[2] A Bourbon & Peach Smash. Here’s the recipe from Imbibe Magazine (photo courtesy Imbibe Magazine).

[3] This Tequila & Sage Smash is served in a tall glass with ice cubes (photo courtesy Imbibe Magazine).

[4] Basil Hayden’s Bourbon is made in small batches by Beam Suntory (photo courtesy Basil Hayden’s).

The only problem with this stunning cocktail is that kids will clamor for it.

Otherwise, it’s a deliciously refreshing summer smash (double entendre: smash is the name of the cocktail category). Just make it in a kid-free environment.

The recipe came to us from Basil Hayden’s Bourbon. It was crafted by mixologist Benjamin Schiller of Chicago, who called it the Market Street Smash (a local reference).

It’s easy to make, and it comes with a history (below).
 
 
COCKTAIL RECIPE: BLACKBERRY SMASH

Ingredients Per Drink

 
Preparation

1. COMBINE all ingredients in a mixing tin and muddle the blackberries. Add ice, shake and strain over crushed ice in a rocks glass.

2. GARNISH with a sprig of mint and 3 blackberries.
 
 
WHAT’S A SMASH COCKTAIL?

Smash is a family of easy-to-make cocktails that generally include a:

 
Imbibe Magazine calls them “those fruity, icy concoctions that highlight the best of the cocktail season

The Cocktail Novice notes, “It’s like a Mint Julep with seasonal fruit.” Adds Imbibe: “a smash is a julep, but a julep is not always a smash.

Here are Cocktail Novice’s recipes for:

 
From Imbibe Magazine:

 
 
THE HISTORY OF THE SMASH COCKTAIL

Per Imbibe Magazine, one of the earliest examples of a smash is a julep recipe in Jerry Thomas’ 1862 The Bartender’s Guide.

Thomas doesn’t mention the cocktail by name, but his definition of the julep “clearly lays the foundation for the future of the category.”

Thomas, who literally wrote the book—the first cocktail recipe book—begins by calling the julep a “peculiarly American beverage” that is most popular in the South.

He qualifies that a “real Mint Julep” must be made from a dozen mint leaves, a spoonful of white sugar and “equal parts peach and common brandy,” topped with crushed ice (and he acknowledges that there were many versions in existence).

In 1888, barman Harry Johnson distinguishes the smashes from the julep, and includes four distinct smash recipes:
“His Old Style Whiskey Smash is a casual concoction of sugar, water, mint, ‘small pieces’ of ice [crushed or shaved ice], and one ‘wineglass’ of whiskey (about 2 ounces). He added that to a glass with ‘fruits in season,’ gave it a mix, and served it with a julep strainer.”

Subsequent cocktail books include the smash in the category of juleps. In 1930 The Savoy Cocktail Book mentions a choice of spirits: “Either Bacardi Rum, Brandy, Gin, Irish Whisky or Scotch Whisky as fancy dictates” [source].

Subsequent cocktail books include the smash in the category of juleps. In 1930 The Savoy Cocktail Book mentions a choice of spirits: “Either Bacardi Rum, Brandy, Gin, Irish Whisky or Scotch Whisky as fancy dictates” [source].

Our fancy this summer is a Blackberry Smash.

(Why is it called a smash? Our guess is that in the days before crushed ice machines, the ice was smashed with a hammer.)
 
 

You put cranberry sauce on turkey sandwiches, don’t you? Mango chutney on chicken or cheddar sandwiches? Goat cheese or brie with fig jam?

How about fresh fruit?

Fruit and cheese, a perfect complement on a plate, do equally well on a baguette, croissant or other bread.

Lush stone fruits are a perfect complement, particularly ripe and juicy nectarines, peaches and plums. (With a sandwich, even barely-ripe works).

In the cooler months, turn to apples, grapes, pears, orange, raisins and other dried fruits, including coconut.
 
 
FRUITED SANDWICH TRICKS

 
 
SUMMER FRUIT & SANDWICH RECIPES

 
 
YEAR-ROUND FRUIT & SANDWICHES RECIPES FOR SUMMER

 
 
SWEET RECIPES FOR DESSERT OR SNACK

________________

*Gjetost (JEE-nust) is a unique, caramelized, fudgy cheese that some say tastes like dulce de leche or a Sugar Daddy. A blend of cow’s and goat’s milk is boiled until caramelization occurs, then packed into blocks. The taste is super unique but If I had to compare it to something, I wo.
 
