly gushing about the weather on a blog post but 84 degrees in May calls for a bit of gushing. But for now let’s quit with the talk of weather and gush about rhubarb floats. If you’ve seen my instagram feed recently you probably have noticed that I’m a little obsessed with rhubarb syrup these days. There were rhubarb italian sodas, rhubarb sours (for the book), mojitos and just a simple soda with lime. It’s the warming floral flavor that to me is the fragrance of spring, mixed with a gentle spice and softened with vanilla bean. It’s the sun that inspired the scoop of vanilla ice cream. For now, I’m retiring root beer and demanding all my floats are of the rhubarb variety.

Spiced Rhubarb Syrup

Of all the many wonderful uses of rhubarb this syrup remains my favorite. It’s a fridge staple all through spring as it easily becomes the base for numerous cocktails, sodas and now ice cream floats. I love the warmth the spice brings but just rhubarb alone is great too. Feel free to play around with the add-ins. I’ve also added citrus peel into the mix with great results. 

4 cups/1 pound/ 450 g chopped rhubarb

1 cup + 1 tablespoon/ 8 ounces/ 230 g sugar

2 cups/ 1 pound/ 450 grams water

1 vanilla bean (optional)

1 cinnamon stick

3-5 cardamom pods, lightly crushed

1/4 teaspoon fresh ground nutmeg

Combine all the ingredients in a sauce pan and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat slightly so the mixture continues to boil gently. Boil for 15 minutes or until the mixture is reduced by nearly half. The rhubarb will break down and the liquid will get syrupy. Remove the pan from the heat and let the syrup cool.

When cool, strain out the rhubarb. Save the rhubarb mash to add to yogurt, on top of ice cream or oatmeal.

Rhubarb syrup will keep covered in the fridge for two weeks.

 For the float

These measurements are rough as it’s all a matter of taste. Adjust how you’d like. I kept on meaning to muddle strawberries with the syrup before adding the club soda and ice cream but got too excited that I forgot. Perhaps you’ll remember. Or imagine using strawberry ice cream or even coconut sorbet. So many floats to be had.

1/8 – 1/4 cup rhubarb syrup (recipe above)

1/2 cup club soda

1 scoop vanilla ice cream

Add the syrup to a glass. To that add a scoop of ice cream and finish with club soda. Serve with a spoon and a straw.

*The straws in the photos are glass and I’m in love with them. The kind people at Glass Dharma sent me a few different sizes but these little cocktail straws are my favorite. Check them out.

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We’re nearing the end of our time in California but before we left I had to share with you a bit of the citrus-inspired cocktails we’ve been sipping while here.

First there’s the perfected Whiskey Sour that my dad has been working on ever since they came to Palm Desert and became the proud owners of a booming lemon tree. The branches hang heavy with large fruit so, in order to ease their load, I pluck the biggest lemons and walk a few feet from the trunk into the kitchen. One of these lemons provides more than enough juice for one Sour. This classic cocktail goes down easy when mixed with smokey whiskey and a bit of simple syrup.

The next cocktail comes from the grapefruit tree resting comfortably in between the neighbor’s house and my parent’s. Being from Washington I’m used to seeing trees loaded with apples but for me citrus is only available in the grocery store. I will buy the little oranges with their leaves still attached just to feel more connected to its origin. Now I find myself contemplating leaving my clothes and stuffing my suitcase with all the citrus I’ve picked. The first to get tucked into the case would be the grapefruit. I had little hope for them as I reached to grab one from the tree and felt a tough skin with little give. But as I cut into the bright yellow exterior the inside glowed a soft pink, the juice ran freely and the sweetness overwhelmed. I take it as a sign that I’ve reached adulthood now that I now longer take my grapefruit with sugar covering its entire surface. Or maybe I just needed to have great grapefruit. My next thought was tequila and then the grapefruit margarita was born.

In two short days we’ll be back to the rain and cold and back to driving to the store for my citrus fix but I think I’ve consumed enough vitamin C (and tequila) to keep me satisfied for quite some time.

Whiskey Sour

This is the recipe my dad came up with after trying many variations. He doesn’t use the best whiskey, the sugar in his simple syrup isn’t fully dissolved and he rarely measures and yet, it’s one of the best cocktails I’ve had. Nice work, dad. 

1 part whiskey

1 part simple syrup

1/2 part fresh lemon juice

Combine this all in a martini glass with crushed ice. Garnish with sliced lemon or a twirl of the peel.

My dad thinks they are best served with a good cigar (or a cheap one, he adds).

Grapefruit Margarita

1 part grapefruit juice

1 part tequila

1/2 part Cointreau

Salt the rim of a margarita glass and add the ingredients. Stir and then add ice. Garnish with a thin slice of grapefruit.

