Dirty Greek Martini

get dirty, Grecian style...

In doing research for this post, I came across many "Grecian style" dirty martini recipes. Each one simply swapped out green olives and juice for Kalamata. I was planning to do this myself, but felt that this was a little boring. So, I kept searching and found the recipe posted here. It includes pepperoncini juice, which added just the twist I was looking for.

This dirty martini recipe is not only briny from the Kalamata olive juice, but spicy too from the pepperoncini. Of course, I'm garnishing with the olives and pepperoncini, but I couldn't help but add feta cheese too. Even better would be feta cheese stuffed Kalamata olives! Make this drink when you need a change from the plain old dirty martini. Here's how...

Ingredients - Makes 2 drinks

3 oz. Vodka (or Gin)

1/2 oz. Dry Vermouth

1/2 oz. Kalamata Olive Juice

1/2 oz. Pepperoncini Juice

Garnish: Pitted Kalamata Olives, Cubed Feta Cheese, & Pepperoncini

Directions

In an ice filled shaker, combine the vodka, dry vermouth, Kalamata olive juice, and pepperoncini juice. Shake until well chilled. Strain into chilled martini glasses. Garnish with the olives, feta, and pepperoncini. Cheers! Or, as they say in Greek "yiamas".

Dry Martini w/ Antipasto Garnish

all in one drink + app

I'm bringing a whole new meaning to drinks and appetizers with this recipe. I've made a simple and straight-forward drink and jazzed it up with a fun antipasto garnish. In essence, this recipe serves as both drink and appetizer all in one! This would be an easy and different way to start a dinner party. With the holidays coming, easy is the key word.

I've made a dry martini with vodka here, but you can make a dirty martini or use gin instead of vodka. The star here is the antipasto garnish (not so much the drink). For the antipasto garnish I've skewered cheese, meat, olives, and a piece of roasted red pepper. Make this all in one drink + app as the holidays roll around. Here's how...

Ingredients - Makes 1 Drink
Dry Martini
2 1/2 oz. Vodka
1/2 oz. Dry Vermouth

Antipasto Garnish
Assorted Cheeses (suggest provolone & fresh mozzarella)
Assorted Meats (suggest prosciutto)
Large Green Olives
Red Bell Pepper

Directions
Preheat the broiler to high. Cover a baking sheet with foil and set aside.

Begin by roasting the red bell pepper: Cut the top off the pepper. Cut it in half and remove the seeds and ribs. Press flat, cut side down, onto the prepared baking sheet. Broil for 8-10 minutes, or until the skin is charred. Carefully remove the pepper to a bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and allow to steam for 10 minutes. Peel off the charred skin, discard. Cut the peeled pepper into wide strips and set aside.

Make the garnish: Using skewers or stir sticks (I found plastic ones at Meijer that were perfect), skewer the cheese, meat, olives, and roasted red bell pepper as desired. Customize the antipasto garnish to you and your guests liking. Set aside.

Make the drink: Fill a shaker with ice. Add the vodka and dry vermouth. Shake until the drink is well chilled. Pour into a chilled martini glass. Top with the antipasto garnish. Cheers!

Long Island Peach Iced Tea

cheers to my 100th post...

Summer is coming to a close. The kids are going back to school, the weather is changing, and the days are getting shorter. It's amazing just how quickly summer flies by; and just time in general. Sitting on the front porch is a pass-time few can enjoy these days. It's a luxury really. But, if you can find the time, this is the perfect cocktail.

My Long Island Peach Iced Tea should be enjoyed in these final weeks of summer. A fruit forward, chilled drink, perfect for relaxing and sipping, this cocktail is like summer in a glass. The peach flavored vodka, schnapps, and nectar take this classic cocktail to the next level. Make this drink to relax, reflect, and slow down for the final bit of summer. Here's how...

Ingredients - Makes 2 Drinks
1 oz. Peach Flavored Vodka (suggest Pinnacle)
1 oz. Gin
1 oz. White Rum
1 oz. Sliver Tequila
1/2 oz. Peach Schnapps
2 T Peach Nectar
1/2 C Cola, to taste
Garnish: 1 Peach, cut into wedges

Directions
Fill a cocktail shaker with ice. Pour in the vodka, gin, rum, tequila, schnapps, and nectar. Cover and shake vigorously to mix well and chill. Divide the mixture between two glasses (ice too) and top off with the cola and more ice, as needed. Garnish with a peach slice. Serve and slowly sip. Cheers!

Hard Raspberry Lemonade Swirl

the beach is calling...

