Cost-Conscious Cocktails

Happy Wednesday Everyone!  

Here's a little something to get you over the hump:  

My pal Annie Potasznik over at NBC DFW has compiled a convenient list of local happy hour specials for our after-work enjoyment.  Featuring choice hangs in the Uptown, Knox/Henderson, Downtown and Oak Cliff neighborhoods, this list begs to be printed out and tucked in your wallet for easy-access the next time you're in the mood for a tasty bargain beverage.  Cheers!

C&S

Seasonal Spirits: Luscious Limoncello & The Wisconsin Lunchbox

Wrapping up a visit with friends last weekend, my hubby and I dunked the final bites of our biscotti in the last few sips of our coffee, feeling warm and ready to head back out into the cold afternoon.  What a lovely visit, I thought, resting my mug gently on my saucer and dabbing the corners of my mouth with my napkin. We must get together again soon.  Rising from our chairs, we gathered our winter wear and began to re-bundle for the ride south.  

As we headed for the door, however, one word stopped us dead in our tracks.

"We completely forgot," our hostess exclaimed, "to offer you some Limoncello!"  

As quickly as we'd wrapped our scarves around our necks, we whipped them back off again with a flourish and flung them atop our coats in a homely pile in the foyer.  (When it comes to this subject, we don't waste any time.)  

Our foursome then shuffled single-file into the kitchen, were cordial glasses were lined up like soldiers across the counter in front of a giant jar of pale yellow liquid studded with curled and dimpled rinds. Our mouths watered with anticipation; we may have even drooled.  Our host, you see, is Italian, and he makes this special brew from scratch.  Vodka, lemons, sugar and water are all there is too it, but somehow his result is much greater than the sum of its parts.   He measured out our crystal-clear servings, and my dear friend, his wife, headed out back for fresh basil to float in each glass. 

 

This isn't what it looks like.  I swear.

The first sip was liquid gold - the sweet, pure essence of lemons.  My tongue detected not the slightest hint of bitterness, nor alcoholic burn.  This was the Limoncello of dreams.  I marveled at those drunken lemon peels as I took tiny tastes from my cup.  There must have been hundreds of them, nestled one atop the other like scales or feathers, piled several inches high behind the glass.  Each time I raised my drink, staring transfixed at the jar, my nose caught a whiff of clean, licorice-laced basil on a background of velvety citrus.  I could have sniffed and sipped all day.

By the time I snapped out of my stupor, the conversation had jumped about ten steps ahead, moving on to another cocktail altogether.  The Wisconsin Lunchbox hails from Oshkosh where our hosts attended college, and is perhaps the polar opposite of a delicate glass of Limoncello.  I can't quite remember how we arrived on the subject, but soon I was watching as a frosted mug was pulled from the depths of the freezer and filled with three ingredients that I never would have imagined could get along inside a glass.  "It's really very good," I was assured several times. "It kind of tastes like a dreamsicle!"  I stared dubiously at the fizzing concoction, giggling inside at how much fun can be had just standing around in a kitchen with good friends.  

Finally I relented, and took a sip from the mug.  Sweet and tart and a little bit dangerous, this drink gave the impression of packing more of a kick than its flavor would indicate.  I could see this Lunchbox warming up a long Wisconsin winter, or a sunny December in Dallas, for that matter.

We eventually wrapped up a second time around, and I was treated to a little jar of Limoncello of my very own.  Happy Holidays to me!  Don't even ask - I won't share.  And the recipe will have to remain a secret for now.  I did, however, get the formula for the Wisconsin Lunchbox, and I'm sure you'll love it as much as we did.  In fact, a couple of these babies might help me get the Limoncello recipe next time around...

The Wisconsin Lunchbox*

(With special thanks to Jill and Brian)

Place a shot glass inside of a frozen beer mug.  Fill the shot glass with Amaretto Liqueur and pour orange juice into the mug to the level of the top of the glass.  Fill the mug the remainder of the way with your favorite beer (a lighter style, such as pilsner or pale ale, is preferred).  

*Try it in place of a Mimosa, the next time your brunch needs a kick.

Spiked and Steamy at The Old Monk

On a gusty, overcast day where cheek-numbing winds can chill you to the bone just crossing the parking lot from your hybrid to the office door, nothin' says Happy Hour like a frosty bottle of beer, coated neck to label in ice-cold, crystalized condensation.  Right?  ...Yeah, we didn't think so either.

That's why we were psyched to see The Old Monk's new menu of seasonally-appropriate Hot Drinks, rolled out just in time for the annual Dipping of the Temperatures.  The Monk's offering steamy standbys like Hot Toddys, Mulled Wine and Irish Coffee, as well as the Knox Chox spiked hot chocolate and some wicked thing called a Nutty Irishman (we'll let you investigate that one for yourself).  Now that's something to look forward to after a long, chilly day of putting up with people who make you wanna hit the sauce.

