LCBO Food & Drink Summer 2023

Red Alert from page 47

1. At least 1 day before serving, dissolve sugar in hot tea and thoroughly cool. Pour 2 cups (500 mL) into ice cube trays and freeze overnight. Reserve extra tea in a sealed jar or container and refrigerate. 2. Pour 2 cups (500 mL) lemonade into ice cube trays and freeze overnight. Reserve extra lemonade in a sealed jar or container and refrigerate. 3. When ready to serve, add lemonade cubes and gin to blender and blend on smoothie or milkshake setting, until a very thick, slushy con sistency is reached. If needed, drizzle additional chilled lemonade through hole in the blender’s lid in a thin stream to achieve a thick icy consis tency. Pour gin-lemonade slush into a measuring cup with pouring spout and put in freezer. 4. Add frozen tea cubes and bourbon to blender and blend on smoothie or milkshake setting, until a very thick, slushy consistency is reached. If needed, drizzle additional chilled tea through hole in the blender’s lid in a thin stream to achieve a thick, icy consistency. Pour bourbon-tea slush into a measuring cup with pouring spout. 5. For a swirled drink, tilt glass 45 degrees to one side and pour in half of gin-lemon slush. Slowly pour in frozen bourbon-tea as glass tilts back upright. Stir with a straw or knife. 6. Or, for a vertically layered drink, select a spatula or other thin partition that fits tightly in a rocks glass, upright across the diameter. Carefully pour gin-lemonade slush down one side. Pour bourbon-tea slush down the other side and carefully remove spatula or partition. 7. Garnish with a Jelly Lemon Wedge and serve. Makes 2 drinks JELLY LEMON WEDGES Cut 1 large lemon in half crosswise. Using a paring knife and a grapefruit spoon, melon baller or small ice-cream scoop, carefully remove and discard lemon flesh and mem branes, being careful not to pierce the peel of the lemon. Scrape inside of white membrane smooth and place each lemon half upright inside a small ramekin that holds it tightly. Prepare 1/2 cup (125 mL)—typically half a package—of lemon-flavoured jelly dessert according to package directions. Pour mixture into prepared lemon halves, discarding any extra jelly mixture. Chill until completely set. Cover set jellies with plastic wrap until ready to serve. To use as garnish, use a sharp paring knife to cut each half into 3 to 4 wedges. Refrigerate extra wedges in a sealed con tainer for up to 3 days, or eat them as snacks.

occasionally to extract colour. Cool mixture completely. Strain through a colander or tea strainer to remove solids and pour 2 cups (500 mL) of strained liquid into ice cube trays and freeze overnight. Reserve extra hibiscus tea in a sealed jar or container and refrigerate. 2. Make Botanical Swizzle Sticks and freeze. 3. When ready to serve, add frozen hibiscus cubes into blender with half the cold hibiscus tea. Blend on smoothie or milkshake setting, drizzling in additional chilled tea as needed through the hole in the blender’s lid in a thin stream, until a slushy consistency is reached, up to an additional 1/2 cup (125 mL) of liquid. 4. Pour into two lowball or rocks glasses and garnish with a Botanical Swizzle Stick. Makes 2 drinks BOTANICAL SWIZZLE STICKS Order silicone ice-stick trays from amazon.ca or find them at grocery or big-box stores. Not only can you use them to make pretty drink garnishes, but they’re great for freezing ordi nary ice into sticks that you can drop into your water bottle to stay cool all summer. 1. Lay any combination of summer herbs (such as mint, lemon verbena or lemongrass), edible flower petals and berries into ice-stick moulds and carefully fill with water, using the tip of a knife or skewer to reposition botani cals if necessary. Freeze overnight. To use as garnish, gently run silicone side of ice-stick tray under cool water to unmould and place upright in drink. TWISTED PALMER Named after the legendary golfer’s favourite clubhouse drink, the Arnold Palmer combines iced tea and lemonade in a 1:1 ratio. Here, we use gin-lemon slush and a bourbon-spiked fro zen black tea (you could use purchased iced tea, but the colour contrast won’t be as dra matic) to create a drink you can swirl or layer in the glass. The technique might take a little practice, but the drink will taste delicious any way you pour it! 2 tbsp (30 mL) sugar 2 1/2 cups (625 mL) black tea, such as English Breakfast tea, brewed strong 2 1/2 cups (625 mL) lemonade, store-bought or made from scratch 1 1/2 oz gin 1 1/2 oz bourbon Jelly Lemon Wedges (recipe follows) for garnish

SUMMERTIME SANGRIA A classic Sangria involves red wine, fresh fruit, sugar, ice, sparkling water or pop and a generous pour of Spanish brandy. This version sticks to club soda and swaps in sweet red vermouth for the usual brandy and sugar, making a lighter drink with less alcohol. As for fruit, orange and lemon are essential while half a peach (peeled and sliced) or a handful of strawberries is a delightful addition. One or two dehydrated orange, lemon or pineapple wheels intensify the fruitiness—jars of them can be found at Cocktail Emporium in Toronto (cocktailemporium.com). Cut an orange in half. Squeeze one half into a jug. Cut the other half into slices and add to the jug with half a lemon, also cut into slices. Muddle the fruit to release juices and oils. Add 3/4 cup (175 mL) sweet red vermouth and a bottle of red wine. Stir well. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours. For each glass, serve over ice with a splash of club soda and a little of the fruit as a garnish. SORREL SLUSHIE In Jamaica, hibiscus is known as sorrel, and its bright purple dried flowers (order them from latortilleria.ca) are brewed into a tea with a bright, cranberry-like taste, spiked with tropical spices. You can also substitute a hibiscus-rich tea blend, such as Tazo Passion tea. Choose dark or turbinado sugar as your sweetener for a delicate molasses note. Delicious as a vibrant non-alcoholic slush, this drink can also have a float of 1 oz white or aged rum on top as a cocktail variation. 10 dried whole cloves 10 dried allspice berries 10 loonie-size coins of peeled fresh ginger, 1/4 inch (5 mm) thick 2 tbsp (30 mL) brown sugar 6 hibiscus tea bags or 3/4 cup (175 mL) dried hibiscus flowers 3 cups (750 mL) boiling water Botanical Swizzle Sticks (recipe follows) for garnish 1. At least 1 day before serving, lightly muddle cloves, allspice and ginger in the bottom of a quart-size (1 L) heatproof glass measuring cup. Add brown sugar and hibiscus tea bags or flowers. Pour boiling water over all and let steep for 5 minutes, pressing with a spoon Chilled Out from page 100

136 FOOD & DRINK SUMMER 2023