The Perfect Manhattan
This is it. This is my favorite drink. This is what I wait for each night. It’s perfect.
The ingredients in this are what matter most. Everyone is different and your taste may not be the same as mine. I choose Four Roses and an Italian brand of vermouth. Those are the very best in my opinion. The Four Roses is delightful without being too astringent. Maker’s Mark is a great substitute.
The quality of the vermouth is critical too. The cheap ones are really sweet - we need sweet, but not too sweet. And not fake sweet. Real sweet.
Then the cherries. Do not use the dyed red maraschino ones. Those are for ice cream sundaes. These need to be the good ones. Luxardo makes an amazing one. Trader Joe’s does a decent one too - and they leave the stems on, which looks fun in the glass.
Last, don’t water down the drink! Chill the glass. Stir with ice at the last second and strain ASAP. You want this drink to be cold but not watery. And don’t let the alcohol sit on the ice. Strain into glasses right away. If you have extra to save for your second drink (or for tomorrow?) Stash it in the fridge, strained, and serve it later.
The Perfect Manhattan
2 parts Four Roses Bourbon
3/4 part red vermouth
dash of bitters
cherries
Combine all ingredients in a pitcher and add ice at the last minute. Strain into chilled glasses and garnish with a cherry.
Bridge Party Cocktails | with Fresh Victor Mixers + Broken Shed Vodka {DISCOUNT CODE!}
Recently House Beautiful posted that our Grandma habits are making us healthier - mentally anyway. My mental health must be tip top. Not only did I take up needlepoint a few years ago, but last year I started playing bridge.
My bridge club is the most fun group of ladies. We have the best time together. It’s been great for me, because the other three have their kids in college. So I have been able to bounce parenting issues off of them. I highly recommend getting yourself a bridge group of moms with older kids. And then have a cocktail while you do it.
We play every week. Sometimes we play at the club and sometimes we play at one of our houses. We pretty much always play with a cocktail in hand. This week, supplied with Fresh Victor cocktail mixes, I made our drinks.
I am a snob when it comes to cocktail mixes.* I do not want one with sugar. I do not want one with anything fake. I do not want one that is just juice. I do not want one with food color. Fresh Victor fit the bill. Also, they taste good.
Fresh Victor has been SUPER GENEROUS and offered all of you a 20% discount when you order before July 31st. This means you are set for all of you spring and summer parties! Use code WNSFRESH20 when you order - click the link below! Stock up!
*I am always a snob.
This was taken after a cocktail….
Usually when we play we end up pouring a glass of white wine or making a ranch water. Mostly because none of us want to go to the effort to mix an ACTUAL cocktail. When you’re the dummy hand you could take the time. But do we actually want to? No. We’ve tried other short cuts before but I am a big fan of this short cut.
Our drinks were:
Mexican Lime & Agave + Tequila + Squeeze of Lime
Jalapeño Lime + Agave + Tequila + Squeeze of Lime + Ring of Jalapeño
Cactus Pear + Pomegranate + Broken Shed Vodka + Squeeze of Lemon & Lime
Grapefruit + Sea Salt + Broken Shed Vodka + Squeeze of Grapefruit
Why on earth did I choose Broken Shed Vodka, you ask? First, why not? Second, they sent it to me. Third, it’s really good.
Trying unique vodkas when we travel is really fun. Almost everywhere I’ve ever been has their own local brand of vodka. The good ones are made with fresh local water and distilled several times. We loved the vodka in Iceland and I was excited to try this New Zealand Vodka. It did not disappoint. Now New Zealand has moved up on our list of places to go!
Discount Code Details:
For Online Store
20% off entire order
No minimum purchase requirement
Does not apply to wholesale
One use per customer
Can’t combine with other discounts
Active from Apr 10 to Jul 31
Peppermint Martini
A signature cocktail is one of my favorite entertaining secrets. It makes every party a little more fun – especially if you greet guests at the door with an ice cold drink! You can also set up all of the ingredients and the recipe on a bar cart and let your guests make their own.
This year I used See’s Candies Candy Canes on the rim of my signature cocktail to add a little something extra. Not only will it taste amazing, but the red and green stripes add a festive element.
Peppermint Martini
2 ounces vanilla vodka
1 ounce peppermint schnapps
crushed candy cane
peppermint bitters
Pour a tablespoon of peppermint bitters into a low dish. Pour crushed candy canes into a separate dish. Dip martini glass in bitters first, then candy canes. Shake off any excess.
In a cocktail shaker filled with ice, shake vodka and schnapps. Strain into prepared glass and garnish with a candy cane.
30 minute Flaky Tapenade Bites
These are actually the perfect appetizer. I had forgotten about them for years and then I was scrambling for the perfect appetizer for a party and remembered I used to make these all the time. Like ALL THE TIME. The first time I made them for a group people - twenty years ago - everyone was RAVING about them. And that was one of the critical moments in my life when I realized food was my special skill.
These are not hard. My go-to ingredients are tomato paste + tapenade. It’s salty, mostly premade, simple, and kind of tastes like pizza. But I also use pesto when that’s what I have. I have tried fresh vegetables - spinach, tomato, even fresh basil leaves and that doesn’t work. It’s too liquid-y and it makes the pastry all weird. You’re always welcome to try it, but I tried it for you.
