Time For A Little Mystery: The Thin Man

Way back in January Skylar hosted book club for The Thin Man by Dashiell Hammett, a very entertaining detective story set in 1930’s New York City. The two main characters of the book like to, well, drink! This is perfect for any book club at Skylar’s house.  We were even lucky enough to have Ella come!

On the Menu

          Red Asian Pears with Vintage White Cheddar wrapped in Prosciutto

Olive Oil and Garlic Roasted Brussel Sprouts with Crispy Prosciutto

Recipe

Roasted Onion, Squash, Fig Salad with Mustard Maple Balsamic Dressing 

Recipe

Roasted Garlic, Parsnips, and White Bean Soup

The main course was Shrimp Cakes with Lemon Dill Sauce.  They were amazing and gone quickly!

Now for the most important part of the evening. .. the cocktail! Skylar went with The Bronx Cocktail which the characters enjoy in the movie version of the book. 

The Bronx Cocktail 

Recipe adapted from The Essential Bar Book

2 oz of gin 

1/4 oz dry vermouth

1/4 oz sweet vermouth

1 oz fresh orange juice

Add all ingredients to cocktail shaker. Shake over ice and strain into coupe glass. 

Garnish with orange peel.

Jamie is not a fan of gin so we switched her's out for vodka. Tasted great too!

Katie could not make it for this book club so we decided to cheers her over Skype!

 

We would highly recommend the film version of this story.  It is funny and the costumes are amazing.  Next up, The Blood of Flowers hosted by Jamie.

Cocktail Friday: A Brunch Must

Springtime is here and it is the season for hosting a brunch.  What does every brunch need? A bubbly cocktail of course!  We are huge fans of the traditional mimosas, bellinis or just drinking chilled Cava. However, sometimes you need to have something new. Try this take on a breakfast cocktail.

Sage Simple Syrup

1/2 Cup Water

1/2 Cup Cane Sugar

Handful of Fresh Sage Leaves

Bring water to a boil and stir in sugar. Boil for a couple of minutes stirring until sugar is completely dissolved.  Add the sage leaves and boil for a minute or two more depending on how strong you want the sage flavor. Strain out the leaves and chill the syrup.

For the best flavor squeeze fresh Ruby Red grapefruits and use a sparkling wine that could be enjoyed on its own.  We love LaGranja's Cava.

To Mix

Add 1 ounce good vodka and 1/2 to 1 ounce of the sage syrup to a champagne flute and stir. The amount of syrup will vary with how sweet you like your cocktail and how tart the grapefruits are. 

Top, VERY SLOWLY, with chilled sparkling wine.  Slow is the key here and do not stir once the wine has been added or a bubbly mess will occur. 

Garnish with fresh sage leaves.

Enjoy!

A friendly warning:

The vodka added makes these even more dangerous than normal sparkling wine cocktails so be a good host and provide a nice sunny spot for your guests to nap after the party!