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The calendar marches on with great force even though I’m continually urging it to slow down. Unfortunately my pleas go unnoticed but I assure you you still have time to gift your family, friends or yourself with homemade bitters.

Last week I taught a room full of eager students how to make bitters. We all hudled around a table cluttered with little jars of infusions and with droppers in hand, each descended on various ingredients to create a custom blend of herbs and spices for the purpose of elevating their cocktails. There was cardamom, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg. Citrus, in all its various shades, sat next to dried cherry and raisin. Wormwood and Orris root provided some bitterness while vanilla, coffee and cocoa nib rounded it out. They smelled and tasted, added a few more ingredients and tasted again until they thought it perfect. They tested their final concoction with a simple champagne cocktail in which a sugar cube is drenched in bitters – classically Angostura, but tonight their own – then topped with champagne.

So let’s get right down to it because like I said, there’s not much time.

A bitters is essentially an alcoholic liquid flavored with different herb, spice and dried fruit infusions. Bitters are used in cocktail making as a way of creating a lovely, subtle additional layer of flavor. I once heard them described as “the salt of the cocktail” which I think helps to understand their value in a great cocktail.

The first step in making bitters at home is to make a variety of infusions. I like to make the infusions separately as opposed to mixing all the ingredients in one container of vodka (use a high-proof and odorless alcohol – I used a 100 proof vodka) because different ingredients take longer or shorter to infuse with the alcohol. Plus, I like feeling like a chemist and having a the fun of making dozens of different types of bitters. This is great for making gifts for the holidays or would make a great activity for a cocktail party.

So gather a variety of herbs, spices, dried fruit, etc. Most ingredients can be found at the grocery store – particularly in the bulk section. Some of the more exotic roots I ordered from a company called Mountain Rose Herbs. The roots are used to give the bitters – as the name suggests – a bitter taste. Dried citrus peel also adds bitterness so if you are wanting this for the holiday and don’t have time to order the roots, or simply don’t want to deal with it, just be sure to infuse some dried citrus peel so you’ll have that bitter component.

Add about a teaspoon of your ingredient to 4 ounces of vodka. If you are pressed for time you can add more of the spice or herb to speed up the process although this will taste different than a longer infusion would.

Cover the infusion tightly and set aside.

Knowing when the infusion is ready is really a job for your nose. You’ll notice a color change in the vodka almost immediately. As the days move on continually open the container and smell your infusion. When fully infused the vodka will smell strongly of the herb or spice and will taste heavily of that ingredient. For herbs and spices this will take about 7-10 days. If you are using dried fruit expect to let it sit for 2-3 weeks.

Once the infusions taste as you want them too you are ready to make bitters. Simply strain out the infused ingredients using a clean fine mesh sieve or cheesecloth. Replace the strained infusions back into their jars and begin mixing. Make sure everything you use in this process is very clean and sterilized.

Fill ⅓ of a small dropper bottle with distilled water. Using a pipet choose a selection of several infusions. If you want your bitters to be heavy in one infusion then add a whole pipet or two (roughly 1 tablespoon). The lesser flavors you want should only be added by a few drops.

I think it works best if you have a certain type of alcohol or cocktail in mind when creating the bitters. For example, my first adventure into bittering (pretty sure that’s not a word but it quite possibly should be) I had pear brandy on my mind so I created a bitters that was heavy in cinnamon, rosemary, nutmeg and juniper. There were other ingredients in there as well, as most bitters have somewhere between 10 – 30 different ingredients, but they were less pronounced.

And since we are making an accessory for cocktails I thought I’d also share with you a cocktail that needs some accessorizing.

Happy Bittering!

Champagne Cocktail
from the Metropolitan Hotel, New York City circa 1935

1 cube sugar
bitters (classically Angostura)
chilled champagne

Soak sugar cube with a couple of good splashes of bitters and set in the bottom of a large champagne flute.

Fill slowly with sparkling wine.

Garnish with a lemon twist.

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Check out these other great resources on making your own bitters:

Adventures in Cooking: DIY Bitters

Bitters and Twisted

Food and Wine: How to Make Bitters

Reclaiming Provencial: Homemade Bitters

And if you find yourself with time in Portland take a class from Mark Bitterman at The Meadow – seriously.

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A complete list the infusions I made:

Cinnamon, nutmeg, rosemary, coriander, cardamom, coffee, cocoa nib, vanilla, wormwood, orris root, qassia bark, ginger, juniper, allspice, red chile, black pepper, celery seed, dried orange peel, dried lemon peel, dried lime peel, raisin, dried cherry,

And a few supplies:

Pipettes 3ml, Gradulated, Pack of 100

Amber Glass Bottle 4oz W/glass Dropper

Ball Quilted Jelly Canning Jar 4 Oz., Case of 12

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I’m filled with an eager excitement thinking on all the things I want to do, see and accomplish this time of year: Twinkling lights of red, green, blue and yellow to be seen while drinking hot chocolate. Gifts to be bought and gifts to be made. Cookies to be enjoyed and vegetables eaten to balance it all. Then there’s the great responsibility and joy of trying to teach the kids that even though there are lists to be made and there will be gifts for them that that is not really what this time of year is about. So we bring cookies to the neighbors, read stories, build tradition and try the best we can.

