Drink Recipes

Brandy Egg Nog

This recipes is an easy to make at home version of the classic Brandy/egg nog holiday beverage. It’s kind of a cool trick at holiday parties to make fresh egg nog from scratch.

Be warned; those of you that are paranoid, hysterical and stupid: this recipe uses a raw egg yolk (EEEEK! HEAVENS TO BETSY!) Many people have been corrupted by silly salmonella fears over the years so if you suffer from such idiocy, just buy store egg nog and pour brandy in it.

I suggest making this a few times and adjusting both the sugar and brandy levels to suit your tastes. Some people like this stronger (add brandy) and more sweet (add sugar), some people find it to be too sweet as prepared (use less sugar)

1 ½ ounces brandy
1 egg yolk
3 ½ ounces milk
¾ ounces heavy cream
2 teaspoons powdered sugar
Shaker

1. Fill the shaker with ice and all ingredients.

2. Shake and serve over ice.

Candy Cane Martini

Let the candy cane garnish sit in the drink for a few minutes and the red dye of the candy cane will settle into the bottom of the drink and give it a festive look. Be warned; you better like peppermint for this one! The sparkling water (like Perrier) is essential to the overall feel of this drink.

MAKES ONE DRINK

¾ ounces vodka
¾ ounce Rumplleminz schnapps
1 ounce sparkling water
Ice cubes
Martini shaker
Serve in martini glass with small candy cane on the rim

1. Place ice cubes in martini shaker and add the rest of the ingredients.

2. Shake well and strain into a chilled glass

Cognac Iced Tea

This is inspired by a drunken weekend spent in Las Vegas and a drink I discovered at the Wynn Casino. After dozens of attempts, I have perfected my recipe to make it better than the Wynn drink, trust me.

In this recipe, the only difference is the change in bitters and the necessity for the fresh lemon, however the change is noticeable. It is much fresher and provides more of a citrus flavor. For less sweetness, use only I dash of the bitters.

2 ounces quality cognac (I use Remy VSOP. I’ve had it with XO and tasted no difference, so why spend the extra $)
Ginger ale
3-5 dashes lemon bitters
Fresh lemon wedge
Ice
A Tall 12-16 ounce serving glass
Stirring spoon/utensil

1. Fill the bottom of the glass with 2-3 ounces cognac
2. add 3-5 dashes of bitters
3. add a 1/8 lemon wedge, not squeezed (For those of you who went to public school, this means to take a whole lemon and cut it into 8 equally sized wedges, then use one of them in this drink).
4. add ice to top of glass
5. Fill remainder of glass with ginger ale
6. stir and enjoy

Cure For The Common Cold

I rarely get sick. Even when I do, I insist on still living my life, hoping that the “plow through it” attitude will scare away whatever germs are in my system. In the mid 1990’s, I showed up one night to my bowling league sick as a dog. The bartender, who was both a listener and knew me as a regular customer, made for me what he called a “hot rock n’ rye.” Not only did it soothe my throat, but I swear that it provided medicinal healing. I have used it ever since as part of my regiment anytime I think I may be getting sick.

Serve in a 16 ounce glass

3 ounces Rock N rye (Hiram walker makes it, as do many others. It is usually found in liquor stores or section near the schnapps and flavored brandy)
½ one fresh lemon
Boiling hot water, preferably steeped in a hot kettle

1. Pour 2 ounces of rock n rye in bottom of glass

2. Extract the juice of the lemon half into the glass, discarding seeds. Place juiced lemon half in bottom of glass as well

3. Fill glass with hot water and stir. Sip while hot to warm, never allowing beverage to cool. Each time you fill your glass, repeat steps and add another half lemon.

Pineapple Martini

Though this may sound disgusting on its’ surface, my wife claims otherwise. She swears the flavors are light, citrus and that the drink slides down easily and with no bite.

The trick to this drink is not just the flavors, but also making sure it is not too sweet nor too alcoholic. I have tried it without rum and the alcohol is overpowering. I have tried it without O.J. and the flavor is too sweet. I’ve tried it with a little more rum and that also is too sweet. This is the version my wife swears by.

