Recipes By Rebekah Peppler
83 recipes found
Michelada
A classic Michelada means different things to different people but its core ingredients remain constant: cold beer, lime, salt. Serve the beer-based cocktail as is, over ice, in a chilled glass rimmed with salt or adapt from there to your preferred Michelada by adding a litany of condiments such as: Worcestershire sauce (or salsa inglesa), hot sauce, Maggi seasoning, and Clamato or tomato juice, or both. If you like, switch out the salt rim for a Tajín rim.
Tinto de Verano
A drink built and named for summer, Spain’s effervescent tinto de verano (summer red wine) matches the season’s easy-going nature. At its most traditional, the recipe sticks to just three ingredients: ice, red wine and citrus soda. (La Casera, from Spain, is most classic, but 7Up and Sprite also work.) This version includes an option for a bright lemon-lime syrup mixed with soda water to stand in for the classic’s soft drink, plus a pour of vermouth for rounder, herbal notes. But, should you prefer your tinto de verano adhere to tradition, feel free to add more red wine in place of the vermouth. While the below recipe will yield a balanced, light and fizzy tinto de verano, there’s no need to get overly caught up on perfect measurements, the drink readily adapts to personal preference — and eyeballing ounces.
Café de Olla
Made in batches and served hot, sweet and scented with cinnamon and other spices, Café de Olla is traditionally brewed in an olla de barro, a tall clay pot. When making Café de Olla, choose quality, dark roast coffee and, if possible, grind it fresh. Second, seek out piloncillo — unprocessed, unrefined cane sugar named after the shape of the mold that is traditionally used to make it — for a richer, deeper, more caramelized flavor. If you don’t have access to piloncillo, use dark brown sugar and add a half to a full teaspoon of molasses. Lastly, take care to never allow the liquid to come to a boil, which can burn the coffee and make the final drink acidic. Serve as is, or set a bottle of tequila, rum, whiskey, cognac or amaro on the table and let drinkers add their chosen spirit to taste. If you have extra Café de Olla, store it in a covered container in the refrigerator and reheat or serve iced.
The Garibaldi
Named for the Italian revolutionary Giuseppe Garibaldi, who played a leading role in the unification of Italy, the classic recipe for this two-ingredient drink combines Campari, from Northern Italy, and fresh orange juice, a nod to Sicily in the south. This modern version features orange bitters and a pinch of salt, as well as an ounce of grapefruit juice. (If you want to skip grapefruit, you can also use five full ounces of orange juice.) Whether you make the classic or modern iteration, the key to the best Garibaldi is very fresh, very frothy citrus juice. For that, you’ll want freshly squeezed citrus and a firm, long, dry (without ice) shake, or, if you prefer, you can pulse the juice in a blender for a few seconds to aerate before adding to the glass.
To Wit
Witbier, an unfiltered white beer made with wheat and spiced with coriander and citrus, lends its bready, citrusy and spicy tones and smooth texture to this Calvados-laced cocktail. To best play off the citrus notes of both the beer and orange juice, choose a citrus-forward amaro. Bonus points for saving the orange wheel to savor after you finish drinking: The cocktail’s flavors will slowly seep into the fruit, providing a refreshingly boozy snack to end on.
Midnight Fizz
While a classic gin fizz uses lemon juice, the sweet acidity of lime in this variation skews it toward a (very) frothy gimlet. To ensure plenty of that froth, use a double shake to make the cocktail: first without ice to foam the egg white, then a second time with ice to chill and dilute the drink. Serve traditionally without ice in a small Collins or fizz glass, or go rogue and serve over a few cubes. Either way, as with all egg white drinks, drink with efficiency to capitalize on the drink’s froth and avoid its inevitable separation.
Classic Champagne Cocktail
This minimalist drink of sugar that’s been soaked in bitters and topped with Champagne was first mentioned in Jerry Thomas’s book 1862 “How to Mix Drinks.” It’s both festive and resplendent with bubbles as written, but there’s also room to customize: Split the amount of Angostura bitters with a lesser-used bitter (grapefruit, celery, orange, persimmon, for example) from your bar. Trade granulated or Demerara sugar for the sugar cube: The drink’s flavor will remain the same, lacking only in the drama of the cube bubbling to its demise at the base of the glass. Finally, use Champagne if you’re on a champagne budget, and dry sparkling wine if you’re not.
Mulled Wine, but Chilled
Warming in all but touch, this drink is ideal for cusp season, when the days can feel like autumn in morning and summer by afternoon. Cognac anchors the drink, fresh lime brightens it, and a simple syrup steeped with ginger, cinnamon, clove and cardamom evokes a classic mulled wine. The simple syrup here makes extra and keeps for a month in the refrigerator. Add it to lemonade, drizzle it over oatmeal or substitute it for standard simple syrup in another cocktail to make it automatically cozy.