My husband and I are going on a Caribbean cruise in about 2 weeks. We are SO excited and ready to go! We are porting out of Puerto Rico and will be visiting the islands of St. Maarten, St. Kitts, Antigua, St. Lucia, and Barbados. This will be our second cruise (first was to Alaska), so we have a lot to look forward to even in terms of what the boat has to offer. I suppose the only caveat (mostly in my husband's mind) is that we are going with my family. Don't get me wrong! We love my family, but we will be on a boat with them for 7 days. I know it will be perfect...there's always alcohol if not every moment is.

So, in terms of preparing us for this trip I've created this drink. Yes, there's alcohol. Yes, it's beachy. Yes, we will have something similar as soon as we get to Puerto Rico. Make this frozen, fruity cocktail before your next tropical trip. Or, maybe it's just in your mind, let's go there. Here's how...

Ingredients - Makes 4 Frozen Cocktails
1 (12 oz.) Frozen Lemonade Concentrate, slightly thawed
1 C Vodka (suggest Chopin)
1 (12 oz.) Bag Frozen Raspberries, slightly thawed
1 C Chambord
Ice
Optional Garnish: Fresh Raspberries, Lemon Wedges, and/or Little Umbrellas

Directions
In a blender, combine the lemonade concentrate, vodka, and 4-5 C ice. Blend until smooth. Pour into a pitcher and set aside.

In the same blender (no need to rinse out), combine the frozen raspberries, Chambord, 1 C water, and 2-3 C ice. Blend until smooth.

Swirl the drinks by layering the two frozen cocktails together. In a tall glass (maybe a hurricane), pour the frozen lemonade 1/4 the way up. Spoon in the frozen raspberry mix about 3/4 the way up the glass. The raspberry mix is more dense, so it will sink to the bottom, but that's what creates the swirl. Top the final 1/4 of the glass with the frozen lemonade and a spoonful of raspberry mix. Serve with a colorful straw and garnish as desired. Sail away with me to the Caribbean. Enjoy!

Extra Dirty Vodka Martini

vodka martini, shaken, not stirred

Just like James, James Bond, I prefer my martinis shaken, not stirred. I've also confessed to you in an earlier post that my first martini was indeed a dirty martini and I fell in love with it's briny flavor. I always order this drink extra dirty, so naturally my recipe is just that. One of the other things that I love about this martini in particular are the blue cheese stuffed olives that typically accompany it. Just thinking about the combination now makes my mouth water.

Usually when I post drink recipes, I tell you that the garnishes are optional. In this case I'm telling you it's not. If I order one of these when I'm out and it's served sans blue cheese stuffed olives I'm always a little bit disappointed. So, one extra dirty martini with blue cheese stuffed olives shaken, not stirred coming right up...

Ingredients - Makes 1 Drink
3 oz. Vodka (suggest Chopin)
1 1/2 oz. Blue Cheese Olive Brine
1/2 oz. Dry Vermouth
Garnish with 2-3 Blue Cheese Stuffed Olives

Directions
In a shaker filled with ice add the vodka, olive brine, and vermouth. Shake vigorously until well chilled, then strain into a chilled martini glass. Garnish with 2-3 blue cheese stuffed olives. Sip to enjoy!

Thin Mint Martini

A St. Patrick's Day Toast
Here's to a long life and a merry one.
A quick death and an easy one.
A pretty girl and an honest one.
A cold beer - and another one!

As has been the theme of my last two posts, it's amazing how many ways the potato has been used by different cultures, and in this instance it's no different. Potato vodka is made primarily in Poland and Russia and as you would guess, it is made by the distillation of fermented potatoes. Most vodkas today are made by the distillation of wheat, rye, or sometimes fruits or sugar. There are few potato vodkas accessible here in the US, but one that's popular is Chopin. It's my choice vodka in any cocktail.

Vodka is a blank canvas in terms of creating a cocktails, so I thought it would be fun to make something for St. Patrick's Day and the up-coming selling season of Girl Scout Cookies. For this post I've transformed the (dare I say most) popular Thin Mint cookie into a drink. This drink could sub for your dessert certainly and it tastes just like the real thing. Make this for your St. Patty's party or to stave off that craving for a Thin Mint cookie (until they are available of course). Here's how...

Ingredients - Makes 1 Drink
1 oz. Potato Vodka (suggest Chopin)
1 oz. Godiva Chocolate Flavored Liqueur
1 oz. Creme de Menthe
1 oz. Whipping (Heavy) Cream
Optional Garnish: Whipped Cream, Mint, and/or a Thin Mint cookie

Directions
In a shaker filled with ice add the vodka, chocolate liqueur, creme de menthe, and cream. Shake vigorously until well chilled. Strain into a chilled martini glass. Garnish as desired. Here's to the girls, cheers!