By Catharine L. Kaufman – a.k.a. The Kitchen Shrink
For some reason, drinks more than foods anchor our senses to each season. You may be stuck in a mountain cabin surrounded by a blizzard, but only a cup of hot chocolate with whipped cream can conjure up a true wintry feeling. And to put us in a winter holiday spirit, we need such liquid delights as steaming, spiced apple cider or eggnog flavored with peppermint, nutmeg, ginger or cloves.
Our autumnal emotions are triggered by pumpkin, cranberry, cinnamon and other harvest flavors infused in teas and coffees.
Summer is never fully felt until a day in the sun is cooled with a tangy lemonade, iced teas or coffee; brain-freezing slushes, slurpees and smoothies; colorful (but alcohol-free) mocktails; Mint Julep straight from Dixie; south of the border Margarita; or such tropical cocktails as Mai-Tai, Piña Colada, Daiquiri and Rum Punch. Whip up a shaker-full of lime juice, coconut, pineapple, guava, mango, passion fruit and rum to welcome the sultry weather—or to make more bearable the umpteenth must-attend summer engagement party, shower and wedding. I kid, of course. Such happy occasions are lots of fun—or would be if fewer of them were traditionally crowded into a few short summer months.
Of the nearly two and a half million nuptials celebrated each year in the United States, about a third are vying for June through August dates when booking chapels and banquet halls. Champagne and champagne cocktails such as the fruity Mimosa, flow like the Mississippi throughout the celebrations—not to mention during the honeymoons.
You can blame the Teutonic tribes of yore for coming up with the honeymoon idea—derived from their traditional 30-day ‘moon’ (i.e. month) of post-wedding inebriation on ‘hydromel,’ a honey mead wine. Legend has it that Attila the Hun died of an overdose of hydromel while celebrating his nuptials—perhaps unwittingly inspiring the expression, “the honeymoon was over.”
Marriage is not the only way summer releases inhibitions and goads us to take a chance. Just look at the crazy drinks people think up, from bananas combined with sweet liquors and savory spices, to juices whipped up with nut-flavored milks and brandy.
Spring, of course, requires no spirits to make us goofy. The air alone will do that with its tingly fragrances of reborn nature and changing disposition. A tall glass of chilled juice fizzed up with bubbly mineral water, some ice cubes and a long straw taste like ambrosia in the spring. Add a scoop of sorbet or ice cream and you’re Cinderella or Prince Charming. Spiking it with a shot of Grand Marnier might even be too much.
Summer State Of Mind
For those in a summer state of mind, here are a few refreshing libations, spiced up with stories that are sure to enhance their appeal:
1) A Smooth Operator—Before Jamba Juice hit the smoothie scene, Steve Kuhnau a.k.a. ‘The Smoothie King,’ was a lactose intolerant soda (fountain) ‘jerk’ who was whipping up dairy-free frozen fruit drinks for himself until he realized there were other moo-averse digestive systems, as well as people who simply preferred dairy-free products. Kuhnau eventually built a chain of smoothie shops from coast to coast, and earned his ‘royal’ title for pioneering a wide variety of smoothies, the chilled drinks blended with various fruits, veggies and crushed ice.
Today’s ubiquitous smoothies may contain honey, frozen or fresh yoghurt, soy, almond- or rice milk and, of course, fruit. True to their names, these concoctions have a smooth, creamy and milk-shake-like consistency, even without any offending lactose-based ingredients. Favored by the health-minded, smoothies are often ‘fortified’ with herbs, green tea (in liquid or powder form), zinc, vitamin C and other nutrients.
They range from fabulous berry brain-freeze blasts to mango meltdowns, and are easy to prepare at home. All you need is a good blender with ice crushing features, fresh and frozen fruits—including strawberries, blueberries, mangos, pineapples and especially bananas for a creamy texture. Add a splash of almond-, soy-, or hazelnut milk and serve in a chilled Margarita glass with fun garnishes and a crazy, twisty straws.
Smoothies can also be made savory and spicy using plain yogurt blended with basil leaves, zest of lemon, sea salt and a dash of cayenne pepper that lends it both a tasty and healthy kick. A cool, Middle Eastern refresher called Ayran, simply blends yoghurt (cow or goat), skim milk (or non-dairy substitute) and salt served in a tall tumbler over ice.
