Liquor: Grapefruit Rosemary Diamond Fizz

IIIIIIIIII have just discovered my new favourite morning drink! This is the MOST fun, because I think mimosas and Bloody Marys, while awesome, are totally played out. I get bored easily. When you're hosting a nice fancy brunch, you want to be able to offer something unique!

Alternatively this drink is classy and snazzy enough for an elegant evening dinner, perhaps with fish or a salad since it involves a light, dry prosecco. That's why it's called a diamond fizz instead of a regular gin fizz--prosecco/champagne trumps regular club soda or tonic water here. Cuz we fancy. Fancy doesn't have to cost an arm and a leg, though--I picked up a bottle of Penny Stamp Prosecco at my local World Market for $7. When it costs less than a bottle of wine, you don't have to wait for a special occasion to break out the bubbles. A Thursday will do. Thursdays are great. Thursdays are Friday Eve, the pre-weekend. DO IT!

Oh! And I have to share this COOLEST OF COOL gadget I also found at World Market, the Rabbit Champagne Sealer. This little doo-dad expands to fit champagne and wine bottles of pretty much any size so that it doesn't go flat in the fridge until your next opportunity to drink. And it really works! How cool is that!

I am such a simple child.

I've gotten so used to using garnishes on drinks as an accompaniment, but champagne based drinks really don't require it and the shape of the glass doesn't reeeeeally lend itself to such. So it doesn't LOOK terribly fancy, and my photography sucks, but trust me--it's light, bubbly, delicious, and not too sweet.

What You Need
makes 1 bubbly cocktail

1 tablespoon of our previously made rosemary simple syrup
2 ounces fresh squeezed grapefruit juice (I had some tucked away from my most recent batch of Grapefruit Crushes)
1 ounce gin
Champagne or Prosecco, to top off

What You Do
1. In a cocktail shaker filled with ice, shake the rosemary simple syrup, grapefruit juice, and gin together for 30 seconds until the mixer is frosty. Pour into a champagne flute and top off with prosecco or champagne.

Liquor: Rosemary Gin Rickey

Two cocktails in a row, woot woot! Yeeeaaaaaah buddy, I've been breaking out of my wine-only rut and am back to experimenting with the cocktail shaker. I think I got stuck in between ginger flavours and tequila for awhile, so I'm excited to have something new to present to you: a Rosemary Gin Rickey, from photographer Elizabeth Morrow. You can find the original recipe here.

Rosemary is a tricky ingredient, for me. It can be overwhelming at times, a strange combination of woody and floral fragrance and taste. I was intrigued to give this a try, and let me tell you, I am a full-on fan. The rosemary simple syrup is just subtle enough to that you only get a TASTE of rosemary, and the garnish of fresh rosemary provides the perfect whiff as you sip. As I noted before with the Pimm's Cup, in many cases, a cocktail garnish is NOT optional!!! A garnish serves the very important purpose of stimulating your sense of smell, which is of course closely tied to your sense of taste and part of the whole experience of a cocktail. A garnish is a complement to the drink. USE IT. 

Serve like so for effect, but of course, drop that baby tree into your drink before taking your first sip. I can't believe I actually have to tell people that, but there you go.

First, you must make the Rosemary Simple Syrup.

What You Need

makes 1 cup of simple syrup; scale as necessary

1 cup white granulated sugar

1 cup filtered water

4 sprigs fresh rosemary

What You Do

1. Making any simple syrup has the same (simple, hah) process: combine 1 part filtered water to 1 part sugar (usually white granulated) plus your flavouirng agent. You may recall we've used one before with before with the smashing Lemon Ginger Martini, with the original recipe being explained in the Carlos O'Brien. So all you do here is combine the ingredients in a small pot and bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring often to make sure the sugar doesn't burn or stick to the bottom of the pan. Let it boil for 1 minute such that the sugar is completely dissolved, then cover and remove from the heat. Let steep for 30 minutes, drain out the rosemary sprigs, and store in the fridge in an airtight container.

