Alcohol

Call me boring, but I prefer my sweets on the simpler side, and I drive my pastry chefs crazy with my penchant for, well, plain vanilla. When it comes to custards, I’m a particularly staunch traditionalist. So, when pastry chef Roxana Jullapat told me about her coconut flan, I was skeptical. But its elegant and classic presentation charmed me instantly—a snow white cylindrical custard oozing with golden caramel syrup and surrounded by Elgin Marble apricots simmered in Beaumes de Venise, orange juice, and spices. Roxana’s coconut flan convinced me that there’s life beyond a vanilla pot de crème (which is also delicious! See page 235).

In Italy, there are many variations of semifreddo, which, literally translated, means “partially frozen.” Sometimes a semifreddo is made from sponge cake layered with slightly frozen cream; other times it’s cake-free, simply a lighter version of ice cream. At Lucques, we make this semifreddo from an uncooked “custard” base that has beaten egg whites (to make it buoyant and light) and whipped cream (to prevent it from freezing completely) folded into it. The result is a creamy frozen dessert that doesn’t require an ice cream maker or a true custard cooked at the stovetop. Strawberry and rhubarb are a classic combination, but though it’s tempting to temper the sourness of the rhubarb with sweet strawberries, I prefer the intense mouth-puckering quality of rhubarb on its own. This is a great party dessert since you can prepare all the components ahead of time.

This not-too-sweet tart is the perfect ending to a spring meal. The key to keeping the pastry nice and crisp is to bake it ahead and then scoop out some of the center, to make room for the filling. Don’t overmix the ricotta filling or you’ll smooth away those luscious natural curds in the cheese. At Lucques, we add dried blueberries to the fresh blueberry compote, giving it an unexpected chewiness.

The first incarnation of this dish did not include rice. Tasting it over and over again, I knew it needed a final element that would bring its flavors into harmony: nutty farro, meaty bass, pungent green garlic, sweet pea shoots, tart tangerines. I racked my brain for just the right thing, then remembered a sample of black rice I had stashed in my desk drawer weeks before. I had little experience with black rice—varieties of rice whose kernels are covered by extremely dark bran. The black rice I found was grown in the salt marshes of the Veneto, so I cooked it in an Italian style. As I would for risotto, I sautéed the rice in olive oil to seal the outer layer and toast it slightly. Then I deglazed with white wine, added water, and let it simmer away. When the rice was done, I found it solved my problem perfectly. The rice’s marshy origins gave it a subtle oceany taste, complementing the fresh fish and giving the entire dish a springtime-by-the sea coherence. What’s more, there was a visual bonus: the black rice was gorgeous to behold, coated in its own deep purple sauce.

Poring through old cocktail books, we noted that every reputable bar had a house recipe for bitters. Originally we played with infusing bitter herbs and spices in absinthe but found the task too time-consuming and the results too inconsistent. We settled instead on a blend of different absinthes, Green Chartreuse, and bitters to create just the right balance of anise and bitterness.

This tea-infused vermouth was developed by EO bartender Milos Zica for the Quiet Storm cocktail (page 118). Also known as rooibos, South African red bush tea is a robust herbal tea with a rich mahogany color. We recommend the Silence rooibos tea blend from T Salon, which is where the cocktail’s name partially derives from. Like the Vermouth de Provence (opposite), this vermouth is created with the hot infusion method that requires steeping the tea and other ingredients in a small amount of vermouth to make a concentrate. The color of this infused vermouth is a rich pumpkin orange.

Peaches and bourbon is about as Southern as you can get. Drying the fruit before steeping is key—the flavors are concentrated and yield a strong, clean peach essence; fresh fruit, on the other hand, releases its water into the liquid and dilutes the infusion. The only problem with dried peaches is that they will soak up some of the bourbon, resulting in some loss, but it is worth it. Today, high-quality dried peaches are available in most supermarkets, which greatly simplifies the process. When the infused bourbon is tasted straight, the fruit flavor may seem subdued, but mixing it with sugar or sweetened ingredients awakens the peachiness. We created this infusion for our Pêche Bourbon cocktail (page 46).

Whereas dry vermouths are herbal, sweet vermouths are spice driven. When we decided to formulate our own sweet vermouth infusion with a deep, accentuated spiciness, we found the perfect warmth and fragrance in chai—the much-loved blend of black tea, cardamom, clove, cinnamon, and ginger. The resulting flavor is so sexy that you will feel like you have been kissed by a Bollywood beauty. This intoxicating concoction is the defining ingredient in our Mata Hari cocktail (page 102).

Plymouth gin has a slightly floral nature. We accentuated it with dried lavender, creating a fast and versatile infusion with many possibilities. This infusion is visually stunning—the herb colors the gin with a slight hue of dark lavender. We use it as the base for our Provençal cocktail (page 49) and recommend it for making a lavender fizz or even an Aviation cocktail (page 63) made with lemon juice, maraschino liqueur, and infused gin.

Hibiscus is used throughout the Middle East and Latin America to make a ruby-red herbal tea. You can find the flowers at a tea or herb retailer. This hibiscus cordial is the brainchild of our bar manager and long-time friend Robert Krueger. This cleverly designed cordial brings out a rich color, beautiful floral notes, and a nice citrus flavor from the dried hibiscus flowers. It’s the main ingredient in Rob’s Roselle cocktail (page 71). Vodka and brandy serve to fortify the cordial for longer use.