2) Have a Lemon? Make Lemonade–Vintage lemonade made from fresh squeezed lemons has been puckering lips and quenching thirst since antiquity. In 14th century Egypt, people found relief from scorching summer heat by drinking kashkab, a popular blend of fermented barley, mint, pepper, rue and citron leaf. Three centuries later, vendors calling themselves “Compagnie de Limonadiers” sold another refreshing lemonade variation on the streets of Paris, during the summer months.
Let me add to your traditional lemonade repertoire of water, sugar and fresh squeezed lemon juice, a more exciting recipe that eschews white sugar in favor of honey and/or a small amount of brown sugar, and adds fresh raspberries, strawberries, cranberry juice, a pinch of peppermint and one of ginger—topped with blueberries and orange slices for eye-pleasing garnish.
3) Slush or Slurpee—It’s All Shaved Ice—Shaved ice, in whatever variation, is just a shameless pretender, but no one seems to care about its pedigree, as long as the syrup is brightly colored, knock-your-teeth-out sweet and poured over a mountain of ice shavings that freezes your tongue on contact. The original ‘snow cone’ first appeared—and became a hit—at the Texas State Fair in 1919. Imitation being the most sincere form of flattery, it was widely copied and renamed—from Slurpee to Slush and Hawaiian Shave’ Ice—and dressed up with tropical fruit slices. Exotic flavorings surprise customers with strange combos such as Piña Colada with grape juice, lemon with blackberry, strawberry rhubarb and the daring blend of opposites: tart pineapple with sweet watermelon.
4) Tea Time—No sooner was the exotic brew introduced to Great Britain that it was transformed from ‘a cupa’ pick-me-up to the genteel tradition of Tea Time, around which British social life revolved—and to a lesser extent, still does.
Colonial Americans swore off tea drinking for a while, along with their loyalty to the Crown, but after gaining independence, the U.S. of A., embraced the fragrant—and as it was later discovered, quite healthy—brew with great enthusiasm. In fact, during the 19th century, both British and American cookbooks featured tea recipes. Some of these recommended spiking the tea with brandy, sherry, claret, sweet liquors or champagne—a practice better suited to the pub than drawing room, though no complaints have ever been recorded.
With the introduction of the icebox and commercially produced ice at the 1904 World’s Fair, cooled drinks become popular—none more so than Iced tea. Today, Americans are drinking nearly 100 million glasses of iced tea every day—the result of more than two billion dollars in annual sales to restaurants, supermarkets and other food outlets.
Although ‘tea time’ hasn’t quite reached the ubiquity of ‘coffee break’ in the U.S., it’s heading for first place, thanks to the proliferation of countless varieties—caffeinated or decaf—from plain or fancy black tea, to the antioxidant green and twig teas, newly touted white, herbal, medicinal, berry, fruity, floral and other teas. Any and all are served year-round—as ice-cold summer refreshments or piping hot to ward off winter chills and sniffles, sweetened or not; with or without milk, honey or lemon; and ‘mellowed’ with alcohol. .
The health-conscious crowd drinks green tea, while down in Dixie black tea is served sweet and made fragrant with mint leaves. A combo of half iced tea and half lemonade is named after golf legend Arnold Palmer, while the John Daly variation is spiked with Firefly Sweet Tea Vodka.
Bubble Tea is a gourmet Asian brew and trendy summer refresher, in which pearl tapioca, black tea, milk and sugar are blended with ice. The ‘in’ tea these days is Chai, which comes in black, green and white tea varieties, infused with liquor, spicy or flavored with apricot, amaretto, ginger, honey, berry, coconut, pomegranate, almond, cherry, caramel, chocolate, cinnamon, bee pollen or anything your taste buds can dream up.
5) Brain Freeze Coffee Buzz—A cup of chilled Java—fully-leaded or decaf, plain, spiked with brandy or topped with whipped cream, chocolate sprinkles or a dusting of cinnamon—may be served in upscale restaurants as an after dinner treat, or made to order in certain fast food outlets set up for such assembly.
Takeout pre-fab frappuccinos can be found in the refrigerated sections of supermarkets and convenience stores. To whip up your own customized iced coffee concoctions at home, try an iced mocha fusion shake blending vanilla extract with sugar, mocha coffee mix and crushed ice; or a cappuccino cooler mixing cold coffee with chocolate syrup, crushed ice, a dollop of chocolate ice cream and the whole shebang topped with whipped cream. Or simply blend other kinds of milk—such as almond, rice or condensed—with cold coffee from dark roasted beans, shaved ice and a sprinkling of cardamom. Starbucks has some summer coffee coolers like caramel frappuccino and iced coffee using East African beans with a citrus essence.
