Crikey, what a week. It’s not that it was bad, per se, just…nuts. And I’m not sure I could even really tell you why without boring the stuffing out of you, but I’ll try anyway (although you should feel free to fast-forward to the cocktail recipe at the end right…now!):
Monday I flew back from South Carolina and came home to an insane bachelor pad of a mess (seriously, what is that all about?!). Tuesday, I sat on a panel at my alma mater compiled of former female students who went into careers in the food world and were successful at it, and guess who was on the panel with me? Florence Fabricant! Flo Fab! Not only had I no idea she went to my university, I was totally nervous to meet her (not to mention speak in front of 400 people). She was pretty cool. I wish I could say the same for the two heckling mean old cranks in the front row who kept angrily shrieking that they COULD NOT HEAR ME (or anyone else) right when I was in the middle of a sentence. Man, those two rattled my nerves.
Anyway, Wednesday night was a Chilean wine dinner that took me an hour and a half to get to. Thursday my husband invited some folks for dinner without telling me until the last second (arrrrgh!). I’ve been recipe testing all week for a story I’ve been furiously working on for Imbibe magazine and researching for another that I’m working on for Wine Enthusiast about the vino of Texas. The Buildings Inspector pulled a surprise visit to do the final walk-through on our renovations (if you care, we passed inspection—woo hoo!). There was 7,000 tons of laundry to be done because I’d been away. Add to that 5 trillion other small but important and must-be-dealt-with tasks and details and an embarrassingly long-overdue visit to the dentist today, from which I just got the feeling back in my face, and, well…I am so crazy happy it’s Friday. And damn, I could use a drink tonight.
Today is, apparently, the first gloriously nice day in a series of gloriously nice days that we are about to experience up here in the Northeast, and not one minute too soon. I mean, it’s nice to have clothing choices and all but I’d really, really like to put away the turtleneck sweaters already. Today the air is Florida-warm and velvety-breezy enough to blow this whole crazy week right out of my mind, so I looked to the Mr. Boston Summer Cocktails book as the linchpin to make sure that happens. Edited by the affable and talented duo of Anthony Giglio and Jim Meehan, this pretty aqua-blue book has around 100 truly outstanding cocktails skewed for the warm weather and the delicious fruits that come along with it. “Whether you’re simply muddling fresh mint with limes or painstakingly pitting cherries to mash into simple syrup, the results always far outweigh the task, imbuing your drinks with flavor and intensity that can only come from fresh, unprocessed fruit.” Amen, brothers.
My local farmers’ market opens for the season tomorrow morning, and you can bet I’ll be there at 8am sharp ready to get my first glimpse and smell of the spring’s early harvest. Tonight, though, I’m going to cheat a little—I’ve got some fresh strawberries in my ‘fridge (I just couldn’t resist them at the grocery store this week—gimme summer!) and they are going to do quite nicely for Giglio and Meehan’s recipe for the Company B, sipped in the setting sun on my deck to welcome in a well-deserved weekend. Cheers.
What's your favorite summery cocktail?
Company B
- 1 fresh strawberry, hulled
- 1/2 oz. fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 oz. agave nectar
- 1/2 oz Campari
- 1/2 oz. triple sec
- 1 1/2 oz. blanco tequila
- Garnish: strawberry slice
In a mixing glass, muddle the strawberry. Add the rest of the ingredients, top with ice cubes, cover, and shake thoroughly. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass and garnish with the strawberry slice.
That sounds good, too, Amy!
Truth is, I have very little opportunity to drink. I refuse to drink alone, and whenever I am in a social situation, I usually have to drive. Consequently, not including all the wine I use in cooking, I probably drink in a year what others normally might drink in one long night out with friends. And because I don't drink much, that which I do usually goes to my head real fast! I've lost my tolerance for alcohol.
But when I do drink, I usually ask for a Marguerita with half the normal amount of tequila. People think I'm strange asking a bartender to short me on the booze, but they would think me stranger if I started walking crooked and spilling stuff over everybody, too! I'm just pathetic, lol! 