 
RECIPE: GOAT CHEESE & PEACH SANDWICH WITH CILANTRO

This recipe from Good Eggs was the inspiration for today’s tip. The recipe was adapted from one in Samin Nosrat’s cookbook, Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat: Mastering the Elements of Good Cooking.

This recipe works well as a wrap and go sandwich for lunch or snacks.
 
Ingredients For 4 Sandwiches

[2] In the summer, head for the stone fruits. Slice ‘em, dice ‘em, picked ‘em (photo courtesy Washington State Fruit Commission).

[3] Grapes are available year-round. Pick red grapes for more color, and be sure they’re seedless (photo courtesy Sun World).

[4] Berries are a treat on cheese sandwiches. Even if they’re not sweet enough for eating plain, no added sugar is needed on a sandwich (photo courtesy Green Giant Fresh).

[5] Gjetost, a caramelized cheese from Norway that tastes like dulce de leche.

 
Preparation

1. SLICE the baguette into 4 pieces, and slice each in half. Toast as desired.

2. SLICE the log of goat cheese into 8 coins.

3. SLICE around the hemisphere of each peach, and twist to pull apart. Remove the pit, and slice the peach into wedges.

4. PICK the cilantro leaves from their stems.

5. ASSEMBLE: Layer 2 slices of goat cheese onto four of the slices of baguette, and top with a few peach wedges and cilantro leaves. Top each sandwich with another slice of bread, and serve.
  

[2] Traditional Bourbon Milk Punch, made with half-and-half instead of ice cream (photo © The Cocktail Project).

[3] Make Bourbon Milk Punch even more festive by using your coupe glasses (photo © Bread Booze Bacon).

[4] Maker’s Mark bourbon (photo courtesy Beam Suntory).

This recipe was a big hit this weekend chez nous (we add the French in homage to the heritage of New Orleans, which was founded in 1718 by the French as Nouvelle-Orléans).

This recipe is from one of the popular restaurants of the Brennan family, Bourbon House.

Bourbon milk punch is a local specialty in New Orleans. When the restaurant opened in 2002, Dickie Brennan and his team set wanted to create a noteworthy versopm pf Bourbon Milk Punch.

“Through much trial and the occasional error,” says the website, “the Frozen Bourbon Milk Punch was born.” [Editor’s lament: Why don’t we ever get in on these trial and error tastings?]

The Bourbon House inspiration: add vanilla ice cream to create Frozen Bourbon Milk Punch.

The final recipe combined house-made vanilla gelato and Old Forester Bourbon in a frozen daiquiri machine.

Where Magazine New Orleans included the drink on the list their “30 Favorite Things About New Orleans.” Tales of the Toddy has voted it the “Best Milk Punch.”

And now, the Bourbon House team invites you to create it drink at home, using your blender. The regular milk punch version from Brennan’s restaurants is below.

Another time to celebrate: June 14th is National Bourbon Day.
 
 
RECIPE #1: FROZEN BOURBON MILK PUNCH

Ingredients For 4 Servings

 
Preparation

Combine all ingredients and blend until smooth. Pour into rocks glasses and garnish with nutmeg.

For a taller, colder drink, add ice cubes to a collins glass.
 
 
RECIPE #2: BRENNAN’S BRANDY MILK PUNCH

This, and other cognac-based milk punches, often use Napoleon brandy, a designation for brandy or cognac aged at least five years. Feel free to use VSOP; with all the cream and sugar, the nuances of the Napoleon will be covered up.

If you don’t like or don’t have brandy, you can substitute bourbon, rum, whiskey, and even tequila.

Ingredients Per Drink

 
Plus

 
Preparation

1. COMBINE the ingredients in a cocktail shaker filled with ice.

2. SHAKE vigorously and pour into a chilled old-fashioned glass. Garnish with nutmeg.

________________

*We prefer less sweetness, so we reduce the simple syrup by half. We also had homemade cinnamon simple syrup on hand, a nice added twist.

