Today is the day in 1969 that Neil Armstrong set foot on the moon. We thought we’d celebrate by combining that event with one of our favorite albums and feature a Dark Side of the Moon Cocktail. When you see the ingredients you’ll realize that you and I won’t ever get there….Either to the back side of the moon or the cocktail. At least at home. Here’s a recipe from Inshaker.com:
Fill a Collins glass to the top with ice cubes
Place 0.1 oz of bamboo powder into the shaker
Pour in 0.5 oz of lime juice and 0.5 oz of ginger syrup
Add 0.5 oz of picon and 1 oz of mezcal
Fill the shaker with ice cubes and shake gently
Strain through the strainer and sieve into the Collins
Could coffee plus milk help us recover from exercise faster? Men’s Health reports, “There are many well-established ways to help speed up post-workout repair, ranging from hydrating properly and fueling up on protein for muscle-synthesis support to consuming more omega-3 fats for joint health. Among the most recent solutions, however, is one that comes with a buzz. A study published in the Journal Of Agricultural And Food Chemistry reported that the anti-inflammatory effect of antioxidants (called polyphenols) is vastly enhanced when they react with amino acids. In practical terms, unlocking this could be as simple as adding protein-rich milk to coffee, which is packed with antioxidants. Research into the post-gym benefits of this everyday cocktail is, admittedly, in its early stages. The Danish researchers, however, are buzzing with excitement that increasing polyphenol absorption in this way could prove an effective way to ease swelling and soreness.”
Canada’s Elle Gourmet (ellegourmet.ca) suggests we try pairing fresh strawberries with bourbon! Okay! “We’re pairing the intense sweetness of fresh strawberries with the caramel and vanilla flavours of bourbon.” Let’s just say it works.
– Jet Cannon
Strawberry Bourbon Sour
1 Serving
Ingredients
2 strawberries, chopped 1 oz vanilla simple syrup (see tip) 1 cup ice 2 oz bourbon 1 oz each freshly squeezed lemon and lime juices
To Garnish lemon balm and strawberry slices (optional)
Method
1. In cocktail shaker, add strawberries and vanilla syrup. Use muddler or handle of wooden spoon to muddle ingredients until jammy. Top with ice, bourbon, lemon juice and lime juice; shake for 10 seconds. Strain into a rock glass and garnish with lemon balm and strawberry slice, if desired.
Tip: Vanilla simple syrup: In saucepan, bring ½ cup each granulated sugar and water to boil until sugar is dissolved. Split vanilla bean lengthwise and scrape the seeds; stir pod and seeds into syrup and let cool to steep.
Tip: The subtle citrus notes of lemon balm are a more delicate (and prettier) alternative to mint.
Tasting Table has done it again! We rarely have all the ingredients needed to craft the intriguing cocktails we read about on the InterWeb so Tasting Table compiled a list of cocktails that only each require two ingredients! And they list 40 of them!! Even our poorly stocked bar and fridge could probably come up with twenty of them. Here is the complete list.
Continuing our dogged pursuit of foods that were once considered bad for us but are now found to be not so bad after all, let’s talk potatoes. (Add that to butter, chocolate, eggs, MSG, etc.) Too many carbs, right? Today.com reports, “Eating one medium-size potato a day can be part of a healthy diet and doesn’t increase cardiometabolic risk — the chances of having diabetes, heart disease or stroke — as long as the potato is steamed or baked, and prepared without adding too much salt or saturated fat, a study by nutritionists at The Pennsylvania State University found. Potatoes are a rich source of potassium, which is important for blood pressure regulation, but which most Americans don’t get enough of in their diet.” Read the entire article here and don’t fear the potato!
Workaholic Buzzed Boomer Rural Correspondent, Maserati Mike, rolled into the Iron Horse Bar & Grill in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho to conduct in-depth research. He discovered The Derailer, their signature drink. This cocktail means business. It’s 48 ounces of three kinds of rum (Bacardi Silver, Spiced, and Gold), ginger ale, 7 Up, orange and pineapple juice, sour mix and as many straws as you need to share with friends. Or not.
