Bucatini with Shrimp and Mushrooms, Infused with Black Truffle

First off, it's been a while since I've posted.  It's been a busy fall between football and hockey so not a lot of entertaining lately here at La Cucina.  Rest assured there have been some good meals and tasty cocktails in that time, just haven't had the time to write about them.  This winter will be filled with parties and fun dinners so I expect to be updating this blog much more regularly over these winter months.

So it's just me and Titus (the dog) tonight.  The boss (meaning my better half, Sara) is in NJ with Grace for a hockey game so I can stay home and watch Ohio State in the Big Ten championship game.  Chili is in NYC with a buddy of his for a birthday trip.  That means I get to cook something for dinner that the rest of the family wouldn't necessarily want to eat.  I have no problem cooking for myself and eating by myself.  I often prefer it that way.

So what to cook?  Of course pasta.  I went with bucatini tonight.  No particular reason, just felt like it. Bucatini is kind of like a thick spaghetti - round - but has a hole through the middle so it's a little thicker.  The hole supposedly helps to absorb more sauce.  As always, use a good quality pasta.  What you want to look for is one that is extruded through a bronze die (this gives it a rough texture, better to absorb any sauce) and and dried at a low temperature (usually 120 degrees or less).  If you can find and afford pasta from Gragnano, Italy go for it.  It's the best in the world.

So, what to put on my pasta?  I was thinking mushrooms and truffles and a little shrimp so here's what I did:

I cooked the pasta in heavily salted water.  As always, it should be like your cooking your pasta in the ocean - that salty.

While the pasta was cooking I sautéed garlic and crushed red pepper in some good olive oil over a low heat.  Once that was going good I added some sliced mushroom blend that I had gotten at Wegman's this morning.  It was portabella, shitake and oyster mushrooms.  After a minute or two I added some of the water I was cooking the pasta in and turned the heat up.  I also added some white wine at this time (don't ask me how much).  By the time most of the liquid was evaporated the pasta was almost cooked, but not quite.

That was the time to scoop the pasta out the cooking water and drop it in the pan where I was cooking the sauce.  In went some raw, peeled shrimp, some of the cooking cooking water, some truffle infused butter (also bought at Wegman's) and some black truffle salt.  The key is to let the pasta finish cooking in this so it can absorb all the flavors going on. I kept adding the cooking water gradually as it evaporated and was absorbed until the pasta was done.  Once the pasta was almost done I added some truffle infused olive oil.  As soon as the pasta was at the right texture it was out the pan and into the dish and garnished with some chopped flat leaf parsley.  Added a little shaved parmesan and it was all set.  The earthiness of the mushrooms and the earthy pungent aroma of the black truffle mixed with the brininess if the shrimp make this sooooo good.  Keep it simple and easy, with good ingredients and you're all set.  A little sauvignon blanc to wash it down - now that's a meal!

Bon apetit!

G

The 31-11 Cocktail

The 31-11

3 parts Stoli Ohranj

1 part St Germain

1 part lime juice

1 part mint infused simple syrup

Combine with ice, shake, pour, garnish with lime 

So what's with the name, right?  Who calls a cocktail a 31-11?  Well, here's the story.  A couple of weekends ago we had some of the hockey crew (from Grace's team) over for a little get together prior to the season.  I mixed up some of these bad boys and everyone seemed to enjoy them.  Especially Steve, one of my hockey drinking buddies.  He asked for the recipe, which of course I shared with him.  Of course the ratio of ingredients is important (3-1-1-1).  As he was putting them into his phone so he could remember it came out 31-11.  Hence the name was born.  

So how did this cocktail come about?  Well, a few years ago my brother-in-law and fellow cocktail aficionado Jeff came back from NYC with tales of this amazing cocktail called a Walt's Kingdom.  It consisted of orange vodka, St Germain, lemon and lime juice, simple syrup and muddled mint.  I must admit it was a damn tasty cocktail.  But in a true spirit of mixology, I felt it could be improved.  I had a couple of issues with the recipe:

The first was not enough vodka compared to the St Germain.  St. Germain, which is an elderberry flavored liquor, has a wonderful flavor.   However, it can easily overpower the other elements in a drink.  I felt the ratio of the St Germain to the other ingredients needed to be cut down a bit.  The original recipe only had 2 parts vodka.  I increased this to 3 parts.

