Tagged with absinthe

NYE Cocktail Tasting Menu

cocktails

As we get older, we find ourselves more reluctant to go out on holidays. New Year’s, Valentine’s… we’d just rather stay home. This past New Year’s Eve we spoiled ourselves with some Bon Chon Korean Fried Chicken while watching the original Home Alone. With frequent pausing to whip up these drinks of course!

The collage above is hot-linked to the respective cocktail recipes. Or, you can see the full tasting menu, with individual photos below.

We ended the night with a bottle of sparkling wine and watching the ball drop on CNN with Anderson Cooper and the always awkward Kathy Griffin.

10888881_10101861327571436_7797182702232115997_nAnd of course, a traditional selfie with our awesome cat, Leopold. It is a tad ironic that I’m a bit late in posting this — so late that it’s actually the Lunar New Year’s Eve!

Absinthe Suissesse Spiked Nog Gin-Gin-Gin Mule Ume Sour Bananary Buzz Apricot Winter Monk's Hot Chocolate

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Absinthe Suissesse

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One of my new favorite drinks, and a go-to when starting the evening, is the Absinthe Suissese. It’s only fitting since it is a classic New Orleans recipe and I was born in Louisiana. The interesting thing is that I actually discovered this drink in a local Washington, D.C. bar that had undergone a renovation and menu revamp, Firefly through an article on Serious Eats.

Since the Absinthe Suissesse is off the menu at Firefly, the bartender knew that I had read the Serious Eats article when I asked for it.

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The Absinthe Suissesse is a classic New Orleans recipe involving absinthe, anise, orange flower water, and an egg white. Harris relished the opportunity to demonstrate his egg cracking ability and remarks that it’s great with breakfast or brunch.

The Absinthe Suissesse—loosely based on the Suissesse Cocktail in Stanley Clisby Arthur’s Famous New Orleans Drinks and How to Mix ‘Em from 1937—was widely available in 19th-century New Orleans saloons. It is a classic New Orleans brunch cocktail (my kind of city!) that is creamy but light with notes of anise and almond.

The way we make it is even lighter because we swap out the dairy with almond milk. This ups the almond flavor and goes well with a dusting of nutmeg on top.