LCBO Food & Drink Spring 2018

RECIPES With wine, beer and spirit recommendations by the LCBO’s Knowledge Resources Group.

modern classics from page 66

CREAMY VANI LLA- ORANGE NOG

2 Juice the lemon; strain the juice through a sieve and set aside. 3 Using a kitchen mallet or the back of a heavy knife, smack the lemon grass to release the aromas, then add to a cocktail shaker. Add 4 ribbons of lemon peel to the cocktail shaker and, using a muddler, smash the peel and lem- on grass until the aromas are released. Add the limoncello, vodka, lemon juice and about 4 ice cubes; shake well to get more citrusy goodness from the zest and lemon grass. 4 Strain into 2 tall glasses with ice; top with chilled lemon soda. Garnish with a stalk of lemon grass and a ribbon of lemon zest. Makes 2 drinks Invest in some super-fine or quick-dissolving sugar for making cocktails; regular sugar can remain gritty in cold mixtures. 1 cup (250 mL) fresh blackberries (175 g pkg) Juice of 1 lime, about 2½ tbsp (37 mL) 2 tbsp (30 mL) vanilla or regular super-fine sugar 1 can (500 mL) ice cold Somersby Blackberry Cider ( LCBO 331348, 500 mL, $3.10) Extra whole fresh blackberries to garnish; optional 1 Make a purée by adding blackberries, lime juice and sugar into a blender and blending on high until liquefied. 2 Strain through a fine sieve to remove the seeds, pressing the purée through the mesh with the back of a spoon or rubber spatula. Discard the seeds. Don’t forget to scrape the bottom of the sieve; delicious purée can cling there! This should make just shy of 1 cup (250 mL) of purée. Store in the fridge to chill until ready to serve. 3 When ready to serve, add 2 tbsp (30 mL) of purée to the bottom of each of 4 Champagne flutes and gently top up with cold cider. 4 Garnish with whole, skewered blackberries if desired. Makes 4 drinks CIDER BLACKBERRY SPARKLER

When preparing foods with raw eggs always buy the freshest eggs you can find—pasture- raised is best. 1 small tin mandarin orange slices in syrup; drained, syrup reserved 1 cup (250 mL) freshly squeezed orange juice 2 oz vanilla flavoured vodka 1 whole free-run egg 1 tbsp (15 mL) syrup from tinned mandarin orange slices 2 tbsp (30 mL) 35% cream 8 ice cubes, divided 1 Thread several mandarin slices onto 2 skew- ers and set aside in the freezer on a bit of wax paper several hours or the day before. 2 Into a blender, add the orange juice, vodka, egg, mandarin syrup, cream and 2 ice cubes; blend until smooth. 3 Pour into tumblers with the remaining ice; garnish with frozen mandarin skewers. Makes 2 drinks MANGO FL IP When using a raw egg in recipes, always break the egg into a separate bowl first, before add- ing it to the rest of the ingredients. That way you can discard any with unappealing blood spots or ones that don’t pass the sniff test, without ruining the rest of the recipe! 1 cup (250 mL) frozen mango chunks plus extra for garnishing ¾ cup (175 mL) mango nectar 2 oz white rum 1 Into a blender, add the mango, mango nectar, rum, egg and 2 ice cubes; blend until smooth. 2 Pour into glasses with 3 ice cubes each plus a couple of cubes of frozen mango. 3 Garnish with some skewered mango too, if desired. Makes 2 drinks 1 whole free-run egg 8 ice cubes, divided

GINGER GIN FIZZ We’ve used non-alcoholic ginger beer in this recipe, but for an extra-spirited version, re- place with Crabbies Original Alcoholic Ginger Beer ( LCBO 272807, 500 mL, $3.80). Ice cubes 1 tbsp (15 mL) finely chopped peeled fresh ginger root 6 large fresh mint leaves, rubbed and torn; plus extra for garnishing 2 oz gin 1 tbsp (15 mL) Domaine De Canton Ginger Liqueur ( LCBO 157917, $49.95) Ice cold ginger beer for topping up 2 pieces of candied ginger and more fresh mint to garnish; optional 1 Into a cocktail shaker with 4 to 6 ice cubes add the ginger, mint, gin and ginger liqueur. Shake vigorously for about 30 seconds to re- lease the flavours from the ginger and mint. 2 Strain into glasses with ice and top up with the ginger beer. 3 Garnish with a piece of candied ginger, if de- sired, and more fresh mint. Makes 2 drinks LEMON SMASH Since limoncello is already quite sugary, no extra sugar is needed for this sweet-tart and refreshing drink. 1 large lemon 2 pieces, each 1 inch (2.5 cm) long, of lemon grass, taken from the pale root end 1 oz Rossi D’Asiago Limoncello ( LCBO 469643, $21.95) 2 oz vodka 2 tbsp (30 mL) freshly squeezed lemon juice Crushed ice Ice cold Italian lemon soda, such as Sanpellegrino Limonata 1 Wash lemon and, using a vegetable peeler, peel off 6 ribbons of zest from end to end of the lemon; set aside.

FOOD & DRI NK SPRING 2018 87