The second thing I needed to change was the vodka itself.   The original recipe Jeff brought back from New York called for Absolut.  I don't like Absolut.  I think it's one of the worst vodkas on the market.  All marketing and poor taste.  Without a doubt one of the best marketing campaigns ever.  Too bad the vodka doesn't meet that level (the only Absolut I ever use is their pepper vodka, which I use for cajun martinis - it becomes palatable with the hot pepper juice).  I decided to make them with Stoli's Ohranj, my go-to spirit.

The third issue I had was the lemon and lime juice mix.  It's just me, but I'm not a huge fan of lemon juice in my cocktails.  So I decided to make it all lime on the juice end.

The fourth thing I had an issue with was the muddled mint.  I love mint, especially in a cocktail of this nature.  However, I hate muddling mint and I hate muddled mint in my drinks.  Invariably either the mint is not bruised enough to bring out the essence of the mint or you end up with little green pieces floating in your drink and sticking in your teeth.  Since the recipe also calls for simple syrup, which I always made myself, it;s really no extra effort to infuse the simple syrup with mint.  You get the mint flavor with none of the mess.  Win-win in my book.  No muss, no fuss.

So, the 31-11 is really just my version of a Walt's Kingdom.  I had previously just called it a Walt's Kingdom, albeit my own version, but it's not really a Walt's Kingdom.  Just a really close rip-off that, in my opinion, is better.  So we now call it 31-11, at least here at La Cucina Castano.  

Cheers!

Bitters

I was pleasantly surprised recently when my friend Ricky called me from the Finger Lakes in NY.  While visiting a local distillery he stumbled upon a vast array of Fee Brothers bitters and called to see if I wanted him to pick me up any.  I decided to have him get me a few bottles (pictured above).  Needless to say I was quite excited.  I'm always on the lookout for interesting bitters, which seem to be  (extremely) hard to find in the local stores here in PA.  As a cocktail aficionado I've come to appreciate bitters.  There is always a bottle of Stirrings Blood Orange bitters in the fridge for making Stoli Orhanj martinis, as well as some Peychaud's.

I'm sure there is a bottle of Angostura, which is the most commonly found brand,  around here also.

Bitters are basically alcohol strongly infused with herbs, roots, bark - basically it seems just about anything.  They have a very strong flavor, which is why they are used in very small amounts, usually just a few dashes, when making a cocktail.  Originally concocted for medicinal purposes, they eventually became a staple of mixology and many famous cocktail recipes specify certain types of bitters.

Here is a very brief article on the history of bitters - http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/food/2012/03/history-of-cocktail-bitters/

So what exactly do bitters do?  It's kind of hard to describe.  They don't really change a cocktail in any major way.  They sort of give a little extra sumpin sumpin, a little oomph.  I like to think of it as adding some depth to a drink.  Not very clear?  Well like I said, it's hard to describe but something you subtly realize as you are drinking a well made cocktail.

I already had ideas of how I would use these bitters.  The lemon bitters I intended to use in a straight up Stoli martini.  Needless to say it proved an excellent addition.  Bitters will stand out more in a simple drink made with a neutral spirit like a vodka martini, which won't have other strong flavors.  I figured the celery bitters would make a nice addition to a Bloody Mary.  However, with all the strong flavors in a good Bloody I feel the bitters got lost and didn't really add any significant.  I'll keep experimenting with the celery bitters in some simpler concoctions.  The dark chocolate bitters I added to a White Chocolate Russian, which was made with 360 Double Chocolate vodka, almond coconut milk.  I really think the bitters added something.  Really took a little edge off the creaminess.

 
I'm not quite sure what to do with the rhubarb bitters.  I made a Stoli martini with them to get a feel for the flavor.  While quite nice, it's not a martini bitters.  I'll have to give that one some thought on how to properly use them.

So, if you enjoy mixing a cocktail at home and don't have any bitters go grab yourself a bottle next time your shopping.  Start with a bottle of Angostura, the original, and add it you mixology. Get a feel for it and what it will do to your drinks and then move on to other types and keep experimenting.  Your cocktails will improve in surprising and subtle ways.

Cheers!

Glenn

The Belmont Jewel

So the Triple Crown season winds up today with the 145th Belmont Stakes, my favorite of the Triple Crown races (being a native New Yorker), even when there is no Triple Crown on the line.  Like the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes, The Belmont has it's own signature cocktail.  In fact there have been several.