How to Mix Drinks or the Bon Vivant’s Companion offers a recipe for English Bishop that involves sketchy directions and an open fire. It took some trial and error, but we adapted it to a standard oven. The infusion can be a cocktail sipped on its own, or an ingredient that can be mixed into other cocktails; we use it in our Jersey Devil cocktail (page 99).

When first conceiving Employees Only, we knew we wanted to create our own house vermouths. We abandoned the idea of making our vermouth from raw wine and decided instead to use dry vermouth as a base for an infusion of additional herbs. The primary flavors in dry vermouth are rosemary, thyme, lavender, and anise—the same botanicals that make up the herbes de Provence blend used in cooking. To extract and transfuse flavors, we use a hot infusion method to create just a small amount of highly concentrated liquid that can be blended with the rest of a bottle of vermouth without cooking out all the alcohol. This controlled method of infusing reduces the amount of contact between alcohol and herbs—if left to steep too long, the finish is bitter. EO Vermouth de Provence is one of the key ingredients in the Provençal cocktail (page 49).

Grenadine has suffered a tragic alteration at the hand of commercial producers, who have made it into an artificially flavored and colored, high-fructose corn syrup travesty that has nothing to do with the fruit for which it is named. (The word “grenadine” comes from the Spanish word for pomegranate, grenada.) Determined to revive the real deal, we crafted our own recipe using POM Wonderful pomegranate juice. We fortify it with Cardenal Mendoza aged Spanish brandy to help preserve it and add an additional depth of flavor. Alternatively, try our Employees Only brand (see the Resources section).

This is our favorite sangria recipe—it involves a little more effort than the usual sangria, but its flavor is far more complex than just wine mixed with orange juice. It really should be enjoyed with food, preferably tapas and small plates. It is an excellent companion to cheese and fish as well.

White Sangria is something you really want in the summertime when nothing is going on and it’s hot and very humid outside. We developed this recipe about six years ago and have loved it ever since. Highly suggested for afternoon gatherings and finger foods.

We found this recipe in Jerry Thomas’s 1862 How to Mix Drinks or the Bon Vivant’s Companion, in a recipe for a single serving. It called for Holland gin—or genever, as we know it today—and was probably a very popular drink. The back story is that when planning our first End of Prohibition party we were searching for punch recipes that could be served in teacups. So we started going through books and shot a few ideas back and forth until we found papa Jerry’s recipe. We replaced the genever with Plymouth gin, and with a few more tweaks we got it perfect. The decorative ice block adds a great visual effect.

This is one of our End of Prohibition party special punch recipes and it was adapted from the Philadelphia Fish House punch, which was a favorite of Generals Washington and Lafayette. We replaced the original cognac with our local Laird’s AppleJack and got something fantastic as a result. We use all seasonal fruits for this—a beautiful feature that also makes it extra tasty.

Who will have the last word? Well, obviously, the bartender! We always have the last word, because we have the goodies—the booze. So when an experienced bartender says something to you, listen, because it may well be a recommendation for this tasty cocktail. The Last Word is a mishmash of high-octane fuels, yet it comes out surprisingly balanced and delicate. Beware: have too many and this cocktail will have the last word. Allegedly this Prohibition-era cocktail’s origins are traced back to the Detroit Athletic Club, where it was invented by a gentleman named Frank Fogarty. He was said to be “a very fine monologue artist,” which is probably how the drink got its name. One thing is certain: this cocktail is now in the top five of cocktail geekdom, appearing in bars all over the country. Made properly, it is truly a wonderful concoction.

According to cocktail historians, this cocktail first appeared in print in 1895 in Modern American Drinks by George J. Kappeler. Although this drink has fallen into obscurity today, it appeared in every respectable cocktail book printed in the early twentieth century, with the same easy recipe. It seems this drink always had the favor of knowledgeable bartenders and connoisseurs, as its unique blend of flavors could be very challenging to the untrained palate of the casual drinker. In other words, this drink is best recommended for people who have moved beyond simple straightforward flavors and are looking for a carnival in the mouth. The Widow’s Kiss is a seasonal experience best enjoyed when it is cold outside. This classic cocktail is also one of the few cocktails we recommend as a digestive or an after-dinner cocktail.

This frothy and very yummy long drink was invented in 1888 by Henry C. Ramos, bartender at Meyer’s Restaurant in New Orleans. Because the cocktail requires a lot of shaking, the bar used to hire so-called “shaker boys,” who would just shake one cocktail after another in times of heavy business. The Ramos Gin Fizz is a full-blown classic nowadays and is ordered regularly all the time, but it was intended to be enjoyed as a pick-me-up or an eye-opener. Meaning—in the morning. Shocking, isn’t it, how our forefathers used to drink? The key ingredient is the orange blossom water; just those few drops give the cocktail its definitive character. Widely popularized before, during, and after Prohibition at the Roosevelt Hotel in New Orleans, it has spawned countless variations—and it’s still enjoyed on porches across the South as the sun is setting.