29 June 2010

fresh lychees & wine cocktails


This one is tasty, but isn't going into any greatest hits compilation or anything. We picked up some fresh lychee nuts the other day, and I dropped them into glasses of white wine while Achy and I whipped up a significantly more impressive dinner. For special, I splashed in some elderflower liqueur. This would be much better served by a crisper white like a pinot grigio, as the chardonnay we used was a little too sweet and smooth already to take on my sweet additions.

Alas, you can't win 'em all.

22 June 2010

I'll be here all summer, folks.



What can I say? The internet was clamoring for the return of 'back deck cocktails.' And by internet, I don't mean the thousands of Twitter users Dave is addressing collectively as "Internet" during his David on Demand experiment in Cannes this week, but rather the 3-5 people who read this blog last summer.

Plus, I guest blogged for Achy's new gig over at Vocalo.org last week about Canadian Club and Canada Dry (seriously, still reeling from this one—who knew it was so good??), and felt like the groove was back upon me.

OH RIGHT, and I got to Chicago late Friday night because it's SUMMER BREAK. (Whatever that means in graduate school...) Except that I am taking a few days to loll about and do nothing for a change.

Post-workout today, Achy requested that I make her a shake. But she didn't want protein powder or silken tofu or any of that nonsense in it. She wanted rum. And mangoes.

We bought five mangoes today at Whole Foods. It was unplanned, but they were at the door when we walked in, 5 for $4. They're not regular mangoes. Whole Foods had them labeled as "yellow mangoes," and the sticker on them says "champagne mangoes," but I had one in Oakland a few weeks ago that was sold to me as a "Manila mango." Whatever they are, they're delicious. Really sweet and creamy, less fibrous than regular mangoes can be. Plus, I've been craving oysters, mangoes, and champagne for weeks, and we've had oysters twice since I got here (TWICE! I'm so spoiled). We haven't had champagne or mangoes, though, so thank god there's such a thing as a champagne mango.

Oh, and this drink? It's amazing.
Make it how?

into the blender, put:
the meat of 1 champagne/yellow/Manila mango
3 shots coconut rum (I used Malibu to keep it college-style)
2 medium strawberries
two two-cupped-handfuls of ice (that's a precise measurement)

Serves two, but you'll need to do it all again for the second round. You can't drink just one of these.