The first was the White Carnation, a fitting drink considering the winner is draped with a blanket of carnations, like the blanket of roses for the Derby winner or the blanket of Black Eyed Susans for the Preakness winner - though for the Preakness they are really yellow daisies painted with black in the middle since Black Eyed Susans don't bloom this early in the year.  The White Carnation was the official drink until 1998.

• 2 oz. vodka
• 1/2 oz peach schnapps
• 2 oz. orange juice
• soda water
• splash of cream

Stir and pour over ice in a highball glass. Can garnish with an orange slice.

I'm not big into drinks with milk or cream so this would not be my first choice for a cocktail today.  

The White Carnation was replaced by the Belmont Breeze.  While it is certainly a refreshing drink on a hot June Saturday, it seems to me a bit overly complicated.  

• 1 1/2 ounces of a good American blended whiskey
• 3/4 ounces Harveys Bristol Cream Sherry
• 1/2 ounce of fresh lemon juice
• 1 ounce of simple syrup
• (1 ounce of sweet and sour mix may be substituted for the lemon juice and simple syrup)
• 1 1/2 ounces fresh orange juice
• 1 1/2 ounces cranberry juice
• 1 ounce 7-Up
• 1 ounce Club Soda

Shake first six ingredients with ice, then top with 7-Up and club soda. Garnish with mint sprig and lemon wedge.

It just doesn't seem as classic and timeless as a Mint Julep on Derby Day.  Which brings us to the current drink of Belmont Stakes - The Belmont Jewel.  

• 1.5 oz Woodford Reserve Kentucky Bourbon
• 2 oz lemonade
• 1 oz pomegranate juice

Shake vigorously with ice and serve on the rocks. Garnish with maraschino cherry or lemon twist.

The official recipe calls for Woodford Reserve, a fine bourbon, but I am sure that is strictly for promotional purposes.  I made myself one of these bad boys for Belmont Eve and it is definitely an interesting drink.  I used Jim Beam rather than Woodford and used 2 oz instead of 1.5 ounces.  Using whiskey gives this drink some heft and the pomegranate juice adds some nice bite, though I did find it to overpower the drink a bit, even with the little bit of extra whiskey.  The lemonade was just lost, I thought, in the whole mix.  Overall a nice drink, not too fruity, even with lemonade and pomegranate juice.  Definitely worth a remix here soon La Cucina Castano.  

Enjoy the race, or whatever you do this weekend.  As always, relax, have fun and enjoy a well made cocktail.

Cheers!

Black Eyed Susan 1.0

The 1st annual Preakness Party last weekend here at La Cucina Castano was a fun day.  Good time had by all.  And the drink of the day was the traditional drink of the Preakness - the Black Eyed Susan.

As I stated in my last post, the idea was to take certain elements from all the numerous different recipes for this drink to come up with a starting point.   I was then planning on getting into some experimental mixology and adjusting the drink recipe throughout the day (and evening) to come up with the ideal cocktail for the Preakness.  However, it didn't go quite according to plan.  What happened was that the first version of this cocktail proved so popular with the crew that I stuck with it all day and didn't change the recipe.

Here's what I came up with to start (and stayed with):

Half orange-pineapple juice.  The other half was a mix of vodka, white rum, triple sec and blueberry infused simple syrup (home-made of course).  Don't ask me proportions on the alcohol - you know I'm not big on measuring anything.  The drink was garnished with frozen blueberries.  They served as the 'black eyes' in the Black Eyed Susan.

Honestly the drink, while somewhat refreshing, was a little weak for my tastes.  I thought it needed a little more bite, a little more heft.  I like to taste the alcohol in my cocktails.  But being that the majority of guests were more beer and wine (as opposed to cocktail) drinkers I think the lack of overpowering alcohol taste or bite appealed to them, so that's what we rolled with.

I still plan on experimenting with this drink (while staying in the spirit of the cocktail, if there truly is one) to come up with the ultimate Black Eyed Susan for the 2nd annual Preakness party next year.  Cut down (or out) on the juice - I'm not big on juice in my cocktails.  Perhaps get some acidity from lime instead of orange.  Maybe substitute whiskey for rum for a little more depth.  Try and work in a little mint.   St Germain comes to mind as an intriguing option somehow.  I'll keep working on this drink throughout the next year so that come next May I can give you the ultimate Black Eyed Susan recipe.

So, until next time, enjoy the holiday weekend (for those of you in the USA).  And, as always, take the time to relax and enjoy a well made cocktail.

Cheers!     