Flaky Tapenade Bites
makes 2 dozen
1 package puff pastry
OPTION A
1/2 cup tomato paste
1/2 cup tapanade
OPTION B
1 cup tapenade
1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated
STEP 1
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Unroll the puff pastry sheet onto a floured cutting board and roll out slightly until you can’t see the lines anymore.
STEP 2
Use half of the ingredients on each roll. Spread it out evenly over the sheet. Roll up the pastry and slice into 1/2 inch pieces.
STEP 3
Pop each slice on a lined baking sheet. Bake 20 minutes until puffed and crispy. Remove from the baking sheet and cool on a cooling rack.
Serve warm or room temperature.
Americano Cocktail
Delightfully simple and totally refreshing. Simple enough to make a batch of them, and a perfect compliment with the flaky tapenade bites!
Classic Cosmopolitan
Thanks to our friend Taylor Swift, this classic cocktail made a return to the scene last year. Some of us are old enough to have had the cocktail the first time around when Sex and the City made it a hit. Some of us lamented the demise of it when we decided that Sex and the City was passè. Thank goodness it was made cool again.
And made cool in time for Valentine’s Day! It’s the perfect drink to shake up this holiday. Especially if you can garnish it with a heart shaped strawberry. I mean, can you even?
Classic Cosmopolitan
makes 2
4 ounces vodka
2 ounces cranberry juice
1/2 ounce cointreau
juice of 1/2 lime
STEP 1
In a cocktail shaker, combine vodka, juice, cointreau and lime. Add ice and shake well.
STEP 2
Strain into a coupe and serve immediately.
The original Champagne Cocktail
The original champagne cocktail is mentioned in Casablanca, in Mark Twain’s Innocents Abroad, and has been turned into one million variations. This is the classic one. The OG.
It’s pretty simple - and it works - like most classic cocktails. It’s a little sweet (sugar) a little bitter (bitters) a little warm (cognac) and deliciously bubbly. The lemon on top is the perfect topper.
I found that if you swirl the cognac with the sugar before you add the champagne, it’s a better drink immediately. But it is not as impressive when you serve it. If you don’t swirl, the sugar cube bubbles with the champagne and it looks so pretty. But it takes a few minutes to get to the delicious drink you’re craving. Either way, you should totally make these for New Year’s Eve.
The Original Champagne Cocktail
1 sugar cube
2 -3 dashes bitters
1/2 ounce cognac
Champagne
lemon
Drop a sugar cube in the bottom of a champagne flute. Drip the bitters onto the sugar cube and let it sit so it soaks up. Pour in the cognac and swirl a little (optional - it’s better for flavor, but not the looks). Then top with champagne, pouring slowly to not get too much foam.
Cut a lemon with a wedge knife or a vegetable peeler and squeeze it over the top so there’s just a hint of lemon oil. Serve immediately!
Cocktailing | Vesper
The original James Bond drink
The perfect Friday night clink-clink
It’s a little lillet and vodka and gin
Pour it in a pitcher - add ice - and begin
Not shaken, but stirred
More than one and your vision is definitely blurred.
Vesper Cocktail
1 ounce vodka
2 ounces gin
1/2 ounce lillet blanc
lemon peel
Combine all ingredients in a cocktail pitcher. Add ice and stir gently. Strain into two cocktail glasses and garnish with a lemon peel.
Hot Dungeness Crab Dip
Happy Fourth of July! We spend the holiday at our family beach compound at whidbey island. We eat an excessive amount of food, drink too many cocktails, and blow things up. This crab dip is on steady rotation. I cannot encourage you enough to make this dip! If you don’t have crab, you can sub in artichoke hearts and no one cares. It’s still delish.
Hot Dungeoness Crab Dip
8 oz cream cheese
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons chopped chives
1/2 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
1 teaspoon worchestershire
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 - 2 teaspoons hot sauce (to taste!)
1 pound dungeoness crab
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
STEP 1
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a stand mixer, or with a hand held blender, combine all of the ingredients except the crab and parmesan cheese.
STEP 2
When everything else is combined, carefully stir in the crab to the cream cheese mix. Spread in an oven proof dish and top with parmesan cheese. I like to use a pie tin or an 8” pan for the dip so it’s one thin layer with the crispy cheese on top.
STEP 3
Pop into the oven and bake about 15-20 minutes until bubbly and the cheese turns golden brown. Serve with crackers or cucumber slices.
Cocktailing | Americano
A Classic Italian cocktail good enough for Bond? You know that’s something of which I’ll be fond. Originating in Milan at the Campari Bar, it’s a cocktila who’s name is bizzare. Bitter Campari is something American’s don’t love - but it’s something I’m very fond of! Equal parts Campari and vermouth & topped with a soda splash. It’s a perfect summer cocktail, mixed in a dash!
Americano
1 1/2 ounces Campari
1 1/2 ounces red Vermouth
soda water
twist of lemon
In a highball glass, combine Campari and Vermouth. Stir gently. Add ice then top with soda water. Garnish with a twist of lemon. Cin cin.
Cocktailing | Kir Royale
How about a splash of history for this Friday? The Kir Royale has it is spades. Created in France by a priest named Kir when Nazi’s took red wine to quash French cheer. Resistance persisted and we now have a drink that’s event better than wine and delightfully pink. A dash of cassis & topped with champs, it’s a delicious FU to Nazi camps.
KIR Royale
1/3 ounce Cassis
3 ounces champagne
Pour cassis into a champagne glass and top with chilled champagne. Optionally garnish with a raspberry. Cin cin!
