Kentucky Mint Juleps By The Pitcher

There is absolutely no reason to make Mint Juleps by the drink. I have used this recipe for 30 years and still hear they are the best Mint Juleps around. Whoops, sorry you may have never heard of a Mint Julep.

It is the official drink of the Kentucky Derby, enjoyed by thousands as the thoroughbreds canter to the starting gate at Churchill Down to the strains of "My Old Kentucky Home" and a must have at any Kentucky Derby Party. It doesn't matter if drinks are being served in your Grandmother's drawing room, your patio or the in- field at Churchill Downs. There will be Mint Juleps. The whole secret to this drink is "brain freeze cold", and good Kentucky bourbon.

This is a sweeter drink, most people don't have but one or two. Have at least one just to get your host/hostess to shut up. Have a beaten biscuit with country ham with it. The salt in the ham helps cut the sugar in the julep.

Warning: Don't wait until the last minute to look for fresh mint. It will all be gone. I'm lucky that I have a big patch that grows on the bank of Goose Creek that runs right by my house. I have a supply from Derby Day to Thanksgiving.

Kentucky Mint Juleps By The Pitcher
5 juleps approximately

2 cups really good Kentucky bourbon
1 cup minted simple syrup (recipe below)
Crushed ice, lots and lots
Mint sprig, for decoration
Short straws for sippin'

Combine bourbon and minted simple syrup in a pretty pitcher or decanter. Chill overnight , or until needed. The mixture should be very cold. Fill julep cups with crushed ice, (packed down). What, you don't own any sterling silver mint julep cups. How'd your Mamma raise you? Okay use the rock glasses filled with crushed ice (pack down). Into each cup or glass pour the chilled minted bourbon. Decorate with mint springs. Sip through short straws, this way you will get a whiff of mint with each sip.

Simple Syrup: To make simple syrup, boil 1 cup of water with 2 cups sugar for five minutes. Cool. Add 1/2 cup packed mint leaves and let brew overnight or 12 hours, stirring once or twice. Strain syrup through a fine sieve, discarding mint. Makes 1 cup of syrup or enough for 5 juleps.

Irish Coffee

What would St. Patrick's Day dinner be without a good cup of Irish Coffee. For sure I don't want to be serving green cake or cookies. This is a terrific ending to any dinner, not just St.Patrick's Day.

Wishing Y'all a bit of the luck of the Irish today.

Irish Coffee
1 serving
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1 jigger Irish whiskey (1 1/4 ounces)
2 sugar cubes
good strong coffee
slightly sweetened whipping cream

Pour the whiskey into a warmed glass. Add the sugar cubes and then the hot coffee. To avoid possible breakage of the glass, pour hot coffee over a metal spoon in the glass. Stir well. Float the cream on the top of the coffee by pouring it over the back of a teaspoon. The result should be a dark hot coffee mixture topped by a band of white cream. When you take a sip you will be drinking hot coffee through the cool white cream. Please use only real whipping cream. It should be whipped just until thick, but not stiff.

The Best Lemonade

There are some things that are just not seasonal with me. I see no reason not to drink lemonade, sweet tea, and iced coffee any time of the year. You don't eat homemade ice cream just in the summer, right!

I think I have the best sweet tea and iced coffee recipes in the world. Now I feel the same about my lemonade. If you've had better lemonade, please send me the recipe! Make this at least an hour before serving and garnish with fresh mint sprigs.

The Best Lemonade
serves 8
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6 juicy lemons
1 cup sugar
6 cups water
Fresh mint sprigs

Scrub the lemons with a little soapy water to remove any oil or wax coating. Rinse them well. Cut the lemons in half and put in a 2-quart heat resistant pitcher. Add the cup of sugar

Bring the water to a boil and pour it over the lemons, stirring to dissolve the sugar. As soon as the lemons are cool enough to handle (30 to 40 minutes), squeeze the juice out of them into the pitcher. Discard the lemons. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Pour the lemonade into iced glasses, garnishing with sprigs of mint.

Hot Chocolate

When the wind chill is zero like it is today, all I can think of is soup and/or hot chocolate. Maybe a shot of straight bourbon, but it's a little early to be drinking shots. While I'm, waiting for my Cuban Black Bean Soup (posted tomorrow) to cook I made a batch of this. What comfort!

This recipe can be made up to the point of adding the milk to make a base syrup that can be stored for a month. To make a cup of hot chocolate in a jiffy, simply whisk 1/4 cup of the syrup into 1 cup of heated milk. The cognac adds a depth of flavor but doesn't leave a taste of alcohol.

Hot Chocolate
enough to serve 6
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1/2 cup cocoa powder
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup boiling water
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon cognac (optional)
4 1/2 cups milk, heated

Put the cocoa, sugar, and salt in a heavy nonreactive pan. Slowly whisk in the boiling water, and cook at a simmer for 3 minutes. Whisk in the heavy cream, bring back to a simmer, and remove from heat. Add the chopped chocolate, and whisk until melted and smooth. Add the vanilla and optional cognac, and slowly stir in the heated milk. Cover tightly and let rest for 5 minutes before serving, so that the flavors can marry and develop. If the hot chocolate cools, gently heat to just below a simmer. Serve with marshmallows floating on top.

Cookie Swap Brunch and Eggnog Punch

What do you mean old woman don't have fun! I laughed so much yesterday I had to come home and take a nap. Fifteen or twenty women of a certain age all talking at one time. Everyone talking about something different and no one knew what was being said. What a blast!