Not Quite Picon Bière
Walk by any sidewalk bar or tabac in France, and the chalkboard menu is bound to include Picon Bière: a combination of Amer Picon — a sweetened, lightly bitter, burnt orange-flavored apéritif — and a long pour of light, often cheap beer. While Amer Picon is widely consumed all over France, the bottle is not available in the United States. Instead, approximate the French staple by combining a sweet, citrus-leaning amaro, orange liqueur, and a pilsner or light lager. Serve it in a Collins glass or build it directly in the beer bottle or can by taking a few big sips and pouring in the rest of the ingredients directly.
Hot Toddy
Whether you’re sick in bed or fresh off the slopes, a hot toddy warms everything up. The classic formula of whiskey, sugar and hot water is like the steamy cousin of an old-fashioned, but these days, a lot of other ingredients (citrus juice, apple cider, various spices) get added in the name of innovation, with mixed results. This version cozies up to the original, with a few optional additions based on preference. First, warm the mug with hot water, which primes the vessel to hold heat longer, yielding a truly hot toddy to the last sip. Then add scotch or bourbon, or for a modern twist, rum, cognac or amaro. Stir in a little honey, maple syrup or Demerara sugar, add hot water and stir to dissolve. Garnish with lemon peel and spices, if you like.
Batched 50-50 Martini
Martinis are bound to kick up strong opinions that tend to intensify as more martinis are consumed. Gin versus vodka. Shaken versus stirred. Dirty? How dirty? Olives, lemon twist or both? This batched recipe makes the biggest decisions for you: Gin — the spirit of choice — is paired with vermouth in equal measure, a ratio that means you and your guests can and should pour freely. From there, the drinker has full control to dirty and garnish to their heart’s content.
Rosé Cooler
Making a wine cooler at home is a grown-up opportunity to choose your own adventure: If you decide to pour a dry rosé, turn to crème de cassis to sweeten the final glass. If you opt for a sweeter-leaning demi-sec rosé, turn the page — and skip the cassis, so your drink doesn’t skew too saccharine.
Kir
A classic kir is made with aligoté wine and crème de cassis (black currant liqueur), both of which come from the Burgundy region of France. Once you have the classic down (a glass of white wine with just a hint of cassis), variations abound. Substitute sparkling wine for the aligoté, and it becomes a kir royale. Add red wine, and it’s a Bourgogne. If you’re over wine entirely, dry hard cider (and a splash of Calvados, if you’re feeling extra) turns the drink into a kir Normand, its name nodding to Normandy. Whatever base you choose, kirs easily veer saccharine when weighed down with a hefty pour of crème de cassis. Exercise restraint with the potent liqueur — aim for a more dusty rose hue than magenta — but feel free to drink in rapid succession.
Nonalcoholic Dirty Lemon Tonic
Preserved lemon is a kitchen workhorse that easily moves to the bar. Here, it’s muddled with sugar and fresh lemon slices to release a light bitterness, harmonizing the sweet, the saline and the acidic. It appears once more, alongside olives and more fresh slices in the edible and fragrant garnish. While you can and should use both the preserved lemon rind and pulp (the pulp adds more welcome salinity and texture), use only the rind for the garnish. And, if you’d like to make this nonalcoholic drink alcoholic, add a splash of vodka, gin or, if you’re looking to triple down on the lemon flavors, limoncello.
Dark ’n’ Stormy Mocktail
Strongly brewed black tea anchors this nonalcoholic take on a classic Dark ’n’ Stormy, lending its rich tannins to the final drink. When choosing a black tea, look to Darjeeling, English or Irish breakfast, or Assam. (For something without caffeine, reach for buckwheat tea and increase the brew time to 20 minutes.) The spices in the salted lime cordial are easily shifted to your pantry and preferences. If you don’t have ground ginger, totally fine. If you want to add cardamom, go for it. The point is to infuse the cordial with a warmth that complements the ginger beer’s sharp spice. Please don’t, however, skip the salt. The hit of salinity enhances the cordial’s flavors. Leftover cordial — sweet, spiced and deeply sour, can be mixed on its own with sparkling water or tonic or, if you’re looking to incorporate it into an alcoholic drink, into a gimlet.
Mezcal Royale Punch
This bright, thoroughly modern combination of lime, blanc vermouth, mezcal and Cognac is topped, in a nod to classic Champagne punches, with sparkling red wine. If you don’t have sparkling red, opt for a dry Lambrusco, sparkling rosé or even a sparkling white. Using a sparkling white eliminates the festive color but keeps the effervescence. When choosing glasses or tea cups or ceramics to serve punch, be sure to err on the smaller side. Punch should be served in smaller portions — and refilled often.