6. Whatever Floats Your Boat—Nostalgic soda fountain treats like root beer, Coke or lemon lime floats, cherry fizzes or chocolate egg creams can be revamped to a healthier version using carbonated spring water with a splash of pomegranate, blood orange or grape juice, and frozen yoghurt or non-dairy scoops.
7. Cocktails and Mocktails for Summer Happy Hours—No time like these economic doldrums to take advantage of discounted Happy Hour drinks some bars and lounges offer to attract patrons during the slow business period before dinner. The expression is believed to have originated in 1920s, as Navy slang for sailors’ scheduled down times aboard their ships, when they could watch movies or otherwise relax and have fun. But it’s civilians—or rather cocktail lounges and similar establishments—that made before-dinner Happy (i.e. tipsy) Hour drinking a tradition. Although it survived Prohibition, Happy Hour was tamed in the l980s, when bars had to start serving free hors d’oeuvres to keep patrons sober. Shortly after, HH was evicted from military bases.
In today’s hectic and obsessive-compulsive work and play environment, cocktail breaks are taken whenever and wherever one’s schedule and location allows. Drinking, for example, is no longer allowed on some beaches. Lucky for those who will never know what it’s like to cool down with a tall Tom Collins (lemon, sugar and gin) and wake up with third degree sunburn.
Indoors or a shady veranda is best for sipping a peachy Fuzzy Navel, a legendary Kentucky Derby Mint Julep—which could be mistaken for a snow cone with shaved ice, bourbon and mint leaves—or a Strawberry Daiquiri. The latter has been reinvented in designer flavors of chocolate strawberry, avocado, pineapple, passion fruit, melon and mint.
Margarita mavens wouldn’t be caught dead with fructose mixes, but mix fresh lime juice with their tequila—with or without such creative touches as adding a splash of cranberry juice, blue agave and blood orange—before pouring it into their salt-rimmed glasses.
Fancy a Cosmopolitan? Make it different by swapping the cranberry juice for pear or papaya juice for a refreshing summer cocktail. White Wine Spritzers are made for sunny days, as well as elegant dinners.
Turn any cocktail into a mocktail for your teetotaler friends by leaving out the alcohol and letting them improvise with fruit slices and splashes of fizzy mineral water. Think, Shirley Temples, Tornado Twists, Apple Juleps and virgin varieties of Mint Juleps, Piña Coladas and Daiquiris.
8. Drink Décor—Light up your mocktails and cocktails with garnishes of whimsically carved fruit or vegetable slices, swizzle sticks and crazy straw props. Hang strips of orange, lemon or lime rind over the glass rim. Float whole kumquats, frozen grapes or lychees on an amber drink. Skewer fruit cubes on a thin bamboo stick and balance it across the glass rim—or use veggie cubes, pitted olives and pearl onions for the savory drinks. Make ice cubes with frozen berries inside and use them in drinks. Float an attention getter in each drink, such as ribbons of shaved fresh coconut, a teaspoon of pomegranate seeds or small dollops of gelato or sorbet. Do, however, steer clear of cherries to protect your guests from the inevitable stray pits.
My summer contribution is a grown-up slush that resembles a frozen Tequila Screwdriver, and a kid-friendly Banana Berry Brain-Freeze smoothie. Cheers!
Tequila Mockingbird (A Frozen Tequila Screwdriver)
1-½ ounces of Tequila
½ ounce of Triple Sec
½ ounce of Blue Curacao
2 ounces of Orange Juice
1 ounce of Cranberry Juice
Fill a tumbler with ice. Add the Tequila and Triple Sec, then the orange and cranberry juices. Add Blue Curacao. Garnish with an orange zest strip or a few fresh cranberries.
Banana Blueberry Brain Freeze Blast
2 bananas, sliced and frozen
1/2 cup of frozen blueberries
1 cup or Greek style (thick) vanilla yogurt
1 splash of almond or hazelnut milk
1 teaspoon of honey
Add all the ingredients in a blender. Swirl and twirl until creamy and smooth. Serve in a whimsical glass with a fun straw and blueberries floating on top.