2 ounces Absolut Mandarin
1 ounce Pineapple rum (I recommend Captain Morgan)
3 ounces pineapple juice
Ice
Dash (1-2 teaspoons) orange juice
Shaker
A martini glass

This is enough to fill one of the nouveau larger martini glasses, or two traditional sized martini glasses

1. Fill the shaker with ice and all ingredients

2. Shake and filter martini, sans ice, into a martini glass and serve

Pumpkin Pie Martini

While this is a kitschy little idea, it’s rich; not just in sweetness, but flavors as well. Plus, even if you love pumpkin pie, one of these is plenty. The flavors catch up to you quickly. Great dessert drink.

MAKES ONE DRINK

1 ounce vanilla vodka
1 ounce vodka
¾ ounce kahlua
2 ounces half and half
1 tablespoon pumpkin pie flavoring syrup (available from a company called Torani and at most Bevmo stores)
¼ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (available in spice sections of major grocery stores)
Ice cubes
Martini shaker
Serve in martini glass up or clear tumbler over ice

1. Place ice cubes in martini shaker and add the rest of the ingredients.

2. Shake well and strain into a chilled glass

Rob's Cosmopolitan

This is inspired by countless attempts of experimentation by my wife who had to endure endless variations until I got this exactly the way she likes it. A cosmo is really just a vodka/cranberry kicked up the right way.

2 ounces quality vodka (Tahoe Blue Vodka)
Ice
1 ounce cranberry juice
½ ounce cointreau
Dash fresh lime juice
Shaker
A martini glass

1. Fill the shaker with ice and all ingredients.

2. Shake and filter Cosmo, sans ice, into a martini glass and serve.

Robtini

This is inspired by a drunken weekend spent in Las Vegas and a drink I discovered at the Mandalay Bay Casino. After dozens of attempts, I have perfected my recipe to make it better than the Wynn drink, trust me.

The trick to this drink is the Tomolives, which are actually tomatoes, not olives, making them much healthier. Their flavor with the occasional sip is amazing. Tomolives can be found online and usually at Trader Joes and Bevmo.

If the trick is the Tomolives then the key is great tasting vodka. Use what you think tastes best to your tongue.

2-3 ounces quality vodka (I use Tahoe Blue Vodka)
Ice
Tomolives
Shaker
A martini glass

1. Fill the shaker with vodka, ice, water and shake.

2. Serve filtered with as many tomolives as you love!

Shamrock Shake

--Three cups of a high-quality vanilla ice cream.

--One-and-three-quarters cups of 1% milk.

--Half a teaspoon of peppermint extract.

--Green food coloring.

Sparkling Poinsettia

This is a nice, light, bubbly, celebratory red drink for the holidays.

FOR A FULL PITCHER (6 SERVINGS)

1 ½ cups champagne or sparkling wine
¾ cup chilled vodka
1 ½ cups cranberry juice
Crushed ice

FOR INDIVIDUAL GLASSES

1 ½ ounces champagne or sparkling wine
1 ounce chilled vodka
1 ½ ounces cranberry juice
Crushed ice

1. For an individual serving, use a martini shaker; to make the whole batch at once, use a glass pitcher.

2. Mix together vodka, cranberry juice and champagne.

3. Fill champagne glass(es) with crushed ice and pour mixture over ice.

The Grinch

It’s green, get it? And a little too sweet for my tastes, but gals love it, and yes that’s meant to be condescending. Didn’t every high school girl love Medori?

MAKES ONE DRINK

1 ounce Medori or other green melon liqueur
2 ounces citrus vodka
¼ teaspoon white cranberry juice
½ ounce water
Ice cubes
Martini shaker
Serve in martini glass up or clear tumbler over ice

1. Place ice cubes in martini shaker and add Medori, vodka and cranberry juice

2. Shake well and strain into a chilled glass

Tony's Margarita

We enjoyed these as the 29 hour RAD-A-THON wrapped up in February, 2009. I was going to wait until Cinco De Mayo to post the recipe, but by popular demand, here you go:

Named after one of my best friends in the world, this is the freshest, truest, tastiest margarita I have ever had. Tony, who is retired and lives in Arizona, has both the time and proximity to the motherland of margaritas to have perfected his recipe. Be warned, this is a true, authentic margarita; meaning there’s no silly mix used and you actually taste the ingredients. As a result, you really need to find top of the line FRESH fruit and liquor. It’s also fairly strong so I recommend enjoying it as a sipping drink on a hot day when you don’t have very far to go that night. In fact, my favorite way to enjoy these is as a breakfast drink!