I absolutely adored the light, baby-spring-green colour the simple syrup wound up having (not evident in the photo above, unfortunately). You also eat with your eyes, after all! Onwards we go.

Rosemary Gin Rickey
makes 1 drink

What You Need
1 ounce rosemary simple syrup
1 ounce freshly squeezed lime juice
1.5 ounces gin
club soda (I always prefer tonic water) to top off
spring of rosemary + white granulated sugar for garnish

What You Do
1. In a cocktail shaker over lots of ice, combine the first three ingredients. Shake for 30 seconds until the shaker is frosty. Pour into a highball glass over ice and top off with bubbles to your desired strength. Moisten a sprig of rosemary with water and roll around in some white sugar to give it that pretty, frosted look.

Oh, and hint hint--this would be a fantastically complementary pre-dinner cocktail for that Short Rib Ragu.

Lekker: Brunch-y Sweet Potato Hash

After my wild bumper crop of gigantic sweet potatoes from our back garden, combined with a spur-of-the-moment visit into town by one of my cousins this past weekend, I knew it was the perfect occasion for my favourite fall brunch dish: Sweet Potato Hash. This is perfect for the morning after Thanksgiving and makes such lovely use of seasonal produce. It can even be made up to two days in advance of when you plan to serve it, hence being perfect for Thanksgiving-morning-after: just reheat it in the oven at 400 for about 15 minutes until warm. With a fried egg on top it's a complete meal, filling and delicious.

Give it a whirl this Sunday, and gents--this is a surefire way to absolutely, unequivocally impress your lady friend the morning after. Don't say I never did anything for you.

My egg is not pretty here. I was being time-constructive and cooking several in a pan at once, hence the unattractive cut lines. But, an egg is still an egg and when you burst the yolk of this over-easy beauty it creates a lovely sauce to meld with the hash underneath.

Brunch-y Sweet Potato Hash
serves 4

What You Need
2 tablespoons butter
1 large or two medium onions, peeled and sliced into half-moons
about 1/2 pound (or 4 links) Italian sausage; I like to use HOT but you could use mild too
2 large or 3 small sweet potatoes, peeled and diced into bite-sized pieces
3 large garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
Olive oil, about 2-3 tablespoons
salt & pepper, to taste

Large eggs, to serve--and some fresh grated Parmesan cheese, if you really wanna go all out (And come on, you're making all this effort, right? May as well.)

What You Do
1. Preheat the oven to 450. In a large saucepan or skillet, heat the butter until it melts and add your chopped onions. Cook over medium-low heat for about 20 minutes until they're well browned and nicely caramelised. It'll probably take about that long for your oven to heat up, plus you can be peeling and dicing the sweet potato and garlic at this time too.

2. Squeeze the sausage out of its natural casings onto a separate plate and break it up a bit with your fingers. Toss that into the skillet with the onions and cook over medium heat until it's well browned and cooked through, breaking up with a wooden spoon until it's all nicely crumbled.

3. In a large bowl, toss your diced sweet potato, dried rosemary, and fresh minced garlic with the olive oil until well coated and seasoned to your liking. Line a large baking sheet with foil.

4. So, your onions are now caramelised and brown and delicious smelling and the sausage has cooked through. Excellent. Toss that goodness into the bowl with the sweet potatoes and stir up nicely with a big wooden spoon. Spread out onto the baking sheet in one even layer, and pop into the oven.

5. Pour yourself a mimosa and enjoy your lovely brunch company for the next 20-30 minutes or until the sweet potatoes have roasted through. You'll know when you stick a piece with your fork and it goes through tenderly. I like to dice my sweet potatoes pretty small because they'll roast faster.

Just before the hash is finished roasting, you have the option to cook up some eggs to serve on top. Everyone in my little group wanted something different, so I told them all to shut up and they all got over easy. Everyone can make their peace with over easy! :)

Cheers to enjoying a beautiful weekend morning with beloved friends.

Original recipe found here, but I find the instructions a bit time-consuming for my impatient self (and really hate fresh rosemary) so this is my version.