Category: Drinks

It’s our Blogoversary!
Celebrate with {Mulled Wine}

We’ve come a long way since my first post back on January 19th, 2011. Believe me, I never imagined I would make it this far. What started out as a hobby has blossomed into a full blown passion. I’m so thankful to all of my readers who are the reason for my continued success.

Over the past year, BIB has grown considerably, with recipes featured throughout the blogosphere as well as in Bitayavon and Binah Magazines. With bated breath, Busy in Brooklyn finished in 5th place in the Joy of Kosher “2011 Best of Kosher” competition with almost 850 votes.

It’s been a whirlwind! Here are some stats from the past year that I thought you might enjoy:

Most popular category: dessert recipes
Most popular recipe: sushi salad
Most popular craft: shell stitch crochet hat
Most popular how to: caramelize apples
Most commented: black bean brownies

I can’t wait to see what the next year has in store! In the meantime, keep reading, keep cooking, and most importantly, keep commenting! Your feedback really gives me the push I need to keep going!

Do you want to give BIB a Blogoversary present? Share our page on your facebook wall and ask friends to like us and visit our blog!

And now, to celebrate! I figured we should all make a L’chaim to toast to our one year Blogoversary. But a plain old glass of wine just wouldn’t do. Instead, we’re gonna click our glasses with a warm cup of mulled wine. Mulled wine is a spiced red wine that has been warmed with spices and citrus. It is perfect for a cold winter night in which you have cause to celebrate.

The best part about making mulled wine (also known as glogg) is that you don’t need to use an expensive bottle. You can use a combination of whatever whole spices you have on hand, or simply use a few spoons of your bisamim.

Traditionally, mulled wine includes the following:

} dry red wine or a combination of dry and sweet (port is best)
} sweetener, such as, white sugar, brown sugar, maple syrup, honey or agave
} juice and zest of citrus, such as orange and/or lemon
} additional alcohol of choice, such as vodka or brandy, (optional)
} dried fruit, raisins, and/or almonds (optional)
} a combination of whole spices, such as:

cinnamon sticks
cardamom pods
cloves
allspice berries
peppercorns
star anise
bay leaves
nutmeg
vanilla pods
ginger root

I prefer to wrap up the spices in a cheesecloth but you can also add them straight to the pot and strain before serving.

 

BIB Blogoversary Mulled Wine

1 bottle dry red wine
1/3-1/2 cup agave
juice of 1 orange
2 cinnamon sticks
6 cloves
4-5 peppercorns
1 vanilla pod, split lengthwise
a few strips of orange zest

Method:

Add spices to a piece of double-lined cheesecloth and knot closed. Add wine, spices, agave and fresh squeezed orange juice to a pot. Cook on a low flame until heated through. DO NOT BOIL as it will cause the alcohol to evaporate.

1 year ago: chicken breast with port wine cherry sauce

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Persimmon Yogurt Smoothie

Persimmon is one fall fruit that doesn’t get the same limelight as apples and pears, but is equally delicious. I first fell in love with these orange fruit when I spent a year studying in Israel. I bought them whenever I had a chance, biting into them like I was chomping on an apple.

There are 2 types of persimmon – the heart shaped hachiya and the tomato-shaped fuyu. Hachiya persimmons contain high levels of tannins causing them to taste “furry” if eaten before fully ripening. Believe me, I know this because I’ve spent a lot of time scraping the “pithy” substance off my tongue. Fuyu persimmons, on the other hand, are non-astringent and can be eaten when firm. Upon ripening, they become freckled with tiny brown specs which add sweetness and flavor to the fruit.

What do persimmon taste like? Channeling Ron Ben-Israel on Sweet Genius, I would describe a ripe persimmon as, creamy. juicy. sweet. fragrant. peachy. hints of mango.

Freezing the persimmon and blending it with yogurt results in a thick, creamy consistency that is almost as good as ice cream!

Persimmon Smoothie

2 ripe fuyu persimmon
1 container thick plain yogurt, such as J&J
1/2 cup milk
honey
cinnamon
nutmeg

Method:

Peel and quarter persimmon and freeze overnight. Add frozen fruit, yogurt and milk to a blender. Drizzle some honey and add a pinch of cinnamon and nutmeg. Blend, and add more milk to reach desired consistency.

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3 Layer Chocolate Cake Martini


With Simchas Torah just around the corner, I just had to include an alcoholic beverage for the ladies. I mean, why should the guys get to have all the fun! We deserve to make a l’chaim, especially after our string of 3-day cooking fests!

More importantly, we have the most special, amazing, heartwarming and miraculous reason to celebrate. The release of Gilad Shalit who has been held captive by Hamas for five long years.

Welcome Home Gilad!


