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rose hips and whiskey

Roses & Rye: a Rosehip Whiskey Cocktail

Happy Hannukah, Merry Christmas, Happy Kwanzaa, Fabulous Festivus!

For those of you who appreciate a tasty adult beverage, I’ve got good news. I’ve just published a new online course: Homemade Craft Cocktails: from Garden to Glass. For less than the price of a single craft cocktail at a fancy bar (which is probably closed right now anyway), you can unleash your inner mixologist and serve up some amazing cocktails to brighten up your holiday. And as a bonus for being a loyal blog reader, here’s an extra recipe that’s not in the course. It’s a tasty blend of rose hips and whiskey and will warm you up on a winter’s evening. (Ok, it’s technically not winter yet but there’s snow on the ground here so as far as I’m concerned, winter it is.) Many thanks to Levi White for coming up with the perfect name: Roses & Rye.

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Japanese knotweed sour

The Samurai Sour Cocktail: Recipe

Spring is just around the corner. Actually, it started yesterday, but I woke up to freezing temperatures this morning so it doesn’t feel very spring-like. Nonetheless, this time of year I start thinking about Japanese knotweed, one of my favorite wild edibles. Its pink color and tart flavor make it the perfect ingredient for a foraged twist on a whiskey sour. I named this cocktail The Samurai Sour because originally I used Japanese knotweed and Japanese whisky*. But Japanese whisky can be expensive, so feel free to use any whiskey (blend or single malt) you have on hand. Read more

two limoncello recipes

How to Make Limoncello: Two Ways

Limoncello is a classic Italian liqueur traditionally served ice cold as a digestive, after dinner. Frankly, I think it’s tasty enough to drink anytime. The recipe comes from southern Italy and calls for true lemons, but I like to use Meyer lemons instead. I’ve done some experimenting over the years and come up with two very different recipes that produce two very different liqueurs. If you try them both, please let me know which one you like better! Read more

Almond Joy cocktail, made with homemade noyaux

The Almond Joy: a Noyaux Cocktail

This was a killer year for stone fruit in Santa Fe, and I harvested loads of apricots, plums, nectarines, and peaches. After making jams, jellies, chutneys, salsas, and dried fruit, I was left with a big pile of pits, so I shoved them in the freezer, thinking there MUST be something I could do with them.

Did you know that almond extract is NOT made from almonds? It’s the apricot kernels inside the pits that give almond extract its flavor, so I decided to infuse some booze with my apricot kernels. Thus was born a new cocktail: The Almond Joy. It’s a spirit forward, slightly sweet adult beverage, named after one of my favorite candy bars.  Read more

chokecherry bounce

Chokecherry Bounce: a Rye Cocktail

What exactly is a bounce? Rumor has it that cherry bounce was one of George Washington’s favorite tipples, and Martha’s recipe for the beverage survives to this day. In this foraged version, I’ve substituted chokecherries for cultivated cherries, and rye for the more traditional brandy. And while many bounce recipes are heavily spiced with cloves, cinnamon, and nutmeg, I’ve kept it simple with just three ingredients. Once you’ve made the base infusion, you can enjoy it any way you’d like: poured over a single large ice cube, sipped neat from a coupe, combined with a sploosh of seltzer, or garnished with a few Luxardo cherries. Any way you drink it, Chokecherry Bounce is an exceptional adult beverage. Read more

Queen Anne's Lace Tonic

Naturally Effervescent Queen Anne’s Lace Tonic

I never know what to call this kind of beverage. A cordial? A soda? To some people, the word cordial means a liqueur, but this drink is alcohol-free. And the word soda brings up mental images of two-liter bottles of Coke (at least to me!), so that’s not right either. This is an effervescent, naturally fermented, non-alcoholic beverage that will knock your socks off. So I’m calling it Queen Anne’s Lace Tonic, and here’s how you make it. Read more

Galium odoratum aka sweet woodruff

May Wine Recipe: It’s Easier than You Think

Ok. I didn’t get this posted in time for May Day. So sue me. But since sweet woodruff (aka Galium odoratum) is plentiful all summer long, there’s no reason why you can’t enjoy this infusion any time of year. May wine is made by steeping sweet woodruff in white wine. Drying the herb before infusing it concentrates the flavor of the woodruff and accentuates its lovely, hay-like scent, full of sweetness and vanilla.

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nocino

Foraged Nocino: a Delicious Liqueur Made from Unripe Nuts

While most people think of nocino as a traditional Italian digestif, the recipe actually originated in Britain. The Picts (a Celtic tribe from Scotland), were known to become euphoric after drinking it, and I get that. They harvested green walnuts at the summer solstice, and at the same time celebrated the new green walnut harvest by drinking the previous year’s brew. Legend has it that the Romans took the recipe for nocino back to Italy when they left Britain behind. Read more