Milk punch is in the category of drinks made with milk or cream: Brandy Alexander, Classic Ramos Gin Fizz, Grasshopper, Irish Coffee, Mudslide, Pink Squirrel, White Russian, and many others (hey—another idea for a themed cocktail party: cream-based cocktails).

The recipe combines brandy or bourbon with milk, sugar, and vanilla extract, and a typical garnished of grated nutmeg.

Milk punch was popularized in the 17th century by Aphra Behn, one of the first English women to earn her living by her writing. At the time, all types of punch were served from a punch bowl.

The milk punch of the era was made with cream curdled with lemon juice. Those recipes gave way to milk punches that use(d) fresh milk or cream, like egg nog—which is a milk punch enriched with eggs.

Milk punches—egg nog or other—became holiday and celebratory traditions (for example, Mardi Gras).

In modern-day New Orleans, milk punches vie as brunch drinks with the Bloody Mary, created in 1940 in New York City (Bloody Mary history).

There are as many recipes for milk punch as for anything else, but for Mardi Gras, we serve up the recipe from Brennan’s, a favorite New Orleans restaurant since 1946.

For a 17th-century-type recipe, try Benjamin Franklin’s recipe. He used brandy and included lots of lemon juice (which curdled the milk).
 
  

Our question: Why eat heavy pecan pie during the summer—not to mention add rich chocolate to it—when there are so many seasonal, ephemeral berries and stone fruits to turn into pies?

Our tip: Keep this recipe from Melissa Clark of The New York Times for the fall, when a hearty, dense pie is just the thing to stick to the ribs.

Don’t be tempted to substitute milk chocolate or semisweet chocolate chips. Pecan pie is sweet enough.

The bittersweet chocolate specified here is just the thing: intense chocolate flavor without a lot of added sugar.

Two tablespoons of bourbon add just a hint of flavor. Try it, and if you want to add more next time—or some praline liqueur—go for it.

Ms. Clark’s pie has a conventional pie crust. You can also use a chocolate wafer crumb crust.

Pecan pie is traditionally garnished with whipped cream. Given the sweetness of the pie, a dollop of of unsweetened whipped cream, crème fraîche or sour cream is just right.

Want to gild the lily? Drizzle chocolate sauce over the top of the pie.

Don’t like to bake? The easy way out is this excellent chocolate pecan pie filling from San Saba Pecan, spooned into a store-bought crust.

The history of pecan pie and the pecan itself is below.
 
 
RECIPE: MELISSA CLARK’S CHOCOLATE PECAN PIE (Photo #1)

For The Crust

 
For The Filling

 
Preparation

1. MAKE the crust: In a food processor, pulse together the flour and salt. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture forms chickpea-size pieces. Add the ice water 1 tablespoon at a time, and pulse until the dough just comes together. It should be moist but not wet.

2. GATHER the dough into a ball on a lightly floured surface, and flatten it into a disk with the heel of your hand. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, and up to 2 days.

3. REMOVE the plastic wrap and roll out the dough to a 12-inch circle, on a lightly floured surface. Transfer the crust to a 9-inch pie plate. Fold over any excess dough, then the crimp edges. Prick the crust all over with a fork. Chill the crust for 30 minutes. While the dough chills…

[1] Celebrate National Chocolate Pecan Pie Day with this yummy recipe (photo Andrew Scrivani | The New York Times).

[2] The Spanish explorers who encountered pecans called them “wrinkle nuts” (photo courtesy Home Depot).

[3] A pecan tree. If you live in warmer zones (6 through 9), you can grow your own (photo courtesy Perfect Plants Nursery). You can also grow the trees in zone 5, but they won’t bear nuts.

5. REDUCE the oven temperature to 350°F. Spread the pecans on a rimmed baking sheet and toast until fragrant, 8 to 10 minutes, shaking the pan occasionally. Cool.

6. MAKE the filling: In a small saucepan over low heat, melt the butter and chocolate, stirring until smooth. Cool.

7. WHISK together in a large bowl the cooled chocolate-butter mixture, corn syrup, eggs, sugar, cocoa powder, bourbon, and salt. Pour the mixture into the prepared crust. Arrange pecans over the filling.

