Month: February 2021 (Page 2 of 3)

Saturn

February 18, 2021 / Monkeybrad / 0 Comments

Another snow day, but this time with real snow! Overnight, we got 4-6 additional inches of snow over the top of our existing way too much ice. The upshot is, we could actually play in the snow today. We made a snowman, fought with snowballs, made snow cream, sort of sledded in the kayaks, all the things we could think of. We took midday break to come inside, dry out a bit and watch NASA hit another homerun with the successful landing of the Perseverance rover on Mars. So, in honor of the folks who not only do the impossible, but do it with an audience, won’t you please join me as we stand and make the interplanetary tiki classic, Saturn.

Coco Bitter

February 17, 2021 / Monkeybrad / 0 Comments

After a year of days running into each other, it seems like overkill to have this week of ice and snow. I already barely knew what month we were in and I awoke this morning to a grey, ashen sky over an endless sea of white to discover that it was Wednesday, and not just any Wednesday, but Ash Wednesday, which means I went right on through Mardi Gras without realizing it. To be fair, I should have known, mom had homemade King Cake at dinner Sunday, so I knew it was coming up, it just never really registered that it was upon us. I had planned to make a New Orleans classic, but that did not quite work out, so, won’t you please join me now as we stand and make the Coco Bitter.

Pearl Diver

February 16, 2021 / Monkeybrad / 0 Comments

A little more snow, a lot more ice, another quiet day at home with hours to fill. I could have been productive and cleaned off the desk in the office or organized the rums or dusted my trophy case, but we skipped all that in favor of blueberry pancakes, introducing the boy to The Munsters, watching YouTube cooking videos, finally finishing Ace Combat, oh and day drinking. So, in the spirit of making the most of forced confinement, won’t you please join me now as we stand and make the classic Pearl Diver.

Port Royal

February 15, 2021 / Monkeybrad / 0 Comments

We awoke to a winter, ummm, what’s the opposite of wonderland? Our snow storm turned out to be a glazing of ice, covered with sleet pellets. No chance for a snowman and making ice and slush angels is way less fun than it sounds. So we spent the day mostly indoors. Sure, I’d venture out from time to time to go for a walk around the property or down to the end of the driveway to check out the ice on the roads, look and see if anyone had run off the curve lately, write my name in the sleet, you know the important stuff. Now that the sun has set, I figure it is time for a drink, so in the hopes that something from more temperate climes will warm our hearts, won’t you please join me as we stand and make the Port Royal.

P.S. I Love You

February 14, 2021 / Monkeybrad / 0 Comments

It is Valentine’s Day, which seems like the perfect opportunity to make a nice sweet drink with some depth and complexity then follow it up with an even sweeter story of incredible depth and levels of complex beauty only dreamt of by mortal man. I could do that. Sondheim would have us believe the “opportunity is not a lengthy visitor” that can be missed before you even realize it has arrived. Of course, he would take at least an hour and a half before revealing that wisdom just after intermission. So, in the spirit of cutting to the chase and not beating around the bush, won’t you please join me now as we stand and make the P.S. I Love You.

Chartreuse Toddy

February 13, 2021 / Monkeybrad / 0 Comments

It is cold enough out there today for this child of more temperate climes. They are calling for a proper ice and snow storm tonight or tomorrow or the next day or some other indeterminate time in the future. The important thing to remember is that during the challenging times to come, no matter what, you must not be caught without ample supplies of milk and bread. To avoid this fate we ventured out today for supplies. It was 26° with freezing fog and since we were already cold, we decided to hike a couple of miles in a local park and climb the highest hill we could find. Needless to say, we need something to warm us up this evening, so, won’t you join me now as we stand and make the Chartreuse Toddy.

5th Amendment

February 12, 2021 / Monkeybrad / 0 Comments

“You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed for you.” Do you understand these rights? Probably not. Most of us haven’t made a close study of them. Although the rights protected are enshrined in the Constitution, they were not formalized into the “Miranda Warning” that must be issued when you are taken into custody or interrogated until 1966. Turns out things work better when people are made aware of their rights. Seems like a better focus on civics curriculum and making sure that people actually understand our founding documents and the rights protected by them would be a great place to start. I bet that if more people bothered to read the instructions for our republic, we’d have less call to have to inform them of their rights, but I could be wrong. I often am. So, in the spirit of better understanding the national EULA, won’t you please join me now, as we stand and make the 5th Amendment.

Amaretto Fizz

February 11, 2021 / Monkeybrad / 0 Comments

Cocktails don’t have to be complicated. They often are and I dearly love something with lots of ingredients and techniques, but there is a lot to be said for simplicity. Simple drinks are often even more challenging to build correctly than the complicated ones. When you have lots of ingredients, some of the details may get lost, but when you only have three components, a heavy hand with one of them or poor quality in another will reveal itself immediately. I was looking for something light and easy on the palate this evening, so I took a nod to one of my wife’s favorite spirits to make a riff on one of the early cocktails. Won’t you please join me now as we stand and make the Amaretto Fizz.

Salame de Chocolate

February 11, 2021 / Monkeybrad / 0 Comments

First things first, there is no meat in Salame de Chocolate. That’s one of those play on words things where it looks like something it is not. This one looks like a salami, but tastes like chocolate, port wine and heaven. My wife and I discovered this amazing little treat a few years ago in Portugal. I think we first had it as dessert on a TAP flight, but I may be mistaken. We fell in love with “chocolate salami” in all of its variations, but it can be hard to find stateside. As the holidays approached I thought it might be nice to surprise the wife with a little reminder of our pre-pandemic life and travel. I looked into having friends send some over, but then I stumbled across the recipe and decided to try my hand at making this Portuguese delicacy. It looked fairly simple, a straightforward no-bake recipe with easy to get ingredients. Armed with this knowledge I enlisted my son to help and one day before Christmas, we hit the test kitchen at the office to see if we could get something close to the original and it turned out pretty well. So, join us now as we introduce you to the culinary delights of the Salame de Chocolate.

La Vida Nola

February 10, 2021 / Monkeybrad / 0 Comments

I am feeling a bit contrarian and stubborn this evening. I don’t know why, it just happens sometimes. They are calling for an ice storm later, but it’s been warm all day, so I want a treat. I figure I deserve it. I mean I got through the day. I didn’t have a treat yesterday or the day before. Honestly, I am not sure if I have been good enough to deserve a treat, but I am having one anyway. So in the spirt of delayed pleasure and finally getting something sweet, won’t you please join me now as we stand and make La Vida Nola.