Pimm's Cups

In which a friend of mine displays a Pimm's Cup of my creation

Greetings! I write this as Seattle experiences one of its heat waves, i.e. temperatures in the high 70s and low 80s. Last week, I made the alcoholic summer fruit cup Pimm's Cups for friends. I first learned of Pimm's Cups through Tanita S. Davis' historical fiction book Mare's War. If not for Tanita, I would still be shaking Ramos Gin Fizzes (and shaking, and shaking....)

 People's preferences for what actually goes into a Pimm's Cup differ greatly, though there is a consensus that one starts with Pimm's No. 1. Some people like the fizzy soda used to be lemon-based, while others prefer a ginger counterpoint. I am a fan of ginger beer.

 I've experimented with a number of different recipes to come up with a concoction that has delighted my summer guests thus far. Please feel free to add, modify, refute, hotly contest, or otherwise enrich the discussion of How To Make a Proper [Fill in the Blank With the Recipe of Your Choice].

 To make one Pimm's Cup as seen in the photo, you will need the following:

 1.5 ounces of Pimms' No. 1
.5 ounces Hendrick's gin (though other gin will work, too)
 2 ounces ginger beer
2 strawberries
1 orange wedge
1 slice of cucumber
borage flowers (optional, for garnish)
1 orange twist for garnish
1 English cucumber circle (for garnish)
ice
salt
mint leaves

Regarding the mint, I meant to use mint for muddling and for garnish, but alas, I forgot to add it. I was showing off by assembling the drink from memory.

 Directions for assembly:

1. Cut a length of orange peel (2-3 inches) and curl it around a bar spoon or something else that will give it the cork-screw curl... or not. If you do, be sure to prepare the garnish over the glass so that the glass catches the All Important Citrus Oils.

 2. Muddle the fruit and cucumber slice (plus 2 leaves of mint, if you are using it) in the glass in which you will serve the drink.

 3. Shake the alcoholic spirits with ice in a shaker until the liquid is cold.

 4. Pour the alcohol through a strainer into the glass with the muddled fruit.

 5. Add 2 ounces of chilled ginger beer, and mix.

 6. Cut a notch in the the cucumber circle, roll the edge in salt of a fine grain, and affix the cucumber to the side of the glass.

7. Add a few optional borage flowers to the mixture as a perky reminder that the drink started out with the beautiful bright blue flower as the garnish of choice before the cucumber showed up. 8. If you remembered the mint, add a perky sprig to the fruit cup. If you can't find Pimm's, here is a link that has a recipe to a Pimm's "cheater." I haven't tried it, but if you do, let me know how you like it.

40 Year Fizz

Half of a Ramos Gin Fizz recipe

I had a wonderful 40th birthday party organized by my husband and friends. My wish was to dress up and eat delicious appetizers with my friends. Just about everyone attended the party, and I was able to visit and talk with them. One friend revealed that her favorite drink was a Ramos Gin Fizz, which involves raw egg white*, orange blossom water**, lemon and lime juice, and other ingredients, all shaken for 12 minutes. Of course, my mixed-drink enthusiast friend had to make one on the spot. I had a sip, and was hooked. It's akin to drinking lemon meringue pie, only not as sweet.

 Master bartender/mixologist Chris McMillian shares the history and demonstrates the assembly of the drink here. I tried my hand at making the Ramos Gin Fizzes yesterday during our Easter brunch. (I skipped the cream, however.) There were times when I had to hand the shaker over to my husband or another guest in order to serve food, answer the phone, or simply take a break. I ended up making four servings, but fortunately, some people were willing to split a serving. The work and the wait were worth it.

*Read New York Times article Things Get Messy When Bartenders Crack an Egg, by Glen Collins.


**I have a bottle of orange blossom water that will last me years. I'm going to start cooking more from the dessert sections of my Middle Eastern Cookbooks.

St. Ninian's Day Ginger Muffins

I'm fascinated by legends of the saints in a similar vein to the Greek and Norse myths of the gods and goddesses. (I'm a fan-girl of both Athena and Hera, and had I been Paris presented with the golden apple, I would have had to employ stalling tactics.) The saints I like best are the obscure and apocryphal ones. Take St. Ninian, for example. He's a 4th or 5th century saint who was supposed to have been a missionary among the Pictish people of Scotland. Not much is known about him, but there are a lot of churches dedicated to him.

St. Ninian came to my attention today when a friend on Facebook announced he was making ginger muffins to commemorate the feast day.

"What do ginger muffins have to do with St. Ninian?" you might ask. It's a fair question. I am in favor of scrutiny and the scientific method, but when it comes to ginger muffins, I get a little distracted. My answer is that I have no idea, but I'm shameless enough to use the feast-day as a catalyst for the creation of ginger muffins.

You can the muffins today to celebrate being alive, or make them in the future to celebrate being alive another day. If you don't like ginger, you may like these muffins. Then again, you might be pleasantly surprised. For example, I generally don't care for eggplant outside of its baba ganouj disguise, but there is one restaurant in Seattle that makes grilled eggplant taste so good that I order it every time I'm there.

