Rosemary Limeade with Blueberries and Gin

August 16, 2010 in Desserts, Gelatin, Herb-Infused, Recipes | Tags: , , , , | 3 comments

This creation is the latest installment in my series of herb-infused boozy gelatin molds. The unique fusion of rosemary, limes, blueberries, club soda, and gin proves irresistible as a cocktail; and even yummier in gelatinous form. I adore the delightfully sweet and sour combination of berries, citrus, herbs, and booze.

Recipe for 3.5 cups

  • 2 packets Knox gelatin
  • ½ cup water (for blooming)
  • ¾ water (for syrup)
  • ½ cup sugar (or to taste)
  • Juice of one lime (approx. ¼ cup) with zest reserved
  • ½ cup 100% blueberry juice
  • 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary leaves
  • ¾ cup gin
  • ½ cup club soda
  • ½ cup blueberries

Put ½ cup of water in a small bowl and sprinkle the 2 packets of gelatin on top of the water.  Set bowl aside.

Put water, blueberry juice, sugar, and lime juice in a saucepan over medium heat and bring to a low boil until sugar dissolves. Remove from heat, add lime zest and rosemary leaves. Let stew for 10-minutes. Strain the lime/rosemary syrup, and return to saucepan. Bring to boil, remove from heat, and add the bloomed gelatin. Stir until gelatin dissolves. Stir in cold gin and club soda.

Put mixture in refrigerator (or freezer) until thickened to a soft gel consistency. It should be easy to stir but thick enough to suspend the blueberries. Stir in berries and spoon mixture into mold(s). Put in refrigerator until set, at least 4 hours.

Blackberry Orange Cream with Rum

August 15, 2010 in Desserts, Gelatin, Recipes | Tags: , , , , | Leave a comment

Of all the berries I know, blackberries are my favorite. I adore their dark, rich, and sweet taste. This mold was inspired by the yummy blackberry and orange gelato made at my favorite hang out, Dolce Vita.

The merger of blackberries and oranges creates a clean and crisp flavor, while the addition of sweetened condensed milk and rum completes the citrus, berry, creamy, boozy experience.

To create this mold, I dissolved bloomed gelatin into heated water and freshly squeezed orange juice, then stirred in fresh puréed  blackberries (seeds strained), rum, sweetened condensed milk, and a touch of vanilla.

Hibiscus Mint Agar Agar

August 9, 2010 in Agar Agar, Desserts, Recipes | Tags: , , | 3 comments

For the past month I’ve been experimenting with agar agar. Agar agar, a gelatinous substance derived from red algae, is popular in Asian desserts. It’s also used as a vegan alternative to gelatin. (While often used as a gelatin substitute, agar agar has a different texture and cooking properties – see cooking tips below.) The alcohol-free agar agar seen here was made with a Hibiscus and Mint herbal tea from Austin-based Nile Valley Herbs. The Hibiscus creates a lovely floral taste with a vibrant, all-natural red. The touch of mint and sugar provide a cool sweetness.

A few tips for making agar agar desserts from scratch:

  • Agar agar can be found at most Chinese grocery stores.
  • In my experience, alcohol prevents agar agar from setting. If anyone knows how to make boozy agar agar molds – please let me know!
  • Use 1-teaspoon agar agar for 2-cups liquid.
  • Using the 1-teaspoon to 2-cups of liquid ratio creates a stiff jelly, often too stiff to work with gelatin molds. Instead pour into a shallow pan, let cool, and cut into squares. To create a softer substance, increase liquid.
  • Agar agar sets faster than gelatin, and can set at room temperature.
  • Check out my other agar agar recipes: Blood Orange Agar Agar and Blackberry and Tea Agar Agar.

Recipe for 4-cups

  • 4 cups water
  • 4 hibiscus mint tea bags
  • ½ cup sugar (or to taste)
  • 2 teaspoons agar agar

In a medium bowl, pour 2 cups of boiling water over 4 tea bags. Let steep for 15-minutes, remove tea bags. In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine the other 2 cups of water with sugar and agar agar. Boil for 15-minutes. Stir the boiling water with the tea. Pour into shallow pan to cool. Once set, cut into cubes.

Lemonade with Thyme and Vodka

August 7, 2010 in Desserts, Gelatin, Herb-Infused, Recipes | Tags: , , , , | 2 comments

Flavored simple syrups offer endless possibilities for drinks and gelatin molds. After enjoying the unique gelatinous merging of basil with blueberry lemonade and vodka and fig and cardamom cream with rum, I have continued to create various syrups with fresh herbs, spices, and dried fruits. To experiment with flavor combinations, I paired the syrups with juices, fruits, teas, club soda, tonic water, and occasionally booze (see the lemonade with thyme and strawberries pictured below).

