Archive for the ‘Party’ Category

How hard do you think someone had to twist my arm to attend the Chelsea Handler Bloody Mary Brunch with Belvedere Vodka? Do you even need to answer that question? There wasn’t a chance I was missing this brunch. 

Somehow, by the grace of the PR gods, I was invited to the Belvedere brunch for the launch of their new vodka, The Bloody Mary. The event was being hosted not only by Belvedere but Adam Rappaport, the newly appointed editor-in-chief of Bon Appetit, and Chelsea Handler, their funny-lady spokeswoman for Belvedere Vodka.  I emailed requesting to interview some of the team members from Belvedere and Adam. Seeing that Adam is the editor-in-chief of the biggest food publication, I guess I’m not surprised I didn’t have the opportunity to even rub up against him. Trust me, at the very least, I was hoping to brush past him because our entire table agreed, Important-Food-Guy was pretty handsome. Thus, I left slightly disappointed that I didn’t have the chance to meet Adam nor did he have the chance to fall equally in love with me, Beauty and Her Feast. Eh, my next vodka party.

I did, however, interview Charles Gibb, CEO of Belvedere, and Claire Smith, Head of Spirits and Mixology which was fascinating. For the blog, I was more interested in their maceration process for the new Bloody Mary Vodka. It was like a lovely story time with both Claire and Charles. Charles was very clear that his role as CEO is to encourage a creative process to do things differently and expand their product. He provides a freedom for the team to get there while still staying true to the brand. What I learned from Charles about flavored vodka is that other companies use chemicals or the essence of a flavor to trick your nose. With Belvedere, their maceration process allows for a completely natural flavor to permeate the vodka. As Charles said, “We harm real fruits and vegetables to make our vodka!” 

To truly understand what Belvedere does, I sat down with Claire Smith who walked me through the birth of a flavor (watch her video by clicking on her name). First, I had to ask her, “Do you not love what you do? You get to drink on the job and get paid? How cool is that?” With a full out laugh she said, “Pretty cool for sure.” So, let’s get down to business, how the heck does she figure out what flavors to macerate and why the Bloody Mary? First, she works with the marketing team on what they think the consumer will get excited about. Because her background is in mixology, she knows how to translate one side of the bar to the other. The Bloody Mary is an iconic vodka cocktail so it made perfect sense to create a product that the consumer could work with as a simple neat vodka or a mixed beverage. Claire then works backwards by taking the ingredients to expose the cocktail. For the Bloody Mary, she ended up macerating 7 individual ingredients in separate vats. They then distill them four times and blend each vat dialing up or down based on the depth of each to balance the final product. What worked was: horseradish, black pepper, red pepper, chili pepper, tomato, lemon and vinegar. I was surprised by the vinegar but Claire informed me that it has the same flavor profile as tabasco, a common ingredient of the mixed Bloody Mary. What thoroughly amazed me was the complexity of flavors you could taste. Somehow, we all tasted celery, yet there was none in the vodka. 

The Bloody Mary vodka is a game changer for the industry as it allows the consumer to have a consistent base. Also, you don’t need complicated ingredients for a finished product. Belvedere managed to develop a savory vodka which really hasn’t been done. By creating such an expressive foundation, it also allows for a continued artistic process by experimenting with additional flavors. During the brunch, we tasted four very different cocktails using the Bloody Mary vodka. Belvedere has provided Beauty and Her Feast with the recipe for my favorite one which also seems to be the “star with both consumer and press at each launch party,” says Tenten Wu, Global Director of PR for Belvedere. 

Belvedere Pineapple Mary 

·     1.5 oz Belvedere Bloody Mary vodka

·     3 oz Fresh Pineapple juice

·     .75 oz Fresh Lime juice

·     2 bar spoon Simple syrup

·     2 dashes Orange bitters

·     1/8 bar spoon Smoked paprika (hot)

Shake and strain all ingredients into a rocks glass filled with cubed ice.

Garnish with a pineapple chunk

Belvedere Bloody Mary vodka is available in most liquor stores including Binny's. 

Somehow, I speak before I think. You probably aren’t surprised. So, when I offered myself up to host a baby shower, I spoke with no filter. Truth is, I was excited to host the shower because I haven’t had a party at my house since Christmas Eve. My girlfriend was born in Korea and raised in Southern Illinois. She is pregnant with twin girls…and I cannot wait to hold these babies! Except for the fact that I sent out the invite with the wrong baby names, the baby shower went off without a hitch. Listen, the invites were adorable and the name corrections I sent out were just as cute…

When I decided on the afternoon lunch menu, I told her I would prepare Asian cuisine but I couldn’t commit to just Korean food because I have only ever cooked one Korean dish which was Bulgogi beef. I considering the Korean Tacos I had made months ago but I wanted to do an afternoon room temperature menu because the day needed to be about the mommy-to-be and not my cooking. How very modest of me! Here is what I ended up serving:

• Lump Crab and Mango Cocktail with Lime Vinaigrette
• Peanut Noodles with Veggies
• Tea Smoked Sandwiches with Napa Teriyaki Slaw
• Glazed Carrots
• Wok Fried Green Bean Salad

I had used the recipe of the Tea Smoked Chicken and turned it into mini “tea” sandwiches (clever, I know). It worked out well because I smoked the chicken the day before so all I needed to do was assemble the sandwiches right before the party. When the chicken cooled, my aupair and I pulled it off the bone and packed it away in the fridge. She then proceeded to lick the bones clean of any leftover meat. I think that was her dinner…

I made the same citrus teriyaki sauce but before the party, I whisked mayo into it and tossed that with shredded napa cabbage to top off the sandwiches. Easy recipe and perfect for a small ladies lunch. 

The crab cocktail I started with was also nice and fun to serve. I borrowed my moms mini martini glasses and passed them as the ladies arrived. I hate to admit this, but it’s one of the easiest appetizers to make and looks fancy-schmancy. How do you not love something in a little glass! 

Crab & Mango Cocktail

1 lb lump crab

1 mango, peeled and chopped

Cilantro, small handful of chopped finely

1 serrano chili, half chopped finely, half sliced thin

2 shallots, chopped finely

4 oz coconut milk

1/4 lime juice

1/4 fish sauce

2 tbs sugar

Whisk together the lime juice, fish sauce and sugar. Taste and adjust if it needs a little more sugar. Hand toss crab, mango cilantro, serrano, shallots, coconut milk while pouring half of lime mixture in crab. Taste and add lime mixture to taste. Fill martini glass and serve with a slice of serrano chili on top and a sesame cracker or fried wonton. 

I was surprised that my favorite dishes for the day were the two veggies: carrots and green beans. I found the carrots on my last minute run through Fresh Market and knew they would be beautiful. I tossed them with olive oil, honey and lime juice, roasted them for 30 minutes and let them cool. I’m thinking family is getting glazed carrots for Easter since I’m in charge of sides…