8. TRANSFER to a large rimmed baking sheet and bake until the filling is just set when the pan is jiggled, 30 to 40 minutes. Remove the pie from the oven and cool completely on a wire rack before serving.
 

[4] Another way to make chocolate pecan pie: Drizzle chocolate on top, as in this recipe from Julia’s Treats And Eats.

[5] Hold the chocolate if you want a standard pecan pie (photo courtesy Good Eggs).

PECAN PIE HISTORY

It seems difficult to believe given the long history of pecan trees in the Colonial South*; but the pecan pie recipe we know, pecans on a brown sugar base, is a 20th-century invention. No recipes have been found dating to earlier than 1925.

According to FoodTimeline.com, The Fannie Farmer Cookbook and The Joy of Cooking did not include pecan pie recipes before 1940.

While some sources claim that early French settlers in New Orleans invented pecan pie after encountering the nuts (which they called pacane, after the Native American paka·n), food historians have not been able to trace the dish’s origin prior to 1925.

That doesn’t mean pecan pie didn’t exist, only that there is no record to prove it. Popular national cookbooks such as The Joy of Cooking and The Fannie Farmer Cookbook did not include the recipe prior to 1940.

Yes, there were pies made with pecans; they just weren’t pecan pies as we know them or called “pecan pie.” References dating to 1886 and 1914 added the nuts to a milk-based custard.

Then came a breakthrough on the road to modern pecan pie. In 1913, Mrs. Vesta Harrison of Fort Worth, then an unmarried teenager taking a cooking course, won a national competition with her Texas Pecan Pie, made with a filling of sorghum.

She said the recipe for this pecan pie came to her in a dream. When she told the teacher at her cooking school, a Mrs. Chitwood of Chicago, that she was going to make a pecan pie, the teacher exclaimed “There is no such thing!”

The future Mrs. Harrison, interviewed later in life, said she responded, “By gollies, I don’t know how, but I’m going to mess up something making a pecan pie.”

Mrs. Chitwood sent the recipe to the contest in Washington, where it won first prize. So even if there already was a syrup-based pecan pie somewhere in the U.S., it was unknown in Texas, Chicago or Washington [source].

Following the introduction of the sorghum-based pecan pie, versions were made with molasses.

Enter Karo Syrup & The Modern Pecan Pie

The modern pecan pie was born with the introduction of Karo Syrup, in 1902.

One of the earliest recipes to substitute the sorghum or molasses with Karo corn syrup was by Mrs. Frank Herring, published in the Sallislaw, Oklahoma Democrat American on February 19, 1931:

Printed on the bottle label, the makers of Karo Syrup popularized the recipe that many people use today. It has similar ingredients to Mrs. Herring’s recipe, minus the corn meal and adding vanilla extract. It doubles the amount of Karo syrup and sugar and triples the pecans. Here’s the recipe.

The Karo website says that the recipe was created in the 1930s by the wife of a senior sales executive. When the pie appeared on the bottle label and in magazines, it was known as Karo Pecan Pie.

This unnamed executive wife may well have seen, and adapted, Mrs. Herring’s 1931 recipe. The rest is sweet history; although as soon as we have time, we’re going back to make the Karo pie using the smaller amounts of sugars in the Herring recipe. When a scoop of vanilla ice cream is needed to cut the sweetness of a pie, you know it’s too sweet.
 
 
THE HISTORY OF THE PECAN TREE & ITS NUTS

The pecan, Carya illinoinensis (photo #3), is a member of the Juglandaceae family, known as the walnut family of trees. The trees are native to the Americas, Eurasia and Southeast Asia.

The family also includes the hickory, about 16 species of which are native to the Americas.

In America, the tree originated in central and eastern North America and in the river valleys of Mexico*. It evolved in North America millions of years ago.

The name “pecan” is a word of Algonquin origin that describes “all nuts requiring a stone to crack” or “a nut too hard to crack by hand.”

Long before Europeans arrived, pecans were widely consumed and traded by Native Americans. Nuts were an excellent food product for a pre-agricultural society, easy to harvest and store (and an excellent source of protein and other nutrients).