All of this in the midst of teaching classes, creating cookie recipes, and putting dinner on the table. It’s busy – particularly last week, which is why you didn’t see much of me around here.

In the midst of all the chaos there have been little pockets of quiet and rest – moments that mark this season as my favorite. Nestled next to a blazing fire, a towering pine scented tree casts a gentle shadow on the book I’m reading (Jane Eyre – so perfect for this season). I sit across from a dear friend as she pushes fabric through the sewing machine casting perfectly lined up stitches as she works on a present for a friend. I put my book down and cut out a stocking pattern from soft flannel in red, black and gold lines intersecting throughout. We each take warming sips of Hot Buttered Rum in between stitches and cuts.

Before we set out to work on our projects she creamed butter and brown sugar together along with a few spices that are no stranger to this time of year. I tried not to notice the amount of butter and sugar actually going into the recipe. This was my first Hot Buttered Rum and nothing was going to spoil it.

Once combined a spoonful of the mixture went into our mugs. Rum covered, then hot water poured on top releasing the scent of cinnamon and nutmeg under its heat. The butter melted and the sugar dissolved as we stirred briskly.

Since then there have been more Hot Buttered Rum, in fact in my freezer there is a roll of the butter, sugar and spice mixture should the craving suddenly hit for this comforting cocktail – after an evening of viewing Christmas lights, perhaps? Or while wrapping gifts, opening up another window on the advent calendar or while eagerly anticipating the season’s first snow. I’m sure I’ll manage to think of many more reasons to pull out that sweet, spiced butter and start the kettle boiling throughout the season.

Hot Buttered Rum

adapted from Emeril Lagasse

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon cardamom

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1 stick unsalted butter, soft

2 cup dark brown sugar

Cream together the butter, spices and sugar. At this point you can roll up the mixture with parchment into a log. Cover well and refrigerate or freeze for later use. In the fridge the mixture will keep for two weeks, in the freezer a couple of months.

In a mug add a tablespoon of the butter and sugar mixture (the original recipe called for 2 tablespoons but we found 1 was great). Top with a couple ounces of rum and roughly 1/2 cup of hot water. The ratio of the ingredients is really preference.

If possible, enjoy this cocktail near an open fire.

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I have one last suggestion for you to complete your Thanksgiving meal. And I do believe it’s a good one, dare I say I saved the best for last?

It’s time we talk about your Thanksgiving cocktail. Now there are a couple ways you can go about this: If your family is like mine Thanksgiving beverages are nearly as traditional as the marshmallow topped sweet potatoes – red wine with my family, while sparkling cider is the drink of choice with Gabe’s family. With the meal drinks set this could be the cocktail that greets your guests as they pluck a few baby carrots off the vegetable platter or (and this is my favorite idea) this is the cocktail you enjoy while sliding the turkey into the oven. It’s the cocktail you sip in between stirrings of the mashed potatoes or tastes of the gravy. It’s what you are drinking as you set the last fork and stand back to marvel the scene. This is the cook’s cocktail.

Cider punch is the ideal cocktail for the busy cook as there are only two ingredients plus a couple flourishes if you so desire (and I do). While the turkey roasts and the potatoes boil pour an ounce or two of rum into a glass. Top that with apple cider (I like one part rum to four parts apple cider). You could have it over ice or warm the cider – the choice is left to the cook. Top with a touch a of cinnamon and nutmeg. If you happen to have some bitters a few drops really makes the cook quite happy, especially if your bitters, like mine are heady with cinnamon and rosemary and little wisps of clove, cardamom and orange.

If you don’t have bitters and are interested in making your own I just so happen to be teaching at class in Seattle, December 6. We will be making an assortment of gifts from the kitchen including homemade bitters. In fact today I made nearly 20 different infusions for class. (Pretty slick how I just slid that class plug right in there, huh? Sorry, I really do not like that sort of thing but I promised I would and I’m quite excited about this class.

If you aren’t in Seattle I’m thinking I just may put a post up here about the process so you won’t miss out on all the fun. I don’t claim to be a bitters expert but I do claim to be pretty darn excited to have a collection of my own bitters and I’m even more excited to be teaching you all how make your own.

Cheers and happy cooking!

*This simple cocktail was inspired by something I drank at Skillet Diner. Go there. Really.

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