It has been years since I've been to a brunch as lovely as Janice had yesterday. Her house was decorated beautifully for Christmas. Her food outstanding, sausage casserole, hash brown casserole, fresh fruit platter, country ham on rolls, monkey bread, juices, etc. I sort of lost interest when she started making the punch. This is without a doubt the only way to serve eggnog for a crowd. Everyone, yes, me too, had at least 2 glasses. You know I had to get the recipe to share with y'all.

Eggnog Punch
about 24 servings (6-ounces) each
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1 3/4 to 2 quarts French vanilla ice cream
2 quarts dairy eggnog, don't use that canned stuff (8 cups), chilled
1 liter cream soda, chilled
Peppermint sticks, cinnamon sticks, and/or the small candy canes
Ground cinnamon or nutmeg

Place ice cream in an extra-large punch bowl. Add half the eggnog, Stir and mash mixture using a potato masher until ice cream is melted and mixture is well combined. Stir in remaining eggnog. Slowly pour in cream soda, stirring to combine. To each glass add a peppermint stick, cinnamon stick, or candy cane. Sprinkle lightly with cinnamon or nutmeg (about 1/8 teaspoon per serving).

Watermelon Mojitos

This would make a nice addition to your Derby Party today. Do you remember injecting vodka or rum into watermelons and oranges when you were not quite of the legal drinking age? Come on, I know I'm not the only one that ever did that. Well this cool refreshing summer drink is a little more sophisticated than that, and heaven knows we are all well past the legal drinking age.

Watermelon Mojitos
6 drinks
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30 large fresh mint leaves, coarsely torn by hand
3 or 4 thick slices fresh sweet watermelon
12 ounces light rum, such as Bacardi
1/2 cup simple syrup (see note)
6 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice (about 3 limes)
Sprigs of mint and spears of watermelon, for serving

Use a mortar and pestle to mash the mint leaves. Remove and discard the rind and seeds of the watermelon. Put the fruit into a food processor fitted with the steel blade and puree. Put the mashed mint into a large pitcher with 2 cups of pureed watermelon, the rum simple syrup, and lime juice and stir to combine. Pour the mixture into a pitcher for serving.

Place ice cubes in 6 glasses and pour the mojito mixture into the glasses. Garnish with sprigs of fresh mint and spears of watermelon. Serve ice cold.

Cook's Note: To make simple syrup, put 1 cup sugar and 1 cup water in a small pan and simmer until sugar dissolves. Chill

The Old Southern Tea Room 24 Hour Cocktail

Founded in 1941 by Mary McKay, The Old Southern Tea Room in Vicksburg, Mississippi is one of the South's legenday restaurants. What could inspire so much excitement for so many years, you ask? Nothing but plain old Southern home cookin' - the best fried chicken anywhere, the crispest friend shrimp, and desserts that could make you cry, if depreived of them! This cocktail is a long-time favorite at the Tea Room, and is at its best after being refrigerated for 24 hours.

This is perfect for back yard grilling, formal dinners or sitting on the porch sipping. I love the make-ahead part. You could certainly use this for a Derby Party.

The Old Southern Tea Room 24-Hour Cocktail
makes 3 quarts
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1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 quart (4 cups) orange juice
2 cups unsweetened pineapple juice
2 cups unsweetened grapefruit juice
2/3 cup Grenadine syrup
3 cups good-quality Kentucky bourbon whiskey
Crushed Ice

garnish with anything you like or nothing at all

Combine all ingredients except ice in a 3-4 quart container. Cover and refrigerator 24 hours. To serve, shake well and serve over crushed ice.

Best Iced Tea Ever

Of course you know this is "sweet tea". I have no idea how many sweet tea recipes I've tried. This one I found in a wonderful Southern cookbook, Dori Sanders' Country Cooking. I made this for the first time yesterday and as far as I'm concerned this is it, the one I'll make from now on. Make ssure to remove the rind from the lemon (a potato peeler makes it easy) before squeezing out the juice.

Best Iced Tea Ever
makes 2 quarts
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1 "running over" cup of sugar
2 quarts cold water
the juice and rind (in strips) of 2 lemons
5 regular tea bags

1. Combine the sugar, water, and lemon juice in a large saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat, stirring frequently. Remove from heat.

2. Add the lemon rind and tea bags, cover the pan, and allow to steep 20 minutes.

3. Strain the tea into a large pitcher, chill, and serve over ice.

Pink Grapefruit Margaritas

Maybe we should pretend it's summer and start with a pretty new drink for sipping on the porch. This is prefect. Let's have some guacamole and chips and sit in the swing.

Pink Grapefruit Margaritas
6 drinks
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1 lime cut in wedges
Kosher salt, optional
1 cup ruby red grapefruit juice
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lime juice (about 4 limes)
1 cup triple sec orange liqueur
3 cups ice
1 cup good white tequila

If you like a salt rim on the glasses, rub the lime around the edge of each glass and then dip the rim lightly in a plate of kosher salt. Set aside. to dry.

Combine the grapefruit juice, lime juice, triple sec, and ice in a blender and puree until smooth. Pour into a large pitcher and stir in the tequila. If you're not serving the margaritas in salted glasses, stir 1/4 teaspoon of salt into the pitcher of margaritas. It will make a difference.

Serve ice cold garnished with lime wedges