The first Europeans to come into contact with pecans were 16th-century Spanish explorers in what is now Mexico, Texas, and Louisiana. They called the pecan, nuez de la arruga, which means “wrinkle nut,” due to the deep lines resembling wrinkles in the nutmeats (photo #2). The explorers brought the pecan to Europe, Asia, and Africa beginning in the 16th century.

In the 17th century, both native Americans and settlers began seeing pecan trees as a potential source of income. Pecans could be traded and were integral dietary components, especially during times of difficult harvests. Some very influential people, including George Washington, were early proponents of pecan farming [source].

Thomas Jefferson planted pecan trees, Carya illinoinensis (“Illinois nuts”) in his nut orchard at Monticello, in Virginia. George Washington wrote in his journal that Jefferson gave him “Illinois nuts” to grow at Mount Vernon.

Pecan Trivia

 
The 15 pecan-producing states are Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Louisiana, Missouri, Mississippi, North Carolina, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Carolina, and Texas.

The U.S. produces more than 300 million pounds of pecans annually. In recent years pecan farmers have been planting thousands of additional acres of pecan orchards, so production is steadily increasing [source].
 
________________

*Currently, the largest pecan-producing states are, in order of tonnage: Georgia, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Louisiana, and Oklahoma. Pecans are grown coast to coast along the southern tier of the United States. The largest pecan orchard is Stahmann Farms in New Mexico.
 
 

(We give a waiver to Mike’s Hard Lemonade, a line of carbonated, flavored malt liquor drinks in a dozen or so flavors. It’s not lemonade per se, but we’re fans.)

Bottled lemonade drinks are not only pasteurized, which kills the fresh flavor; but typically use reconstituted lemon juice, which, of course, totally kills off the bright lemon flavor of fresh-squeezed juice.

Lemonade “made from concentrate” and sold in cartons like orange juice is the far better choice, as are cans of frozen lemonade concentrate.

But the best choice of all is to squeeze fresh lemons. It takes just five minutes to make a single glass, and you can adjust the sweetening to your own taste.

While plain fresh-squeezed lemonade is wonderful in of itself, it’s even more wonderful when you add a bit of glamour.
 
 
FOR A LEMONADE PARTY BAR

We leave our pitchers of lemonade unsweetened to accommodate every preference.

For a party, set up a bar where guests can add their own sweeteners—agave, honey, noncaloric sweetener, superfine sugar or simple syrup.

You can buy or easily make the latter two, which, unlike table sugar, dissolve easily in cold drinks.

 
 
LEMONADE RECIPE TIPS & TRICKS

1. Make Fancy Ice

 
2. Other “Formats”

 
3. Flavored Lemonade

You can flavor the lemonade or set out a “flavor bar” so guests can add their own:

 
4. Sweeteners

 
5. Garnishes

 
6. One Glass Or One Pitcher

 
 
RECIPES: FLAVORED & SPECIALTY LEMONADE

 
ADULT LEMONADE RECIPES

[1] Add your favorite flavor counterpoints, from berries to cucumber. Muddle as desired (photo courtesy True Food Kitchen | Facebook).

[2] Some like it hot: They can add some jalapeño slices or other hot and spicy ingredients (photo courtesy Melissa’s).

[3] Add a tart-and-sweet rim: lemon or lime zest, plain or mixed with sugar (photo courtesy Saint Marc Pub-Café).

[4] Garnish with your favorite herbs. We like the counterpoint of basil, mint or rosemary (photo courtesy Fig & Olive).

[5] Toss berries and herbs into the pitcher (photo courtesy Cocina De Color Lila).

[6] Summer’s fresh blackberries or huckleberries are another great lemonade pairing (photo courtesy Izakaya Den | Denver).

RECIPE: WATERMELON LEMONADE COCKTAIL

This recipe from Haru uses more citron vodka than lemon juice, but the combination of ingredients is a winner.

Ingredients Per Drink

 
For The Thyme Simple Syrup

1. MAKE the thyme simple syrup. Combine the water and sugar in a saucepan over low heat and stir until the sugar has dissolved. Remove from the heat and add the thyme sprigs. Let steep for 10 minutes; then cool to room temperature before using.

2. MUDDLE the watermelon cubes in a mixing glass. Add the remaining ingredients ice and shake vigorously for 8-10 seconds.

e. POUR into an ice-filled glass. Garnish and serve.