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TIP OF THE DAY: Serve Punch To A Crowd

May 3, 2012 at 8:08 am · Filed under Cinco de Mayo-Dia De Los Muertos, Cocktails & Spirits


Punch is a festive and easy way to serve a
crowd. Photo courtesy El Jimador.

  

If you’re expecting a large crowd on Cinco de Mayo, a bowl of punch can make your life easier. It holds a large amount and guests serve themselves, sparing you from the mixologist job. And, guests love a good punch.

Here are two punch recipes, including a frozen Margarita punch. Separately, here are 10 punch making tips.

The first punch recipe is courtesy El Jimador tequila. It combines tequila with bubbly—in this case, Prosecco.

PUNCH #1: CINCO PUNCH

Ingredients

  • 1 bottle silver/blanco tequila
  • 1 bottle Prosecco
  • 4 ounces Aperol (substitute: Campari)
  • 48 ounces/1.5 liters pink grapefruit juice
  • 25 ounces/750ml honey syrup (recipe below, or substitute simple syrup)
  • Garnishes: pomegrante seeds, raspberries, lime discs and pink grapefruit discs
  • Equipment: punch bowl,* glasses and ladle
    		•
     

    *You can pick up a plastic punch bowl at a party store for around $10.00. Or, you can use a large pitcher.

    Preparation

    1. MAKE ICE. The best ice for punch bowls is lump or block ice. It melts slowly, keeps the punch much colder for longer and reduces the dilution. Make it by filling a balloon with water; tie off the balloon and place it in a bowl in the freezer the night before.

    2. PLACE BOWL. Place the punch bowl on the table you intend to serve from. A full punch bowl is very heavy to move (not to mention, it sloshes).

    3. ADD ICE. Place ice carefully into the punch bowl.

    4. ADD LIQUIDS. Next, add all the liquid ingredients. Stir gently but thoroughly.

    5. GARNISH. Garnish with raspberries, pomegranate seeds, lime discs and pink grapefruit discs.

    HONEY SYRUP INGREDIENTS

    Like simple syrup, honey syrup is made in a 1:1 proportion of sugar/honey to water. There are about 3 cups in 750 ml.

    Ingredients

  • 1.5 cups honey
  • 1.5 cups water

    •  
    Preparation

    1. In a small saucepan, heat honey over low-medium heat.

    2. Add water bit by bit, whisking until fully incorporated.

    3. Cool, then refrigerate until ready to use. Bring to room temperature before adding to punch.

    PUNCH #2: FROZEN MARGARITA PUNCH RECIPE

    Turn the staple frozen Margarita into a punch with this recipe.

    Ingredients

  • 4 cans (12 ounces each) frozen limeade concentrate, thawed and undiluted
  • 3 quarts water
  • 3 cups Cointreau, Grand Marnier or other orange liqueur
  • 3 cups silver/blanco tequila
  • 2 bottles (2 liters each) lemon-lime soda
  • Garnishes: lemon slices, orange slices, berries

    •  
    Preparation

    1. MIX. Combine the limeade, water, orange liqueur and tequila. Freeze at least 8 hours, stirring twice during the freezing process.

    2. THAW. Remove from freezer 30 minutes before serving.

    3. ASSEMBLE. Break into chunks in punch bowl. Add soda and stir until slushy.

    3. GARNISH. Garnish with lime and orange slices and berries.

      

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    TOP PICK OF THE WEEK: BT Brownies

    May 2, 2012 at 8:15 am · Filed under Cookies-Cake-Pastry, Giftable, Top Pick Of The Week

    Need a Mother’s Day gift that’s sure to please?

    Some of our favorite brownies are made by artisan bakery, BT Baking.

    Moist and fudgy—but never cloying or “too rich”—the brownies are made in four fab flavors:

  • Chocolate Brownie, the classic, made with 70% cacao
  • Cookie Brownie, with a layer of chocolate chip cookie
  • Peanut Butter Brownie, with a thick layer of peanut butter
  • Salted Caramel Brownie, the latest, and luscious

    •  
    Read the full review, or head to BTBaking.com.

    Love Brownies?

    Check out the history of brownies.

    		  
    Brownies, in an attractive gift box, are individually wrapped for freshness. Photo by Corey Lugg | THE NIBBLE.
     
