As the heat goes up, cool your cocktail down

The Dill & Cucumber Vodka Bloody Mary

A bloody Mary truly is a versatile drink. Whether it’s 9 am or 9 pm, a nice bloody can really hit the spot. At MBFBM, we’ve created specialty recipes that utilize the freshly grown ingredients available locally. Remember the Autumnal Bliss Bloody Mary recipe?

Last night I stepped onto the back porch for my customary evening bloody. Opting for a spicy habenero chipotle recipe, I was soon sweating like a butcher. Not cool. No, not cool at all. Then I remembered the vodka infusion I’d started a week earlier.

Perfect! With a refrigerator full of summer vegetables from the local farmers market, two items jumped out and said, “summer;” Cucumbers and dill. The smell of dill is a classic summer association. The undeniable cool freshness of cut cucumbers is a perfect pairing and yields a smell like fresh cut grass from the comfort of a hammock.

To make this cool, fresh, and delicious summertime cucumber vodka bloody Mary recipe, you’ll need to do a little prep work. Easy prep work- don’t worry. You’ll be infusing vodka with cucumber and dill 2 to 5 days in advance of making the drink recipes.

Avoid pesticides and other nasties by selecting organically grown dill and cucumber. It’s a good idea to make up multiple batches. the infused vodka will keep for a very long time, once its been drained and filtered.

The Dill Cucumber Vodka Infusion

What you’ll need:

One quart good quality vodka
One fresh cucumber-washed and cut
One handful of fresh dill plant

Instructions: Place cucumber and dill into a one quart Mason jar. Top with vodka and store in a cool place for 2 to 5 days. Drain and filter any sediment.

Cucumber Dill Bloody Mary Recipe

Ingredients:

2 oz infused vodka (see above)
5 oz Clamato Juice
1/8 tsp celery salt
1 TBSP Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp Tabasco sauce
1 TBSP fresh lemon juice
1/8 tsp fresh ground black pepper

Directions:

Fill a pint glass with ice. Add remaining ingredients. Pour into cocktail shaker and mix vigorously. pour back into glass. Garnish with pickle and fresh cucumber slice. Serve with cold pale ale.

-Greg Tooke My short bio

Red Wine Bloody Mary

I’ve always been a bloody Mary in the morning and red wine in the afternoon kind of gal. On the weekends, the mornings can magically turn to afternoon while I’m not looking. As a younger lush, I never felt right opening a bottle of Cabernet before 5pm. Now, well into my 40’s, cab’ time has crept up earlier and earlier. Alas wine time and bloody Mary time have eclipsed each other.

Enter: The Red Wine Bloody Mary– As many of my readers know, my taste in bloody Mary’s vary from fresh and crisp to bold and savory. Likewise, my wine choices run from the nice fresh Pinot grigio on the patio, to a bold zinfandel in front of the warm glow of my television. (I’m classy like that)
The red wine bloody Mary falls squarely into the bolder, more savory drink category. The twist of fresh lemon juice does give it a nice lip-smacking fresh quality, but from then on it’s a satisfying, full-bodied drink that affords the luxury of drinking wine early in the morning, while maintaining a, “she’s ok. I mean, it’s not like she’s drinking wine in the morning,” appearance. I like to think of that celery stalk as camouflage.

This drink is a great solution to that quarter-of-a-bottle-of-wine-leftover-from-last-night problem too.

So let’s get to it ladies. Whether you’re transitioning from brunch into happy hour, or just got a late start on breakfast, try this red wine bloody Mary recipe and start being colorful and witty long before your unsuspecting friends have opened a bottle.

Gather up the following ingredients;

Good Vodka. Mmm, vodka!
Clamato juice (tomato juice will work, but Clamato is less thick and more savory)
Fresh lemon
Red wine (I’ve used Cabernet and zinfandel)
Fresh cracked black pepper
Tabasco sauce
Celery salt
Worcestershire sauce
Celery stalk
Olive
ice

Directions: Fill a large cocktail shaker with ice. Crack black pepper over the ice, then coat it with Worcestershire. (About a tablespoon) Add an ounce of vodka, an ounce of red wine, and a dash of Tabasco. Now top the drink with Clamato and shake. Rim a large glass with celery salt and pour the red wine bloody Mary into it. Oh, how I love the sound that makes!

Squeeze the fresh lemon over the top, give another turn of black pepper, and garnish with a stalk of celery and an olive or three.

Repeat as needed (PRN)