In the midst of this enjoyable summer experimentation, a few combinations stood out as potential gelatin molds. (Yes, there are more herb-infused gelatins to come!) This gelatin mold consists of lemons, thyme, sugar, club soda, and vodka. A few of my friends winced at the mention of thyme in a gelatin mold, but after tasting they understood. The thyme compliments the lemons and vodka, while the sugar and club soda provide a sparkly sweetness.

 

 

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The Bramble

August 1, 2010 in Cocktails, Desserts, Gelatin | Tags: , , , , , | 2 comments

This gelatin mold is based on my new favorite cocktail of the same name. I first learned of the Bramble in The New York Times Style Magazine article written by Toby Cecchini (the object of my latest foodie crush). Cecchini describes my ideal cocktail – gin, fresh lemon juice, simple syrup, and a blackberry liqueur called crème de mûre. Oh yum…

The Bramble, popular in England, is relatively unknown in the states. Especially Austin. My continual attempts of ordering it result in well-intended blank stares. I resigned to purchasing crème de mûre and making it myself when mixologist Alfonso started working at my neighborhood bar, the fantastic Dolce Vita. Alfonso (pictured right) not only knows how to make the Bramble, he adds a few twists like a dash of soda and the occasional coating of the glass with absinthe. (I’ve yet to develop a taste for absinthe, but my friend Monti claims it’s a worthy addition.) Needless to say, Alfonso’s version reins as my favorite summer cocktail.

To transfer the Bramble to a gelatin mold, I created a simple syrup of water, sugar, lemon juice, and stewed lemon zest. After blooming the gelatin in water and dissolving it in the hot syrup, I added gin, club soda, and crème de framboise. (My usually well-stocked liquor store does not carry crème de mûre, so I went with the raspberry equivalent.) The resulting taste competed with the cocktail – but I need to tinker with ingredient proportions before it’s truly berrytastic.

Cherry Blossom

July 24, 2010 in Desserts, Gelatin, Recipes | Tags: , , , , | 7 comments

See my recipe featured in Readers’ Recipes: The New York Times Magazine.

I’ll never forget the first bing cherry I ate. In 1992, after moving from Oklahoma to California, I attended a cookout with friends from my new high school. Along with the garden burgers and hot dogs was a bag of fresh cherries. I found it odd to see cherries eaten out of a produce bag, not immersed in syrup. Always the adventurous eater, I tried a fresh cherry and immediately fell in love with the intricate flavors that barely resembled the sticky sweet  cherries of my youth. Every summer since I’ve anticipated their seasonal purchase and consumption.

This gelatin consists of cherry juice, cherries, and rum on top; sweetened condensed milk, almond extract, and cherry juice on bottom. The cherry/almond/rum combination is sweet and lovely.

Recipe

Top layer

  • 2 cups 100% black cherry juice (I always prefer 100% juices to blends, but if using a blend, you may want to adjust the sugar)
  • ½ cup sugar (or to taste)
  • 2 packets gelatin
  • ¾ cup cold water
  • ¾ cup cold rum
  • 1 cup pitted and halved cherries (thoroughly washed and dried)

Bottom layer

  • One 14oz can sweetened condensed milk (cold)
  • 1 ¾ cup water
  • ¼ cup cherry juice (optional – gives the bottom a pink color. Use 2-cups water for a white bottom layer)
  • 1/4 teaspoon almond extract (optional)
  • 2 packets gelatin

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The Don Draper

July 23, 2010 in Cocktails, Desserts, Gelatin, Recipes | Tags: , , , | 2 comments

See this mold featured on Delicious Links at Apartment Therapy The Kitchn.

I’m a huge fan of the show Mad Men. Not only do I adore the show’s style, acting, and social commentary, I’m fascinated by the cocktail-centric world it depicts. In honor of Mad Men’s 4th season premier, I created the Don Draper gelatin mold.

The Don Draper is based on an old-fashioned, a cocktail consisting of bourbon (Don preferred Canadian Club whisky), sugar, water, dash of bitters, twist of lemon (or orange), and a cherry. It was a challenge to convert an old-fashioned into a gelatin mold, but I think I’m finally figuring out the magic cocktail-to-gelatin formula.

Recipe for 3.5 cups

  • 2 packets knox gelatin
  • ½ cup water (for blooming)
  • ¾ water
  • ½ cup sugar (or to taste)
  • Juice of one lemon (approx. ¼ cup) with zest reserved
  • 1 ¾ cup bourbon
  • 6 dashes of aromatic bitters, or to taste
  • 1 cup strained maraschino cherries

Put ½ cup of water in a medium bowl and sprinkle the 2 packets of gelatin on top.  Set bowl aside. Put water, sugar, and lemon juice in a saucepan over medium heat and bring to a low boil until sugar dissolves. Remove from heat and add lemon zest. Let stew for 10-minutes. Strain the lemon syrup, and return to saucepan. Reheat the syrup, and pour over the bloomed gelatin. Stir until gelatin dissolves. Stir in bourbon and bitters. Note: if bourbon is cold, it will reduce the amount of time needed before adding cherries.