Dirty Martini
A classic dirty martini can be made, depending on drinker’s preference, with all gin or all vodka, but using half gin, half vodka — with some vermouth and brine — results in a drink that leans a bit fresher and cleaner. (Should you prefer to stick with one spirit, use 2 1/2 ounces of either gin or vodka in this recipe.) Olive brine keeps the drink in the classics lane or swap in a less traditional brine, such as cornichon, pickled jalapeño, pickled tomato or preserved lemon and change up the garnish to match. Or simply stick with the olives, which are a perennial favorite for a reason.
Classic Philadelphia Fish House Punch
Rum and Cognac mix with a muddled sugar and lemon mixture, known as oleo-saccharum, and peach brandy in this classic punch, which dates back to the early 18th century. If you can’t find peach brandy (a dry, high-proof brandy distilled from peaches, not the saccharine peach-flavored liqueur) swap in a fruit eau de vie, such as apricot, plum, apple or pear. While this recipe is written to be served cold, it can also be served warm: Skip the ice block and gently warm the punch in a large saucepan or Dutch oven before ladling into small, heatproof mugs or tea cups. Hot or cold, finish each serving with a dusting of freshly grated nutmeg.
Nonalcoholic Smoky Citrus Punch
Historically, punch is an alcoholic drink, made with a spirit, sugar, citrus and spice, but this variation drops the spirit and doubles down on its other central components. Opting for smoky Lapsang souchong adds distinctive depth and character to the punch, though another black tea, such as Earl Grey or Darjeeling or a more robust green tea, can also be used. Likewise, the oranges in the lemon-orange oleo-saccharum (a muddled sugar and citrus mixture) can be swapped out for seasonal citrus, such as satsuma, mandarin or blood oranges. Bear in mind you need to start this punch the day before serving: While some of the tea is brewed hot before being added to the lemon-orange oleo-saccharum, cold-brewing the remainder of the tea ensures that the final punch is deeply flavored, smooth drinking and more nuanced than astringent. A mix of tonic and soda water to finish imbues the punch with a bubbly, quinine bitterness and helps to balance the tannins of the tea.
Mezcal Fresca
In this mezcal-laced take on an agua fresca, the sweet-tart hibiscus syrup and warm allspice dram act in tandem to add layers of flavor and texture while softening mezcal’s inherent smokiness. The mix of grapefruit and lime lends the drink acidity without tipping it acerbic. Because mezcal ranges in flavor, complexity and smoky bite, taste a few and choose one that suits your preferences. And, if you also happen to have sal de gusano — a traditional accompaniment to mezcal made from toasted, ground gusano (the moth larvae that feeds on the agave plant), salt and dried chiles — you can rim your cocktail glass with it. To do so, run the cut side of a grapefruit or lime along the rim and dip the rim in the salt mixture before shaking and pouring your drink.
Bitterscotch
One sip of the Bitterscotch may just have you forgetting the pun in the drink’s name. Pun-lover or not, you can build this drink to your personal preference. Reach for a sweet, lighter amaro for a sweeter, lighter drink. If your palate favors more robust, bitter flavors, sub in a more forceful, bitter-leaning amaro. Fan of smoke-forward drinks? Woodsy, rich Amaro Sfumato Rabarbaro is your friend here. No matter what amaro you choose, the lemon will brighten, and a full ounce of blanc vermouth fills out the drink, providing a temper to Scotch’s smoky heat.
Vermouth Royale
Bubbly, citrus-forward and refreshing, the Vermouth Royale is just as lovely served in the dead of winter as it is poolside during the summer. If you don’t have a muddler, the business end of a wooden spoon or tapered rolling pin work just as well. Since crème de cassis can quickly skew a cocktail saccharine, the Vermouth Royale starts with a half-ounce. That said, if your preference for sweetness skews a touch higher, feel free to use up to three-quarters of an ounce of crème de cassis.
Low-Alcohol French 75
This big, bright take on the French 75 skips the bubbly classic’s gin or cognac, instead adding sweetly herbal, lower in A.B.V., blanc vermouth. Serving it up and over ice in a Collins glass is a nod to how early French 75s were served. (The ice continues to dilute the drink as you sip.) Or serve up in a Nick and Nora or coupe.
Classic El Diablo
Bright, bubbly and refreshing to drink, the El Diablo combines tequila with rich, sweetly acidic crème de cassis, fresh lime juice and sharply spiced ginger beer. To ensure a balanced cocktail, use a ginger beer with a low sugar content rather than a more sugar-forward ginger ale.