Reading The Tea

Since we’ll only be in NY for another month, Dustin and I approached buying things at the liquor store with caution. Alcohol is hardly something that we want to lug across the country. We have quite a ingredients left (especially blackberry schnapps, etc.) but very few we’d want to drink as a main ingredient. What would be interesting to mix with the most, but still be good? We decided on a good gin and a good tequila. So far we’ve done a few drinks that I think were quite successful.

The Salad Drink

2 oz Gin
Fresh Basil
Just short of 1/2 oz. Lemon Juice
Tonic
Ice
3-5 Cucumber Slices
Muddle the basil, and shake with the gin, lemon juice and ice. Pour into a glass. Drop in the cucumber slices, keeping one out for garnish. Top off with tonic.
It went quite well with a dinner of fresh past with pesto, heirloom tomatoes, goat cheese and pine nuts. I’d like to play around with adding other things — maybe ginger?

We also made an excellent Margarita — not too sweet.

Our Margarita (proportions for a double)

3 oz Tequila
1 oz Triple Sec
1 1/2 oz Lime Juice
Dash of Simple Syrup
Fresh Lime
Course Sea Salt
Ice
When we made this last night we added ingredients gradually, trying to get a lime proportion that we liked. In the end we liked the above, with just a bit of simple syrup. Instead of on the rocks, we served it straight-up, in a glass with a salted rim (of course!), with a pinch of salt added to the drink.

Last night my friend and I ate our first out-of-doors meal of the season. Coats were still needed, but we could relish gnocchi and pizza from the charming Carol Gardens Savoia Pizzeria ($12 range, with nice wine by the glass for $6-8). At Fall Cafe Bronwen read from a new manuscript. (She has a new hand-sewn chapbook, go check it out.) After the reading everyone went en masse to Abilene for drinks and fries (or in my case, stealing other people’s fries). To finish the evening, we headed over the Brooklyn Social. I need to go back there. The ginger martini was amazing.

It’s happened — Dustin’s 25. Many celebratory festivities are to follow this weekend, but last night we kept it low-key. A few of us went to High Chai for lots (and lots and lots) of infused vodka, infused vodka tea martinis and Russian food. Those of you who know my obsession with all edible things rose will be able to imagine how happy the rose and flowers infused vodka made me. The blood orange was the other favorite. Martini highlights: Black Monk, a thick black current vodka based drink, and the White Chocolate Truffle, soft and sweet. Oh yes, I did mention that they all include tea? The birthday boy got the Spiced Tea Rubbed Shirt Steak with Fries and Ginger Garlic Aioli — it was worth every penny of the $17.50. (My favorite of the entrees we tried.)The other entrees ranged from $13-15. Only food negative — not very vegetarian friendly menu. However, the waiter, John, was super friendly, not to mention ooh shit! smart (has his doctorate in math from Princeton, at 27…). Besides being smart he was also really nice, so we all hope that he’s our new friend. They brought out a candle in dessert, and we each picked our own key to sing “Happy Birthday” to Dustin.