On this day in 1898, the Hawaiian Islands were annexed by the United States. If that somehow fostered the popularity of Mai-Tai cocktails, then we are forever grateful!
Okay, so we don’t look quite like we did a decade or two ago when were only a shade off Don Johnson but we don’t have to accept a major loss of muscle mass. Michelle Gray, a physiologist and professor of exercise at the University of Arkansas, is quoted in Scientific American saying that, “Proper diet and physical activity can combat some age-related muscle loss. Maintaining muscle comes down to continued movement. Doesn’t matter if you garden or if you ride a bicycle like I do or if you go to the gym. You can help maintain your muscle mass by continuing to do the things that you’re already doing.”
As the Fourth of July holiday approaches we like to remember two important facts. First, Americans will eat 150 million hot dogs on the 4th. 150 million. Second, we know this because the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council counts them. America!!
Shape Magazine, and many others, have weighed in on the benefits and limitations of doing, say, 15 push-ups a day. Go online and read up. Talk to you doctor and all that. Expecting miracles? Don’t. But chest, arms and core will all benefit from spending a minute a day groveling on the floor.
We’ve often shared what we’ve read about the health benefits of getting those steps in. Walking works. And if you can walk outdoors, it’s even better. Prevention Magazine sums it up.
“Being outdoors is a natural antidote to stress,” says Richard Taylor, Ph.D., the head of the physics department at the University of Oregon, who studies how nature’s patterns affect mental health. His research shows that stress levels plummet by 60% when we view patterns like those found in nature. “Humans evolved for thousands of years outdoors, and our physiology is designed around it,” he says. “But then we built these boxes to live in, and there has been a growing move to be inside more. Our stress levels keep growing because of that too.”
Indeed, study after study over the past two decades has confirmed that green spaces, water, and sunlight confer health benefits that range from improved healing rates after surgery and strengthened immunity to decreased chronic pain. But the impact on mental health might be most dramatic of all.”
Near-genius Mercer Island bartender, Earl Bahama Armani, recently introduced us to the Last Word cocktail. Where have we been? We missed some noteworthy cocktail history from the Zig Zag Cafe. Per Wikipedia, the Zig Zag Café is a craft cocktail bar and restaurant in Seattle, Washington. Established in 1999, the bar is considered one of the best in the United States, helping lead the craft cocktail movement. From 2002 to 2011, noted bartender Murray Stenson worked at Zig Zag Café, and created innovative cocktails as well as reintroduced the pre-Prohibition-era Last Word cocktail to the public and to bars around the world. The Last Word is a gin-based Prohibition-era cocktail originally developed at the Detroit Athletic Club. While the drink eventually fell out of favor, it enjoyed a renewed popularity after being rediscovered by Stenson in 2003. Thank you Murray…. And Earl!!
Ingredients
3/4 ounce gin
3/4 ounce green Chartreuse
3/4 ounce maraschino liqueur
3/4 ounce lime juice, freshly squeezed
Garnish: brandied cherry (optional)
Steps
Add the gin, green Chartreuse, maraschino liqueur and lime juice into a shaker with ice and shake until well-chilled.
Jaws was released on this day in 1975 starting a tradition of summer blockbusters. Celebrate with All Recipes’ Shark Bite Cocktail! The drops of grenadine will be a crowd pleaser for sure.
Ingredients
2 cups ice cubes, divided
1 fluid ounce simple syrup
¾ fluid ounce spiced rum
¾ fluid ounce light rum
½ fluid ounce Blue Curacao
½ fluid ounce lime juice
3 drops grenadine syrup, or as needed
Directions
Fill a cocktail shaker with 1 cup ice. Add simple syrup, spiced rum, light rum, blue Curaçao, and lime juice. Cover and shake until the outside of the shaker has frosted, 10 to 15 seconds.
Fill a glass with remaining 1 cup ice. Strain cocktail over ice in the glass. Add drops of grenadine to cocktail.