I find this drink is best made using a juicer (whether it be a nice cheap one that you have to grind the pulp of the fruit on with your hand or an electric juicer that does the work for you) and a martini shaker to help get the right mix

One other note; I realize that our entire culture has been ruined by drink mixes so allow me to point out that this margarita will NOT turn out green; it will be a gorgeous yellow/orange…sort of like a Mexican sunrise if you’ve ever seen one.

Makes one margarita (if making more than one, we strongly recommend making them individually as opposed to trying to quadruple the recipe into a pitcher).

3 ounces Reposada Tequila (I recommend Centenario, Tony uses Hornitos; either way the Reposada is the difference. It gives the drink perfect body, trust us)
1 ½ ounces Gran Marnier
¾ ounces triple sec
4 ounces FRESHLY SQUEEZED orange juice. (1 medium sized fresh, ripe orange usually does the job)
2 ounces fresh lime juice - 1 medium sized fresh ripe lime (for a less sweet drink, use only half the lime)
Ice
Martini Shaker
A 16 ounce glass (salted rim if desired)

1. Fill the martini shaker halfway with ice and add each of the three liquors. Allow shaker to sit while moving on to step #2 (this is a seemingly benign yet necessary part of this; the chilling and slight watering of the liquor is vital to the finished product. In the end, the shaker will sit for less than 3 minutes.

2. Juice the orange and lime

3. Add fruit juices to the shaker.

4. If you desire a salted rim, do so now to your glass.

5. Shake the margarita vigorously for about 5-10 seconds. Any more than that and you become a parody of Tom Cruise.

6. Fill your glass with ice and serve.

Tony's Toxic Margarita

This takes the original to a “fall down drunk” level in one fell swoop. All I do here is increase the alcohol significantly, while leaving the fruit juice the same, thus making this a strong-as-hell drink. The taste obviously changes as well, leaning more towards liquor than a balance of liquor and juice. Thus, the quality of tequila has to supremo to make this work. You’ll feel every sip of this drink, but you’ll only need one to be forgetting all of your troubles.

Makes one margarita

4 ½ ounces Reposada Tequila (I recommend Centenario, Tony uses Hornitos; either way the Reposada is the difference. It gives the drink perfect body, trust us)
2 ¼ ounces Gran Marnier
1 ounce triple sec
4 ounces freshly squeezed orange juice. (1 medium sized fresh, ripe orange usually does the job)
2 ounces fresh lime juice - 1 medium sized fresh ripe lime (for a less sweet drink, use only half the lime)
Ice
Martini Shaker
A 16 ounce glass (salted rim if desired)

2. Juice the orange and lime

3. Add fruit juices to the shaker

4. If you desire a slated rim, do so now to your glass.

5. Shake the margarita vigorously for about 5-10 seconds. Any more than that and you become a parody of Tom Cruise.

6. Fill your glass with ice and serve.

Tony's Other Toxic Margarita

Named after one of my best friends in the world, this is an alternate version of the now famous “Tony’s Margarita” unveiled during the 2009 RAD-A-THON.Tony, who is retired and lives in Arizona, has both the time and proximity to the motherland of margaritas to have perfected this recipe

Unlike the other version (s) this margarita will produce a more traditional “lime green” color and relies on less fresh fruit (just limes). However, the standard of needing top of the line liquor and real, fresh fruit remains to pull this off. If you like your margaritas on the more “tart” side, this recipe trumps the others.

Makes one margarita (if making more than one, we strongly recommend making them individually as opposed to trying to quadruple the recipe into a pitcher).

