February 11, 2008

Blood Orange Love


The cocktail. The name elicits images of swanky Manhattan dinner parties or chortling, powerful businessmen in smoke-filled lounges. Even as I’ve become a martini fan (Saphire, up, dirty, with 3 olives!), I find the idea of the cocktail offputting.

Nevertheless, this sounded good: blood orange and Campari.


If I must be truthful, until several days ago, Campari had never tainted my liver. A twist of the cap and thoughtful whiff was all I needed to determine it was a form of bitters. I would not have guessed it had 60 ingredients, but when mixed with some pulpy blood-orange juice and a decent bit of confectioner's sugar, it’s highly addictive.


After a highly successful simple two-drink test run on Friday evening, we made a batch to have as a cocktail at a dinner party being thrown by some friends on Saturday (no pictures, alas, but the beef tenderloin topped with an herbalicious pesto was a thing of beauty). Most of a large pitcher was emptied, so I’d call it a success.


If you aren’t constitutionally opposed to bitter – and like your cocktails a little on the potent side -- you can get a little more aggressive with the Campari. If you’ve got a hankerin’ for something sweet, I’d recommend a scant teaspoon of sugar per glass.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

WAHOO!!!! So glad you tried it! Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a trip to the kitchen in my immediate future. Where'd I put those oranges?