All Hot Drinks are $7 ($6 during Happy Hour).  Plus, it's nice and cozy in there, kinda like the Prancing Pony.  Ah, how we love the Monk.

Free Booze at BuzzBrews!

Just a little pre-weekend tip for our 

Mimosa-loving readers:

BuzzBrews' Lemmon Avenue location is offering a free bottle of Korbel Brut with the purchase of a 60 oz. party-sized pitcher of o.j. ($30).  

Sounds like a great excuse to head out for brunch this weekend.  Or tomorrow, for that matter - this special is good any day of the week!

C&S

Favorites: Cabana Boys, Pineapple Heads and Two Desperately Inventive Chefs

Here at DallasEats, we love a little healthy competition.  Or, not-so-healthy, as the case may be (I don't think anyone would have called my CVS Salmon Croquettes salubrious).  So, when it came time to play favorites in honor of our 100th post milestone, I knew that our contests were at the top of my list.

Drugstore Gourmet:  Back in July of '07 (far in advance, might I add, of any of the recent 99-cent store cooking adventures), Foodie Princess and I faced off in a culinary competition with one simple yet cringe-worthy rule:  all ingredients for our respective 3-course meals had to come from the neighborhood CVS.  Click the link above to read all about the dishes, the judging and who ultimately earned bragging rights in the first ever DallasEats Cook-Off.

Mixology Competition:  This follow-up contest left our judges with great, big smiles - and maybe headaches to match.  Opening up the floor to a few loyal readers, FP and I were joined by several other gifted amateur bartenders in a challenge to see who could mix the tastiest cocktail concoction.  Read on for the shaken, stirred, fruit-flavored and umbrella-garnished details.

Enjoy!  And please let us know if you have an ideas for future face-offs!

C&S

A few things I'm in love with this week...

Here are a few things that have captivated me, food-and-beverage-wise, in the last week or so. Below you'll find an offbeat recipe, a new grocery item and a must-visit winery right here in Dallas (it's classy and sassy, just like you-know-who). I'm sure that one or more of them will be up your alley, too.

Ingrid Hoffman's Mini Cuban Burgers (Fritas)

http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,,FOOD_9936_66374,00.html

I love Ingrid Hoffman and her Latin-influenced cusine. What a welcome change of pace from the endless parade of Italian iterations that seems to be taking over my favorite cooking shows! These sliders are exceptional: sweet, tangy and a little bit like a meatloaf sandwich with a kick. Be advised that the recipe made 24 generous mini-burgers for me (the link above will tell you 12, but I believe it's a misprint). I was pleasantly surprised by the surplus - a little time in the kitchen gave me dinner plus a freezer full of burger-liciousness for cravings to come.

Orowheat Double Fiber Bread

http://www.oroweat.com/

Finally, a great tasting whole wheat bread that doesn't suck all the moisture from your cheeks in the time it takes to eat your sandwich. It's so good, in fact, that I'd choose this bread over just about any other sandwich loaf, even if it wasn't so nutritous and packed with fiber. You know, when you're a semi-pro eater like me, you've got to give yourself good stuff whenever you can. That way you can justify the ginger creme brulee you might happen to sneak in after lunch once in a while (totally hypothetically speaking).

Times Ten Cellars
http://www.timestencellars.com/

This Lakewood gem is a must-visit for anyone who loves wine. The space is eclectic and warm, and the wines are earning praise left and right. Slip into the tasting room on a Saturday afternoon for a sip of something cool, or head over after work for a light dinner of pate and artisinal cheese. Gaze at the crystal chandeliers twinkling over oak in the barrel room, then head out on the patio for a little people-watching. Don't forget to take home a bottle or two of the award-winning rose or whichever winds up being your new fave from the Times Ten line-up.

A Brief Literary Interlude

Let's take a moment to enrich our minds, while celebrating one of our favorite things: cocktail hour. Below find Baudelaire's 1869 treatise on indulgence...not only is it food (drink?) for thought, but it's a damned good reason to pour yourself a tall one today at 5.

Be You Drunken!

One must always be drunk. That's all there is to it; that's

the only solution. In order not to feel the horrible burden of

Time breaking your shoulders and bowing your head to the

ground, you must be drunken without respite.

But; with what? With wine, poetry or virtue, as you will.

Be you drunken.

And if sometimes you awake, on the steps of a palace, in

the green herbage of a ditch or in the dreary solitude of your

room, then ask the wind, the waves, the stars, the birds, the

clocks, ask everything that runs, that moans, that moves

on wheels, everything that sings and speaks – ask them what

is the time of day; and the wind, the waves, the stars, the

birds and the clocks will answer you: It is time to get

drunk. In order not to be the martyred slave of Time, be you

drunken; be you drunken ceaselessly! With wine, poetry or

virtue, as you will!