I’m not the biggest drinker, so if I have a martini recipe, it’s because I tasted it somewhere, not because I decided to whip up a cocktail one night :) I recently celebrated my sister-in-law CR’s birthday with a night out on the town. We hit a fun broadway show, but before that, we made sure to stop by Clubhouse Cafe for some appetizers and drinks. With the show just 30 minutes later, we quickly sampled a few of their “snacks” at the bar including duck empanadas, chunky guacamole, grilled kebabs, sliders and chicken fingers. What’s a birthday celebration without a toast, so we ordered cocktails including their chocolate martini, mojito and fruit punch sangria. We finished off our appetizer feast with some real 3 layer chocolate cake (topped off with a candle and a song, of course!) We left Clubhouse just a tad lightheaded and giggly, the perfect starter to the perfect night.

The verdict? While we only feasted on Clubhouse’s snacks and drinks, I must say that the food was fresh, flavorful, well presented, and delicious. The drinks were great, and the chocolate cake was moist and decadent. I would definitely go back, this time however, for a full meal!

As I mentioned, I’m far from a lush, but when I got home, I couldn’t stop thinking about those chocolate martini’s. They were awesome. My sister-in-law, as thoughtful as she is, sent me over some mini bottles of the ingredients so I could create my own at home. And believe you me, I did :) When looking up the cocktail online, I discovered that the martini is actually called three layer chocolate cake. How apropo!

Happy Birthday CR!

3 Layer Chocolate Cake Martini

1.5 oz. vanilla vodka
1 oz. Binyamina chocolate liquor
1 oz. Frangelico

Shake and strain over ice.

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Watermelon Ice Cubes


The weather here in New York last week was truly unbearable, with temperatures over 100 degrees. I am the kind of person that just cannot stand the heat. Anything over 75 degrees is too hot for me. But of course, I cannot control the weather, so I need to come up with ways to deal with it. If there’s a heat wave going on, I usually don’t leave the house. Otherwise, on hot days, I tend to go from my house, to the car, to any indoor place with air conditioning. If I have to be in the sun, I make sure to have cold water with me, and if there is a sprinkler around, I’m more than likely to drench myself!

It was one such day that I was dreaming up some ideas for an ice cold drink to cool off with. I decided to make some lemonade, but instead of traditional ice cubes that tend to water down beverages, I opted to make some cranberry-juice ones to turn it into pink lemonade. I was about to head out for some lemons when the amazing food guru Alton Brown tweeted about watermelon iced cubes. Brilliant! I knew I had to make them!

Ice cubes are a great way to cool down on a hot summer’s day. Here are some other fun ice cube ideas:

– For iced tea or coffee, make a tray of tea or coffee ice cubes to keep your beverage cold without watering it down.
– Citrus ice cubes are great for tea or cocktails. Juice lemons, limes or oranges and put a quarter slice of citrus in each cube.
– Decorate your ice cubes with sprigs of mint, maraschino cherries, or edible flowers.
– Coke and ginger ale ice cubes are a great addition to any cocktail.
– Punch ice cubes work well in a punch bowl for your next party.

Watermelon Ice Cubes

watermelon
food processor, blender or juicer
bowl or pitcher
mesh sieve, strainer or cheesecloth
ice cube trays

Method:

Cut up watermelon into pieces (they don’t have to be perfect, you’ll be blending them anyway). With a spoon, scrape away any leftover bits of watermelon off the rind. Blend the watermelon in a grinder until pureed. Over a bowl or pitcher, pour the mixture through a strainer and press pulp to remove all the juice. Pour watermelon juice into ice cube trays and freeze. If you have leftover juice, just remove the ice cubes from the tray, store in a ziploc bag and refreeze. You can make more cubes, or, add the juice to lemonade, or use it to make popsicles.

Yield: 1 quarter watermelon equals approximately 2 trays of ice cubes.

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Banana Dates Milk & Honey Smoothie


For all those Brooklynites out there, you may remember a certain little establishment on the corner of Coney Island and Avenue P called Bissale. It used to be opened till the wee hours of the morning (I’m not sure if it ever really closed) and hailed its own psychic, who’s only charge was to pay for her meal! The place had the absolute best Israeli food, but there was some shady business going on there (not to mention it was far from clean, but we turned a blind eye). At one point they opened up a secret hooka bar in the back (there might have been more than just hooka going on there!). Anyway, my friend Dina and I used to frequent the place and we always ordered up the same thing: ftut, french fries, and a banana, date, milk and honey smoothie. The ftut was basically some chopped malawach dough, mixed up with cheese and mushrooms, with a tomato dipping sauce. The french fries were incredible. But the prize, for me, was the smoothie. It was creamy and sweet, full of delicious flavor! Bissale closed its doors a few years ago, and while I miss the great food, and even better memories (not including the calories!), I’m happy to savor my favorite shake in my favorite place, home sweet home.

The original recipe uses whole milk, but I use almond milk to pack a protein punch and nutty flavor. Also, to eliminate the need for ice cubes (which will just water it down), I freeze the banana and dates a few hours in advance.

Banana Dates Milk & Honey Smoothie

1 cup almond milk
1 banana
3 dates
1 tbsp honey

Method:

Add ingredients to blender and blend until smooth.

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