Archive for April, 2011

Friday, April 29, 2011

Tequila Thyme Lemonade

Guess what? It’s Friday and it’s time for a cocktail! But you already knew that, didn’t you? I don’t have much to complain about today. I actually took today off from work to go to Maine with Chris, his mom, and my mom. The weather is pretty awesome and we’re planning on hanging out in Ogunquit, eating lobster and drinking rum punch at Barnacle Billy’s. We’ll probably take a walk on the marginal way and appreciate the fact that it’s in the high 60s and sunny. I haven’t taken a full day off in I don’t know how long and I am way beyond excited. I’m scheduling this post since I don’t know when I’ll be home and want you to have a cocktail recipe for this beautiful evening!

I swear, I didn’t take the day off to watch the Royal Wedding! I mean, I work from home, so that wouldn’t be necessary. But I have been covering the Royal Wedding from a celebrity/fashion standpoint for work, so I did tune in for a while this morning. Did you get up and watch? I love getting into all the excitement but I do think it’s a tad odd that we seem to be so much more obsessed with it than even the British are. I heard they’re all laughing at us because we’re so obsessed :) But it was awesome to watch and Kate Middleton looked stunning.

Though I’ll be sipping on some rum punch today, I wanted to share another fun summery cocktail with you. This one is perfect for sitting outside with a drink. It’s lemonade. OK, it’s more tequila than lemonade. But still.

Tequila Thyme Lemonade (makes 1 drink):
Adapted from Martha Stewart Living
Print this recipe!

• 3 thyme sprigs
• 1 t sugar
• 2 lemon wedges
• 3 oz. silver tequila
• 1 oz. cold water
• 2 t freshly lemon juice
• Ice

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Simple and ingredients and super simple to make! Muddle the three time sprigs with the sugar and 2 lemon wedges in a glass.

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Add tequila, cold water, and ice. Taste. And realize you need to add a bit more lemon juice. Because yowza! Hello, strong Friday night drink :)

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Chris LOVED this drink. Maybe I’m a huge wuss, but it was just a tad too much tequila for me. Don’t get me wrong; it’s the perfect drink for sitting on the patio and chilling out at the end of the long week, but danggg it was strong. So feel free to try it when it’s complete and add more lemon juice and/or water. I won’t tell.

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I love drinks made with simple ingredients that are tasty and refreshing. And kinda pretty, too :)

What’s the best drink you’ve had lately?

I have two:

The Bloody Meyer at Brasserie Jo: It’s a martini made with Ketel One Vodka, meyer lemon, macerated tomato, and cilantro. If you love bloody marys and aren’t a fan of overly sweet martinis, this is for you… and me! Also, Chris and I are getting married at the Colonnade so yayyy!!! I have a feeling we’ll be hanging out here a lot in the future. I kinda sort of want to make it the signature drink for the wedding weekend, SO good!

Amarena Cherry Champagne Cocktail from Top of the Hub: I love a little bubbly and this hit the spot yesterday afternoon. The cherry was just strong enough to add a little sweetness to the drink. Really though, the Top of the Hub has one of the best cocktail menus in the city. And the BEST view in the city. Even if you don’t want to splurge on a whole meal there, stop in to the bar for a drink and the view :)

See? You can even spot our wedding venue! It’s the building with the fabulous roof-top pool! :)

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Have a fabulous, sun-filled weekend, everyone!

[Sues]

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Thursday, April 28, 2011

Fried Pickles? First Attempt.

If you remember from my trip to Florida last month, I had fried pickles for the first time and have officially become obsessed with them. I decided when I got home from the trip that along with researching every restaurant in Boston that serves them, I also need to at least attempt to make them on my own.

So I did.

And the honest truth is I wasn’t even going to post this recipe. They weren’t my favorite. It’s definitely one of those recipes that was trial and error, but those are typically the ones we learn the most from. After thinking long and hard about whether or not to post, I figured I’d share it with all of you and get some feedback! Plus, the name of our blog is We are not Martha. Which means we make mistakes and not everything comes out perfectly the first time (or second sometimes!) and it’s only fair to share those mess-ups sometimes, too. Otherwise you’d think we really were Martha and then things would just be all confusing ;)

So I followed this recipe from The Food Network and this is what I used:

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• Vegetable oil, for frying
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 4 large eggs, beaten
• 1 cup cornmeal
• 1 jar bread and butter pickles (more on this later)
• Honey Mustard Sauce, recipe below

Here’s what I did:

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I first brought about 2-inches of oil to 350 degrees

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Then set up a dipping station of individual bowls with from left to right: flour with a dash of salt and pepper; beaten eggs; and cornmeal with a dash of salt and pepper.

Next, I dipped the pickles in the flour, followed by the egg, and then the cornmeal.

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I then lowered the covered pickles in the oil and fried them for around 3 minutes.

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Once they were done frying, I placed each batch on paper towels to drain. At this point I thought they looked somewhat promising so I continued on to make the honey mustard dip. Which was actually good!

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I just used 1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt (instead of sour cream), 1/4 cup Dijon mustard, 1/2 cup mayonnaise, and 2 tablespoons honey and mixed it all together.

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So, hooray! Everything is done and plated and time to dig in!

And I did.

And… I waited. And waited. And ate a couple. Then a couple more. Hmm.

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They were just. Boring. Nothing special at all.

The Assessment:

My first thought was that I need to use a thicker, crunchier pickle. The bread and butter pickles were far too thin and “weak”, which, when fried, didn’t make them crunchy at all. The batter itself was crunchy but when I bit through, the pickle was just too thin. I was also thinking I could just buy spears and cut them to a more desirable thickness as well.

My second first thought (hehe) was there was a severe lack of flavor. Which I kind of assumed would be the case just from looking at the ingredient list since there wasn’t really anything to provide a kick of uniqueness to the fried pickle. When I tasted these I pretty much just tasted cornmeal. Bleh. Next time there will definitely be cayenne, garlic powder, paprika, hot sauce… SOMETHING. Anything, really.

My third thought was I just want to purchase a deep fryer.

My fourth thought was thankfully I have a free gym membership because I’m gonna need to go a lot more if I plan on perfecting the fried pickle.

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So this is where you come in. Have you made fried pickles before? Do you know someone who has an outstanding fried pickle recipe? Are you a pickle-freak and know something that I don’t know. Are you a chef with a fried pickle recipe hiding up your sleeve that you want to share with me… then marry me? What restaurants in Boston serve fried pickles that will change my life? Heck, what restaurants in New England serve them. I have a car and will travel.

Please HALP me! Before I buy a plane ticket back to Florida to experience them again. Don’t think I won’t actually do it.

[Chels]

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