Cheers!

One of the things that happens in my Modern Speakeasy Mysteries is that Zach, one of the main characters, creates cocktails for the bar, Elixir, as well as for the hidden Speakeasy. I have to admit, the research for this part of my writing is darned fun. For years the go-to cocktail at our place was gin and tonic; ice cold with a lot of lime. I still love the refreshing bite of that drink, but recently we’ve been experimenting with Manhattans, Negronis, and Bees Knees.

Cocktails are integral to any book that has a bar as a prominent backdrop, but I still don’t want the books to be too boozy. So, Zach is also creating a group of Mocktails. This is something that I started doing myself a long time ago. I have friends that don’t drink, and sometimes I’d even like something to sip from a pretty glass without the threat of a twisty head the following morning. So was born many a mocktail. Some as easy as juice and soda, others with multiple ingredients and lots of chopping/measuring/mixing/crushing/shaking/straining. I’m trying to keep the drinks a little simpler for the books.

The Mocktail menu that Zack creates is called “The Untouchables,” and one of the drinks is named The Eliot Ness. I’ve been wanting to find more interesting, non-alcoholic ingredients, and I was invited to a fun event last week at a place called MEarth. MEarth (they pronounce it “Me Earth”) is very cool in all the proper organic, sustainable, hippy-dippy ways. The event was a Mocktail making class – starting with a breeze through the organic gardens to select ingredients. We plucked, and tasted as we went along, fennel fronds, sweet (tiny!) strawberries, edible flowers, mint, basil, and more.

Once back inside each attendee was provided a little recipe book and a table full of supplies: muddlers, cocktail mixers, juicers, zesters, peelers, strainers, knives, glasses, juices (aloe, cranberry, apple), and a variety of handmade bitters and mixers. Two of the most interesting were made of avocado pits (dried, shredded, and mixed with hot water and sugar – then strained through a very fine nut cloth) and macerated citrus skins (when combined with sugar they make their own liquid). The second of these is called oleo-saccharum – it was fantastic. The first one, the crazy avocado pit mixer, was a bit too fussy and precious for the outcome.

The oleo-saccharum basically becomes a simple syrup but without water. The sugar pulls the oils from the citrus skin. It does take a full day or more to make this, but the steps are easy. Once the skins are removed the liquid can be kept in a container with a nice sealing lid in the fridge. It’s thick and pungent and wonderful. Here’s one of the drinks I’ve used it to make –

Mocktail Recipe: In a drink mixer muddle some fennel fronds with 1/2 oz of oleo-saccharum, add 1 oz of lime juice, and 2 oz of aloe juice, ice, shake, strain into a pretty glass. There will be lovely little flecks of green floating in the drink from the crushed fennel fronds. Depending upon your own druthers there is no reason why you couldn’t serve this over ice, drop in a few cut strawberries, or splash in some sparkling water. I enjoyed this drink… even if I did have a fleeting thought that it might also be good with the addition of vodka.

If you want to know more about Zach take a look at the pages dedicated to the Modern Speakeasy Mysteries. I’ll keep adding more content about Ellie and Zach as I get to know them better.