If you remember, last week I made a Diamond Blue in honor of Leonard Nimoy. That meant I also had about a half bottle of Champagne still sitting around, begging to be drunk before it lost its fizz. So I went trolling for unusual Champagne cocktail recipes. Having already had the VERY splendid Seelbach, I was aiming for something similar when a little cocktail, the Queen’s Cousin, caught my eye. Apparently, this cocktail’s obscure but still very well known in mixology circles, though for the life of me, I can’t figure out where it got its name. I saw one recipe that included Prosecco, a very dry Italian sparkling wine, which I unfortunately didn’t have. But it seems to me that after checking around, the Prosecco’s not necessary (and might even be a touch redundant if you’re using a nice Champagne). Anyway, this little gem’s made with Grand Marnier, vodka (as you can see, I used Belvedere), lime juice, and Triple Sec topped with two dashes of Angostura bitters, which gives the drink that slightly bloody little tinge on top. (Hmmm…makes you wonder if it shouldn’t be renamed the Anne Boleyn.)
The verdict: very tasty; the lime’s tartness is a perfect foil for the almost too-sweet combo of Grand Marnier and Triple Sec. This one was so good, we made a third and split it.
Except we still have leftover Champagne! Let’s face it: I enjoy a good cocktail, but I’m clearly not enough of a lush.
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Sunday’s Cake was a bit of an adventure. I found the original idea, an Apple and Olive Oil Cake, on Bowlful of Comfort. That recipe was, in turn, a virtual replica of a NY Times recipe for an Olive Oil and Apple Cider Cake but with the addition of cinnamon and cardamon to the applesauce mixture. After looking over the recipes, I decided to go one better and add a terrific spice mix of ginger, cardamon, and cinnamon called Yemen from La Boite along with another teaspoon of straight Saigon cinnamon for some extra pop, which is why I’m calling mine “Moroccan.” (Yeah, yeah, I know where Saigon is, but cut me a break already.)
The recipe is very straight-forward, but if you go for a bundt as I did, you must use a 12-cup pan. You get a lot of batter out of this. I haven’t tasted this, but I already can tell that this is a very dense, moist, rich cake. It’s actually quite weighty, courtesy of all those apples. (A caveat: there’s a mistake in the NY Times recipe. When it says that you should mix the rest of the cider with a 1/2 cup of applesauce? That’s obviously wrong because if you use eight apples as the recipe calls for . . . you’re going to get a TON of applesauce. I think what they meant was to add the remaining 1/2 cup of cider to the applesauce. At least I hope so, because that’s what I did. The recipe made no sense otherwise.)
The recipe will also tell you to fold stuff in. If you’ve got a standing mixer, this is unnecessary, tedious, and ineffient. Simply use your whip to froth those eggs and sugar together before changing to a paddle that is set to “stir.” And keep it there. That’s just slow and gentle enough.
This smells great, and I’m sure it’ll be fine. If I had this over to do again, though, I’d give it another five minutes or so. I like cakes with a nicely browned top. This one looks a little raw, though that broom straw came out perfectly clean.
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Big week coming up: THE DICKENS MIRROR officially hits shelves on Tuesday. Unfortunately, there’s just no bookstore near me, so I can’t even check. I would be beyond thrilled if someone sent in a picture of it in the wild. Be on the lookout for a podcast on Tuesday as well as links to blogs where I’m doing guest posts and, of course, giveaways.
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And a final note: some very sweet fans got in touch today to share their love for the ASHES trilogy. Specifically, they’d love to see a movie or TV show (me, I’ll take either, although there are so many characters and directions you can go with the trilogy, a TV show makes perfect sense). They’re so enthusiastic, they’ve started sending emails to various producers and directors and started up a Facebook page, too.
Well, this is beyond sweet. So I’ve done the unusual for me: I’ve invited some of my Facebook friends to like their page, which you can find here: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Turn-The-Ashes-Trilogy-into-a-movie/1584442488465894. I don’t usually bother people with things like this; we all have such demands on our time, and I feel awkward. But these girls are so sweet and they mean well . . . so if you can find a second to give them a like and share the page, that would be much appreciated. I wish I had a tenth of their energy.
Anyway, stay tuned for more DICKENS MIRROR news coming this week. And a head’s up: while Friday’s Cocktail will still happen this week, Sunday’s Cake won’t because I will be on my way to London. Research trip. I know, I know: oy, what a terrible job you have, Ilsa.
