Margarita or Classic Whiskey Sour?

This has been the Sunday Summer afternoon dilemma. Cocktails in the garden on a Sunday afternoon are fantastic, but not if you're fraught with decisions.

I've been making Margaritas lately with tequila, a bit of lime juice, and a splash of triple sec. That's it. And let me tell you they are great!

But I also recently discovered that classic Whiskey Sours were originally made with a bit of egg white to froth up the cocktail. Whiskey, lemon juice, simple syrup, and a teaspoon of egg white shaken in a cocktail shaker transforms into a silky and delicious Summer cocktail.

Now all I have to do is decide which to have.

White Wine "Affogato" with Blood Orange Sorbet

While having a glass of white on a recent Sunday afternoon a blast of genius wafted over my ice cold glass of Pinot Grigio. The pint of blood orange sorbet I'd bought the day before had been taunting me all day but my glass of Pinot was truly hitting the spot---what to do, what to do?

My brilliant idea of course was to scoop the sorbet right into my glass. Mike looked at me like I was crazy (or a lush. or both.) but I knew that it would be delicious, and it certainly was.

An Affogato is traditionally made with espresso, but since "Affogato" technically translates to "drowned" I felt like I had creative liberty to change it up. A nice dry table wine works great here---the citrus undertones of the white works great with the blood orange and the sweetness of the sorbet melds well with a dry white.

Scoop, pour, and dip your spoon in the Summer goodness!

Handmade Pasta With Chorizo, Kale, And Cannellini Beans

Pasta tossed with a few ingredients is one of my favorite Summer meals.  I've never been a big fan of heavy tomato sauces so it only makes sens that I'd gravitate toward a pasta dish like this.  I made this recipe by modifying this Martha Stewart recipe for Pasta with Kale and Bacon.

While Martha's recipe sounded perfectly yummy I wanted to make it just a bit more special by trying my hand at making my own pasta.  While not an every night kind of thing, making my own pasta turned out to be fun and simple, adding a nice complex bite to the dish.

I rounded out the recipe by substituting my own homemade Chorizo for the bacon and adding Cannellini beans and grated Gruyere cheese.  Tossed together with a bit of pasta water, this type of "sauceless" pasta is the perfect type of meal for a Summer evening.

Roasted Baby Carrots On The Grill

My garden is in full gear now and just today I harvested my first batch of Dragon Heirloom Carrots. They look a little funky but looks don't matter so much because these baby carrots were delicious.

I knew exactly how I wanted to cook them: slowly roasted. Only, who wants to turn their oven on in the middle of Summer? My trusty grill did a perfect job. I just tossed the carrots in some olive oil and kosher salt and placed them on my grill under a low flame. Twenty minutes later....perfection!

Succotash of Fresh Corn, Lima Beans, and Tomatoes

Summer weather is the perfect time for a delicious Summer Succotash! Mike made this for me a couple of weeks ago and it was divine. The sweet corn was extremely delicious in contrast to the other flavors. This dish is perfect for a BBQ or light supper. Go ahead, give it a try!

Ingredients

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 cups chopped onion
Coarse kosher salt
1 large garlic clove, minced
3 cups chopped red tomatoes (about 1 1/2 pounds)
2 1/4 cups corn kernels cut from 4 ears of corn (preferably 2 ears of white corn and 2 ears of yellow corn)
2 cups fresh lima beans (from about 2 pounds pods) or 10 to 11 ounces frozen lima beans or baby butter beans, thawed
3 tablespoons thinly sliced fresh basil


Heat oil in heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and sprinkle with coarse
salt. Sauté until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add garlic; stir until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add tomatoes, corn, and lima beans. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until corn and lima beans are tender and tomatoes are soft, about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Via Epicurious

How To Make A Perfect Glass of Iced Coffee

Perfect Iced Coffee

Now that the Summer heat is finally here there is nothing better than a delicious glass of iced coffee.....unless of course I'm having a cocktail, but that's a different post!

The perfect glass of iced coffee is really rather simple to make, but it does require three distinct elements.

The secret to a perfect glass of iced coffee in second part of post...

Cold Brewed, Coffee Ice Cubes, and Simple Syrup

These three elements make the perfect glass of iced coffee because each element adds something to the flavor of the coffee.

Cold Brewing

Cold brewing the coffee in a french press releases a complex network of flavors that otherwise would be ruined by hot brewing the beans

Coffee Ice Cubes

Coffee ice cubes prevent the drink from watering down as the ice melts, ensuring that your drink stays potent and cold.

Simple Syrup

And finally, simple syrup ensures that the sugar dissolves into the coffee. There is nothing worse than sugar granules that don't dissolve and sink to the bottom of the glass.

It really is that simple!

Cold-Brewed Iced Coffee

(adapted from the NY Times)

1/3 cup ground coffee (medium-coarse grind is best)
1 1/2 cups water

In a french press, stir together coffee and 1 1/2 cups water. Cover and let rest at room temperature overnight or 12 hours.

Push french press plunger down to strain. In a tall glass filled with ice, mix equal parts coffee concentrate and water, or to taste.