    

Get Your Preak On - With A Black Eyed Susan

Well it's been two weeks since since the Kentucky Derby which means only one thing - The Preakness Stakes, the second leg of the Triple Crown, is today.  Plans fell through to have the first Derby Party here at La Cucina Castano two weeks ago - an all day middle school lacrosse tournament the same day put the kabosh on that idea - but a few friends did stop over to watch the race and yours truly certainly had quite a few mint juleps in honor of the race.  Since a Derby party was not to be we decided on the next best thing - a Preakness party.

The Preakness, while not my favorite TC race (that would be the Belmont), it is the closest race to us here La Cucina.  It is is run about an hour down interstate 83 in Baltimore at Pimlico Racecourse and lo and behold also has an official drink - The Black Eyed Susan.  Guess I'll be whipping up some Black Susans then for the shindig today.  Except there is one small issue.  There doesn't seem to be any one single recipe for this drink.  A quick search of the internet  yields varying recipes with quite different ingredients.  All seem to have vodka but then it diverges from there.  Orange juice seems to be a common theme in almost all the recipes I've read, though it is not an ingredient in the recipe on the official Preakness website -

http://www.preakness.com/preakness-tradition/black-eyed-susan-official-drink-preakness  

Some recipes have rum, some have whiskey, a few add triple sec or grand marnier.  I've seen both pineapple juice and lemonade listed in some recipes.  Limes, lemons, oranges, cherries, simple syrup, you name it it's probably been in a Black Susan recipe at some point.  Google the drink recipe and you'll be amazed at how many versions you come up with.

This inconsistency of recipes and ingredients, I think, makes this drink a perfect fit here at La Cucina Castano.  Cooking and mixology are all about the creative process.  Take something standard or simple and then riff on it until you come up with something unique and fun .... and tasty.  Kind of like jazz in the kitchen or behind the bar.  So that's what I'll be doing today as friends gather here for our first Preakness Party.  Taking what I think are the best elements of the various recipes I've found and getting into some serious mixology until I come up with my own best version of this drink, which will then become the standard bearer of Preakness parties to come.  I'll let you know what I come up with.

Until next time .... Enjoy the weekend.  Enjoy the race if you will be watching.  If not enjoy whatever endeavors you set forth on.  And as always - eat well, have fun and enjoy a tasty cocktail.

Cheers,

Glenn

It's Mint Julep Time!

It's Cinco de Mayo this weekend, but we won't be talking about tequila, because it is also the first Saturday in May, which means two things - The Kentucky Derby and Mint Juleps - and that means bourbon.  So we'll be talking about this traditional Kentucky Derby drink.

A Mint Julep is a refreshing concoction of bourbon, sugar, mint and ice.  Here'a recipe for a traditional Mint Julep:  http://www.esquire.com/drinks/mint-julep-drink-recipe

I make mine a little differently.  It takes a some preparation beforehand but I think it's worth the effort.

Step 1 - infuse your bourbon with mint.  For a mint julep I go a little old school with my bourbon, nothing fancy or top shelf, just some good old Jim Beam.  Chop up a whole lot of mint and put it in a big mason jar with a bottle of bourbon.  Let it sit in the fridge for about a week or so.  Strain so you get all the mint out and your ready to go.

Step 2 - mint infused simple syrup.  Simple syrup is easy.  Equal parts sugar and water.  Boil the water until the sugar dissolves.  While it's boiling add a bunch of mint.  Once the sugar has dissolved turn off the heat and let it cool, leaving the mint leaves in.  Once it's cooled, strain the mint out, pour it into a container and stick it in the fridge until your ready to use.

Stpe 3 - ice.  Shaved ice is best, crushed ice will do in a pinch (and what was used in the picture up top, since I couldn't generate any shaved ice).  I have found that a snow cone machine works best.  Just get a small portable one for $20 bucks or so.  Ours is broke so I need to go get one before post time.

Step 4 - prepare.  Fill a glass to the brim with shaved ice.  Pour a little bit of the mint infused simple syrup in and then fill the rest of your glass up with your mint infused bourbon.  You can make it as sweet or strong as you want - just adjust your ratio of bourbon to syrup.  Garnish with a fresh mint sprig.

Step 5 - drink.  It really is a tasty, refreshing drink.  I generally only drink this once a year on Derby day.  I think that this year it may become a staple at the poolside bar here at La Cucina Castano.

Have a great weekend, enjoy the Derby, pick a winner and enjoy a delicious cocktail (if not a Mint Julep then one of your favorites).

Cheers,

Glenn