3 ounces Reposada Tequila (I recommend Centenario, Tony uses Hornitos; either way the Reposada is the difference. It gives the drink perfect body, trust us)
3 ounces triple sec
3 ounces fresh lime juice - 2 medium sized fresh ripe limes usually do the trick
Ice
Martini Shaker
A 16 ounce glass (salted rim if desired)

1. Fill the martini shaker halfway with ice and add each of the liquors. Allow shaker to sit while moving on to step #2 (this is a seemingly benign yet necessary part of this; the chilling and slight watering of the liquor is vital to the finished product. In the end, the shaker will sit for less than 3 minutes).

2. Juice the limes to 3 ounces

3. Add fruit juice to the shaker

4. If you desire a salted rim, do so now to your glass.

5. Shake the margarita vigorously for about 5-10 seconds. Any more than that and you become a parody of Tom Cruise.

6. Fill your glass with ice and serve.

Traditional Egg Nog

Eggnog’s origins are debated but most seem to agree it was invented in Europe, but made famous and used most by America’s founding fathers, in particular, George Washington. As designed, it always had liquor from the start; 18th century Americans would be appalled to know that we had virgin-ized the beverage that kept them warm while fighting for the country’s independence. This version will not taste like what you buy in the store; yes, it’s creamy and with similar flavors, but egg nog made classically and from scratch simply is, by definition, different from a mass produced pasteurized version for stores.

Bear in mind that traditional egg nog uses raw eggs. Gasp. There is a way to cook the eggs first, but I am not a wussy, so I don’t have that way here. Google it.

This is the labor-of-love, truly from scratch version and will, for maximum convenience and best results, require the use of an electric mixer.

2 eggs, separated (2 egg yolks 2 egg whites)
1/8 cup sugar, plus ½ tablespoon
½ pint half and half
½ cup heavy cream
½ ounce bourbon (recommend maker’s mark)
1 ½ ounces brandy (recommend E&J)
1 teaspoon nutmeg
One drop of white vinegar for egg whites
Pinch of salt

1. In a bowl with a mixer, beat the egg yolks until they lighten in color (about 3 minutes at low speed) and then slowly add in the 1/8 cup sugar and continue to beat until completely dissolved. Remove from mixer and add to the bowl the half and half, cream, bourbon, brandy, nutmeg and stir to combine.

2. Place the egg whites in the bowl of a mixer and beat to soft peaks. With an electric mixer, this takes about one minute at low speed with a pinch of salt, followed by adding the drop of vinegar and mixing at high speed for 3 additional minutes. Then, with the mixer still running gradually add the remaining ½ tablespoon of sugar and continue to mix until dissolved, about 15 seconds.

3. Whisk the egg whites into the mixture, pour into a pitcher and chill before serving.

Traditional Virgin Egg Nog

Bear in mind that traditional egg nog uses raw eggs. Gasp. There is a way to cook the eggs first, but I am not a wussy, so I don’t have that way here. Google it.

This is the labor-of-love, truly from scratch version and will, for maximum convenience and best results, require the use of an electric mixer.

2 eggs, separated (2 egg yolks 2 egg whites)
1/8 cup sugar, plus ½ tablespoon
2/3 pint half and half
½ cup heavy cream
½ teaspoon nutmeg

MAKES ABOUT 3 CUPS

3. Whisk the egg whites into the mixture, pour into a pitcher and chill before serving.

Uncle Gordy's Perfect Manhattan

This recipe has been tweaked slightly by me but was the basic favorite of my Mother’s brother-in-law for years. If you are serving it to a woman, put it in a martini glass, if yu are serving it to a man, serve it in a bucket glass with fresh ice.

The key to the flavor Gordy’s version is the use of Southern Comfort, a beverage I would usually never touch except for this drink. I have also made it with a ton of other blended whiskeys, like Maker’s Mark, and it is good but different. I prefer the Southern Comfort version.

As my Uncle says, 2 or 3 of these and all of your troubles will disappear, but be aware of the possible hangover the next morning. This is a slightly sweet drink.

2 ounces Southern Comfort
Ice
½ ounce dry vermouth
½ ounce sweet vermouth
2 dashes bitter
Shaker
A martini glass for a girl, bucket galss with ice for a guy

1. Fill the shaker with ice and all ingredients.

2. Shake and serve.