      

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    TIP OF THE DAY: Michelada For Cinco de Mayo Or Anytime You Want A Beer Cocktail

    May 2, 2012 at 7:48 am · Filed under Cinco de Mayo-Dia De Los Muertos, Cocktails & Spirits, Food Facts - Food History, Food Holidays, International Foods

    Michelada Beer Cocktail
    [1] A tall, cold michelada is begging for your attention on Cinco de Mayo (photo © Bohemia Beer).

    Michelada
    [2] A chelada cup (photo © Clamato).

    		  

    July 12th is National Michelada Day. If you like beer and tabasco, it’s a drink you should try.

    A michelada (mee-cha-LAH-da) is a traditional Mexican beer cocktail (“cerveza preparada,” in Spanish). It consists of beer, lime, and hot sauce served over ice in a salt-rimmed glass.

    The history of the michelada is below. Thanks to Bohemia Beer—one of our favorite Mexican beers—for these michelada recipes.

    > The history of the Michelada is below, as is a second Michelada cocktail recipe.
     
     
    MICHELADA #1: CHIPOTLE MICHELADA

    Ingredients

  • 2 fresh lime wedges, cut in half
  • Chipotle rimming salt (recipe below)
  • 1 tablespoon chipotle hot sauce (we use the Frontera brand) or 1 teaspoon puréed canned chipotles en adobo
  • Ice
  • 6 ounces chilled Bohemia beer or other Mexican beer*
  • 1 slice cucumber for garnish

    •  
    ________________

    *You can use any lager you have on hand, but Mexican beer celebrates the spirit of the holiday.
    ________________

    Preparation

    1. Use a piece of the lime wedge to wet the rim of a tall glass. Dip the rim of the glass into the chipotle rimming salt.

    2. Squeeze the juice from the remaining lime pieces into the glass and then add all the lime pieces. Stir in the chipotle hot sauce or puréed chipotles in adobo. Fill the glass with ice.

    3. Pour in the beer. Mix gently. Garnish the glass rim with a notched cucumber slice. Serve.

    Chipotle Rimming Salt Recipe

    Thoroughly mix 2 tablespoons coarse (kosher or sea) salt and 1 tablespoon ground chipotle chile powder in a small bowl. Pour out onto a small plate to use for rimming beer glasses.
     
    MICHELADA #2: CHELADA

    Short for michelada, the chelada is a michelada variation with sauce, spices and chile. This version uses the fixings of a Bloody Mary.

  • 3 ounces cold Mexican beer
  • 3 ounces chilled tomato juice
  • Several dashes Worcestershire Sauce, Maggi Sauce† and hot sauce

    •  
    Preparation

    Pour the ingredients into a tall glass filled with, ice and stir.
     
     
    MICHELADA HISTORY

    The Michelada dates to Mexico in the 1940s or early 1950, when ice cubes became commonly available in bars. There are two widely legends about the origin of the name, plus our third choice, the most likely version.

  • One story says that the Michelada was invented by a man named Michel Ésper at the Club Deportivo Potosino in San Luís Potosí, a town in east-central Mexico. He is said to have drunk his beer with lime, salt, ice and a straw, in a special cup called a chabela (photo #2). The members of the club started asking for beer as “Michel’s lemonade,” with the name shortening over time to michelada.
  • The next story claims that the drink was named after Mexican general Augusto Michel, also of San Luís Potosí. He reportedly liked to add chiles and a squeeze of lime to his beer. However, this story is known to have been made up by the sellers to “add mystique” to a product called MicheMix, a hot-sauce-and-lime seasoning in a Tabasco-like shaker bottle, used to flavor a Michelada [source].
  • The most likely derivation is the obvious: Chela is Latin-American slang for a blond, blue-eyed woman, and by extension a light beer. Helada means iced; thus, the contraction chelada means beer with ice. Add mi for “my iced beer.”
  • Just to split hairs, some Mexicans order beer on ice with lime juice and hot sauce added to the beer itself, and call it a Cubana.” The origin is unclear.

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    ________________

    †Maggi Sauce, made by Nestlé, is a seasoning of salt, spices and pepper. The recipe varies around the world, based on local tastes. You can substitute soy sauce and freshly-ground pepper.

     
     

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