My friend modified the recipe from Evelyn Birge Vitz's A Continual Feast (about the original recipe, he wrote, "The results [were] penitential in nature --- dry and unappetizing") and I modified it further. Here's what I came up with:

Ginger Muffins

Whisk together:

2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon cardamom
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons dried ginger

In another bowl, whisk together:

3/4 cup milk (nondairy okay)
1/2 cup butter (ditto)
1/3 cup molasses
1/3 cup unrefined sugar
Optional: 2 teaspoons of ginger juice (because I had it on hand)

Mix wet with dry, and then stir in 1/2 cup chopped candied ginger. I used the kind that wasn't covered in sugar.

Pour into greased muffin tins and bake approx 20 minutes at 375 degrees Fahrenheit. I got 10 muffins out of this recipe, but I think I could stretch it to 12 next time.

Gluten Free Sweet Potato Muffins et al

I posted a Gluten Free Sweet Potato Spice Muffin recipe over at the Natural Kids blog. The muffins freeze well. Here are some other yummy gluten-free* items I've made recently from Gluten Free on a Shoestring, by Nicole Hunn (blog link has her book link on the sidebar):

Popovers


I boiled the bagels...


...and then baked the bagels:


When a friend said that he wanted biscotti, I baked those, too:


I haven't yet attempted Hunn's newly-developed gluten-free pita bread recipe, but I've got my pizza crisper now, and I'm going to make it. Soon.

*My daughter is on a trial gluten-free diet. So far, so good.

Lucia bread

My plan to bake Lucia bread turned out well. It had been awhile since I'd baked bread, and I had to improvise on a few points. I used spelt, white and whole wheat flours in order to complete the 6 cups of flour quota. The recipe originally said to put in 11 tablespoons of butter, and I read it as one tablespoon. I think that was a good idea, anyway. I baked the bread for 5 minutes longer than the recipe said, too. There is quite a variety of recipes out there.

For those attempting to bake bread for the first time, here are some tips that often don't appear in the directions:

1) To make the yeast active, place the yeast in a 1/2 cup warm water and "feed" it with a pinch of sugar. After 10 minutes, if the mixture bubbles up and smells like yeast, you know the yeast will actually make your bread rise.

2) Sift your flour(s), especially if they're the weighter flours like whole wheat and spelt. It'll help your bread gain a light, fluffy texture even if you are using healthy flour.

3) If you're in a drafty place, the bread dough may take longer to rise. Sometimes I'll put the bowl of dough in a larger bowl of warm water, and change it regularly so that the dough gets heat.


Bread dough before baking:



Baked Lucia bread:


Here is my modified recipe:

Lucia Bread

1 tablespoon butter
6 cups flour
2/3 cups sugar
3 packages dry yeast or 1 2/3 oz. fresh yeast
2 cups milk
1 gram saffron -OR- 1/2 teaspoon cardamom, 15 drops yellow food color
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup raisins or dried currants
1 egg

Grind saffron with a little sugar in a mortar and pestle. Melt butter, add milk and heat to 130° (too hot to keep your finger in), add salt and saffron. Mix dry ingredients and gradually add the hot milk mixture. Knead the dough. Place in a greased bowl, cover with a damp cloth and let rise 30 minutes. Knead again. Divide the dough into 30 parts. Roll into traditional shapes,* add raisin decoration and place on a greased sheet. Let rise 30 minutes. Brush with beaten egg. Bake 10 minutes at 450° F.

Note: Add 1/2 c. raisins/currants to the dough if you like lots of dried fruit.

In addition to my other raw ingredients, I used up all the saffron. Saffron isn't cheap, but this bread is worth it. In my life, I have never had too many little boxes or bottles of saffron. Hint, hint. Anyway, the bread is delicious. With my next batch, maybeI'll make a Lucia wreath and put candles in it.

*Here are the traditional shapes:



Thanks to the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee for the link.

Rhubarb-Ginger Crisp Bribery

Dear Lucia,
You are my daughter, and I love you beyond measure. However, at some point in the future, you may invoke my Inner Grouch when you attempt to cajole me into letting you go to that rickety-rackety rock concert. If I seem unmoved by your repeated pleas to camp outside the ticket office in order to get front row seats, try making rhubarb-ginger crisp for me. I probably won't cave, but you can bet I'll listen to what you have to say.


The recipe

In one bowl, combine:

2 pounds fresh, sliced rhubarb (on average, 4 cups)
3-4 cups sliced strawberries (or raspberries, or blueberries-- I'm not fussy)
1/3-1/2 cup unrefined sugar
2,3, or 4 teaspoons freshly grated ginger (more ginger, more merriment)

In another bowl, combine:

1 1/4 cup rolled oats
1 cup flour (I like spelt or whole wheat)
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup melted butter (or 1/4 cup melted butter, 1/4 cup vegetable oil)
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
dashes of the following: cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg
1/4 cup chopped candied ginger

*Pour and spread fruit mixture into a 9 inch square pan (slightly larger or smaller is okay)
*Distribute the oat/flour/spice mixture on top of the fruit, and pat evenly into place.
*Bake uncovered 35-40 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
*Remove the pan from the oven, let the rhubarb-ginger crisp cool slightly, then serve a piece to your mother.

Now, in answer to your question: "I'll think about it."