Happy Mint Julep Day! Appropriate for our Mint-themed meeting tomorrow. :)
/LARC - Courtney
“Old Fashioned” Snickerdoodles with Bourbon, Orange bitters, and orange zest // by The Boozy Baker
+ 2 3/4 cups + 2 tbsp plain flour
+ 2 tsp baking powder
+ 1/4 tsp salt
+ 1/2 pound unsalted butter, softened
+ 1 1/2 cups + 3 tbsp sugar, divided
+ 2 large eggs
+ 2 tbsp bourbon
+ 4 or 5 generous dashes bitters
+ 1 tbs freshly grated orange zest
+ 1 tbs ground cinnamonIn a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Preheat oven to 375°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. In a large bowl, beat the butter and 1 1/2 cups of the sugar with an electric mixer until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the bourbon, bitters, and orange zest and beat to combine. Gradually add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and beat until incorporated. (If the dough is very soft, freeze for 10 to 15 minutes before proceeding.) Combine the remaining 3 tbsp of sugar with the cinnamon in a shallow bowl. Roll the cookie dough into 1-inch balls. Roll the balls in the sugar-cinnamon mixture and place them on the baking sheets, spacing the balls about 2 inches apart. Using the bottom of a drinking glass, flatten each ball into a disk. Bake the cookies for 10 to 12 minutes, or until golden brown at the edges but still slightly soft in the middle. Cool the cookies for 5 minutes on the baking sheets, and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Ever wonder what happens to the bourbon barrel after the distillery is done with it?
/LARC - yenn
For those of us who live in the Bay Area, constantly bombarded by messages around seasonal/local/organic, reading an article about how GMO (genetically modified) corn impacts bourbon can be depressing. It’s something that I have been choosing to ignore up until now.
It is rather shocking there’s not an organic bourbon on the market — and according to the article the only two brands that don’t use GMO ingredients are Four Roses and Wild Turkey. Sigh. Guess that means drinking what we have and being extremely careful about what we buy next.
I hate giving the large seed companies my money — and don’t want to ingest the crap that comes from these grains. It is fascinating to note that it is primarily the international markets that care whether or not there are GMO in the ingredient list, while those in the US are less so.
The article quotes Colin O’Neil, regulatory policy analyst at the Center for Food Safety.
“To assume thatthe only real risk is contamination of genetic material ignores the fact that these crops by and large either produce an insecticide (which has been shown not to break down in the human gut) or they are engineered to withstand exposure to herbicide.” And farmers are spraying an increasing amount of Roundup and other weed killers as a result of herbicide-resistant “superweeds,” he points out.
Grist has another article about the search for organic spirits - which yielded only Scotch.
/LARC - Carla
A few weeks ago, I posted about the ridiculous nature of marshmallow and whipped cream vodkas. I can’t believe that in the spirits forecast for the year, we are hearing about even more flavored spirits, extending into the bourbon and whiskey world. The honey Jim Beam has come out and now there are even more products that are going to come out in this vein.
The article above has a few predictions for the world of spirits in 2012 — at least one includes the rise of a sophisticated cocktail consumer. Phew.
/LARC - Carla
Many is the LARC night when we lament the sweet drinks. It bothers me so that Jim Beam is marketing its sweeter flavored bourbon (ugh) called Red Stag to women, even though Kid Rock is the spokesperson. In general, this entire article insults the intelligence and taste buds of the many sophisticated female cocktail drinkers I know.
After two days at a conference at a resort in Palm Springs where the best cocktail I could get was a Jim Beam and ginger ale, my heart yearns for a delicious concoction made with actual booze and decent flavor. But not too sweet!
/LARC - Carla
Joy Perrine is a Kentucky based bartender, who in her own words, began slinging drinks long enough ago that she worked with people who had worked during Prohibition. She gives great advice on the seven cocktails every bartender must know and talks about making bourbon into cocktails and not being a purist.
An uplifting inspiration for us LARC ladies!
She’s busy prepping for the 20th annual Bourbon Festival, but if you want some ideas, you can read her book, The Kentucky Bourbon Cocktail Book.
/LARC - Carla
Lushlady always has great posts about what she’s been drinking and in this case, cooking up! Check out this delicious recipe from Martha Stewart. I think I know what I’m making for my birthday cake!
/LARC - Carla
I always get the itch to bake when Fall comes, when warm breads and spiced flavors are inviting again. And who better to turn to for a new (to me) recipe than Martha Stewart. I whipped up this Sweet Potato Bourbon Bundt Cake with Bourbon Syrup and was not disappointed in the least. The cake’s brown sugar and sweet potato notes meld perfectly with the moistening spike of bourbon. And the syrup! Don’t get me started. And since there’s sweet potato in it, I can only assume it’s healthy, right?
Sweet Potato Bourbon Bundt Cake with Bourbon Syrup (recipe here)
1 1/2 cups firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/3 cup unsalted butter, softened, plus more for pan
2 large eggs
1 cup cooked sweet potato
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup milk
1/3 cup bourbon or apple juice
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
3/4 teaspoon salt
Nonstick cooking spray with flour
3 tablespoons chopped pecansDIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix together brown sugar, butter, and eggs until very light and fluffy. Add sweet potato and vanilla; beat to combine. Add flour, milk, bourbon, baking powder, pie spice, and salt; mix until just incorporated. Lightly spray a 10 or 12 cup Bundt pan with cooking spray. Sprinkle bottom and up sides of the pan with pecans. Pour in cake batter. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean, 50 to 60 minutes. Let cool 10 minutes. Remove from pan; cool completely on wire rack. Brush cake with bourbon syrup. Serve cake slices with any remaining syrup.BOURBON SYRUP
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon unsalted butter
2 tablespoons bourbonDIRECTIONS
In a small saucepan, bring sugar and 1/2 cup water to a boil. Cook 5 minutes. Add butter, vanilla, and bourbon. Cook until syrupy, about 5 minutes.
Photo credit: Lush Lady
We’ve covered white dog previously on this Tumblr, but this set of reviews includes prominent brands such as Buffalo Trace & Maker’s Mark. However, the Maker’s version is only available on site in Kentucky (argument #6890651 for a bourbon tour next year).
Here’s the photo from the Drink Spirits website of some of those brands they reviewed.
/LARC - Carla
I hope one day to make it to this bourbon infused week in the beautiful Kentucky hills. Until then, I’ll have to satisfy that itch by making the “official” cocktail for this year - the Bluegrass Sunrise courtesy of Azur Restaurant and Patio.
/LARC - Carla