Put mixture in refrigerator (or freezer) until thickened to a soft gel consistency. It should be easy to stir but thick enough to suspend the cherries. Stir in cherries and spoon mixture into mold(s). Put in refrigerator until set, at least 4 hours.

Fig and Cardamom Cream with Rum

July 13, 2010 in Desserts, Gelatin, Herb-Infused, Recipes | Tags: , , , , | 2 comments

See this mold mentioned here in The Globe and Mail, and here at Apartment Therapy The Kitchn.

I love figs and I love cardamon, but I never thought of combining them until I read this fantastic article about simple syrups by Addie Broyles in the Austin American Statesmen. The article describes perking up summer drinks with simple syrups, but I immediately transferred the concept to gelatin molds. This mold was made with sweetened condensed milk, rum, and fig and cardamom syrup. Fruity, spicy, and boozy – this may be my favorite gelatinous experiment to date. My friends enjoyed pouring additional fig and cardamom syrup on the creamy mold – yum! We also enjoyed eating the cardamom and sugar soaked figs.

To make a fig and cardamom simple syrup, combine 1-cup water with 1-cup sugar in a saucepan and bring to a low boil. When the sugar is dissolved, remove from heat and add 1-cup dried figs and 2-Tbsp. whole cardamom pods. Cover pan and let sit overnight. In the morning strain the syrup and store in an air-tight container in the refrigerator.

Recipe for 3.5 cups

  • 2 packets Knox gelatin
  • ½ cup water (for blooming)
  • ¼ cup fig and cardamom syrup (see above)
  • ¼ cup rum (I used white rum, but any would do)
  • 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk

Sprinkle two packets of gelatin on top of ½ cup water. Set aside for 5 minutes.

In a small saucepan heat up rum and the previously prepared fig and cardamom syrup, but do not boil. Once heated, pour over the bloomed gelatin. Stir until gelatin dissolves. Stir in sweetened condensed milk, and then spoon into mold(s). Refrigerate until set, at least 4 hours.

Basil Blueberry Lemonade with Vodka

July 13, 2010 in Desserts, Gelatin, Herb-Infused, Recipes | Tags: , , , , | 5 comments

See this mold featured on Relish Austin, Addie Broyles food blog on austin360.com.

Flavored simple syrups, like the ones described in this article by Addie Broyles in the Austin American Statesmen, are the key to creating complex and unique gelatin molds from scratch. Here I combined homemade basil simple syrup, 100% blueberry juice, blueberries, lemon juice, sugar, water, club soda, and vodka. The resulting taste was like summer in gelatinous form – tart, sweet, and herbalicious.

Recipe for 3.5 cup mold

  • 2 packets gelatin
  • ½ cup water (for blooming*)
  • ¾ water (for syrup)
  • ½ cup sugar (or to taste)
  • Juice of one lemon (approx. ¼ cup) with zest reserved
  • ½ cup 100% blueberry juice
  • 6 large basil leaves
  • ¾ cup vodka
  • ½ cup club soda
  • ½ cup blueberries

Put ½ cup of water in a small bowl and sprinkle the 2 packets of gelatin on top of the water.  Set bowl aside. (*This is called “blooming.” Blooming allows gelatin to absorb water and thus dissolve easily when added to hot water.)

Put water, blueberry juice, sugar, and lemon juice in a saucepan over medium heat and bring to a low boil until sugar dissolves. Remove from heat, add lemon zest and basil leaves. Let stew for 10-minutes. Strain the lemon/basil syrup, and return to saucepan. Bring to boil, remove from heat, and add the bloomed gelatin. Stir until gelatin dissolves. Stir in cold vodka and club soda.

Put mixture in refrigerator (or freezer) until thickened to a soft gel consistency. It should be easy to stir but thick enough to suspend the blueberries. Stir in berries and spoon mixture into mold(s). Put in refrigerator until set, at least 4 hours.

My lovely friends enjoyed this tart and boozy mold.

Mojito

July 5, 2010 in Cocktails, Desserts, Gelatin | Tags: , , , , , | 2 comments

The mojito is one of my favorite summer drinks. Sweet, sour, minty, and bubbly. Here I suspended strawberries and mint leaves for visual interest, and added blueberries to create a patriotic theme for 4th of July.

Making cocktail-based molds from scratch is a challenge! I finally decided to steep lime zest and mint leaves in a hot lime syrup (water, limes, sugar). The lime/mint combination tasted great, but I was heavy handed on the rum. Even my alcohol loving friends admitted it was strong.  A bit more practice and I’ll hopefully unlock the secret to cocktail-based gelatin molds.

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