Painting and Pimm's

The weather in southern California has been erratic.  As in random thunderstorms interspersing weeks of perfect summer weather and sweltering days of hell like heat. When the weather gets particularly devilish, my favorite beverage is Pimm's Cup.

Now, Pimm's the liqueur was made long ago by some guy who owned an oyster bar in London, which I can only assume was the man's English alternative to bitters. So obviously it's good for you.  Specifically Pimm's No. 1, (they made others that didn't do so well at market) is a tonic made of gin, herbs and quinine. I've never had a shot of it before so I don't know what it tastes like outside of a Pimm's cup, which adds a whole lot of deliciousness covering up any unpleasantness in the Pimm's flavor. 


Pimm's cup is  the official drink of Wimbledon tennis tournament, the Henley Royal Regatta and the Glyndebourne Festival Opera, according to Wikipedia, the other being champagne.  Champagne being my first favorite drink makes me think I should be going to a lot more of these Royal events and Operas.
But one cannot drink a pitcher of Pimm's cup alone.  Well, one can but one would then have consumer far too much goodness for one day.  So, during my recent painting meetup with a group of Martha Stewart like ladies, I whipped up a few batches.

Pimm's Cup


Now, there are a lot of ways to make Pimm's Cup. Before everyone gets up to protest my Pimm's Cup's authenticity and add their recipe, note that 90% of the recipes out there don't agree.  We don't have Schweppes lemonade over in the States, for instance.  Ginger ale, though delicious, is a contentious point.  And if strawberries aren't available because some people like to enjoy Pimm's Cup in the off season, it's ok. Plus, who knows where you can find borage anyway?  There's a huge mint plant in my garden, that's what's going in mine.

That being said, substitutions are ok but here are the core ingredients: Pimm's, a citrus fruit, carbonated lemon beverage or ginger ale, cucumber, fresh herbs.

Ingredients


1 bottle of Pimm's No. 1
1 bottle of Trader Joe's Sparkling Lemonade (Or Sprite or 7up or Squirt if it's not available.)
1 small cucumber
1/2 a small basket of fresh strawberries
1 orange
1 large sprig (or branch, whatever you want to call it) of mint

Directions

1. Hull the strawberries and slice in half. Slice cucumber into thin slices. Slice oranges the same way. Place it all in the pitcher.

2. Crush some fresh mint leaves reserving the top on the branch for garnish.  Place in the pitcher.

3. Fill the pitcher half way with Pimm's and the other half with Sparkling Lemonade.

4. Use the branch of mint or long spoon to mix the ingredients in the pitcher. Lease the mint branch in the pitcher.

5. Pour over ice. Optional: garnish with mint, cucumber, strawberry and orange in each cup.

Other Pimm's Cup Recipes
Bon Appetit - The Pimm's Cup
NPR - Refreshingly Old School: Pimm's Cup
CHOW - Pimm's Cup Recipe

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Cookware Lust

I'm lucky enough to have a fairly well stocked kitchen.  My Kitchenaid stand mixer, whom I aptly named Duncan, and a dozen of his closest attachments, a hand-crank pasta maker that rarely sees the light of day (I promise one day, squid ink fettuccine), a Cuisinart ice cream maker that allows me to freeze liquids at will.  Yes, I should be able to make almost anything.

But recently, I've hit a wall because of a lack of kitchen equipment.  How can I be expected to make savory madeleines without a madeleine pan?  Or the multitude of Danish, Japanese and Vietnamese delicacies like aebleskivers and tako yaki without a pan with inverted domes?  Paella: Not in a normal skillet, thank you very much.

Here are a few of the kitchen tools I'm currently lusting after.

9 Quart Dutch Oven. The gold standard in enamel dutch ovens is obviously Le Creuset.  Without it, my world is devoid of properly braised dishes like Osso Bucco and homemade artisan 5 minute bread loafs.    $335 at Le Creuset.

Paella Pan.  I've watched enough Mario Batali and Anthony Bourdain to know that paella needs to be nurtured to culinary perfection in a proper paella pan, preferably over a hand drawn wood fire. Pan sizes vary and my preferred size is 17" which serves 10. $39.95 at Sur La Table.

Madeleine Pan. My mother always had a fond place in her heart for madeleines, I think it's the French influence on Vietnam baked goods. How surprised will she be when I present her a dozen filled with bacon, chives and goat cheese? Totes surprised. $25.00 at Williams Sonoma.

Aebleskiver Pan. I grew up with a pan like this in my mother's pantry.  She used it to make Bánh Khọt, a shrimp and pork cup held together by a coconut pancake batter. Later, I saw something similar in Little Tokyo where a women adpet at forming dough balls filled with octopus with a flip of her wrist and a wood skewer. When my husband's family bought a vacation home in Solvang, I experienced Aebleskivers and fanatic bees for the first time.  All these will be possible in my own kitchen (less the bees) once I have this magical pan. $39.98 at Fjorn Scandinavian. 

What are you lusting after for your kitchen?

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85 Degrees Bakery Cafe - Irvine, CA

In a recent trip into Irvine, my husband and I stopped in at the lauded 85 Degrees Bakery.  It was as crowded as we had heard but totally worth the wait for special Taiwanese bakery goodies that I can't find in my own Asian mecca of a hometown.

Seasalt coffee, green tea and squid ink pastries are the hot tip.

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Concert on the Greens at Seacliff Country Club - Huntington Beach

During the three months of summer, Huntington Beach natives get perfect beach weather, Tuesday Market Nights on Main Street and for the particularly lucky, Concerts on the Greens (actually the driving range) at Seacliff Country Club once a month.

For about $25-$30 per person plus gratuity, this gem of a club provides a Barbeque buffet, All-You-Can-Drink (or rather, All-You-Should-Drink) beer in a commemorative pint glass and a dance party of a concert.

A perfect way to spend a Summer Friday Night with friends and family.

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Hmart Korean Food To Go

Sometimes a girl wants a fish filled to the gills with roe. And a sea urchin roe chaser.  Korean feast with the little sister consisting of yellow corvina, mixed veggies, uni, seaweed salad, krab cakes and nutritional rice.

Cheap eats from H mart, my favorite Korean market and sponsor of the Kimchi Chronicles.

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