Spoon Fed Bloody Mary With Grilled Lemon Skewers Recipes

Steps:

• For the dip: Put the tomato passata, oil, tomato paste, vinegar, Worcestershire, celery salt, vodka if using and hot sauce into a medium sauté pan or saucepan over medium heat and simmer until warmed through, about 5 minutes.
• For the focaccia skewers: Meanwhile, thread an olive, piece of celery and cube of focaccia onto each cocktail skewer.
• Pour the dip into a serving bowl, place on a board and arrange the dipping skewers next to it. The dip can be served warm or at room temperature.

Steps:

• Light a grill and set it up for direct heat or preheat a grill pan. Brush the grill grates with oil and arrange the tomatoes and lemons cut side down and grill over high heat until well browned on the bottoms, 4 to 5 minutes. Grill 3 of the celery stalks, turning occasionally, until the leaves are dark brown or black and the stalks are blistered in spots, 5 to 6 minutes. Grill the remaining 4 celery stalks just until the leaves are singed, about 1 minute.
• Transfer the tomatoes and fully grilled celery stalks to a food processor and let cool slightly. Squeeze 3 tablespoons of juice from the lemons and add it to the food processor; reserve the lemons. Add the Worcestershire, horseradish, sugar, 1 ½ teaspoons of salt and ½ teaspoon black pepper to the processor and process until as smooth as possible.
• Strain the Bloody Mary mix through a fine sieve into a liquid measuring cup, pressing on the solids; you should have at least 2 cups of mix. Season the mix with more lemon juice, salt and pepper, if desired.
• For each drink: In an ice-filled cocktail shaker, combine ½ cup Bloody Mary mix with 2 ounces of vodka; close and shake well. Pour the Bloody Mary into a tall ice-filled, garnish with a singed celery stalk and serve with Tabasco or Sriracha, for seasoning. Fill the cocktail shaker with clean ice before making each drink.

Steps:

• Place tomatoes, jalapenos, and fennel in a bowl. Season liberally with pepper, salt and the Worchestershire sauce. Coat with olive oil, tossing lightly. Put a few of the tomatoes in the blender and liquefy - this will make it easier to puree the rest of the solids. Add the fennel/tomato/jalapeno mixture to a blender and puree until liquefied. Store in refrigerator up to 6 hours until chilled.
• Hint: If you can find them, heirloom tomatoes can really boost the flavor of this drink. Heirloom tomatoes are typically varieties that were grown over 50 years ago, before tomatoes were bred for ease of picking and distribution. Heirlooms tend to be a little more acidic than modern commercial tomatoes, and often the fresh tomato flavor is more pronounced.
• Assembling the cocktail: Rub a cut lemon around the rim of a chilled martini glass. Dip the glass, upside down, in salt or your favorite spice rub. Slice the tip of a red jalapeno pepper vertically and slip over the rim. Place 1 or 2 of the jalapeno ice cubes in each glass, pour chilled bloody maria mixture on top, and top each glass with 1 ounce of lemon vodka. Stir carefully and serve.
• Hint: If you don't have lemon vodka, use regular vodka and squeeze a little lemon juice in each glass.
• Remove the tops and stems of the jalapenos and slice. Place the water in a blender and add the jalapenos, seeds and all. Add the lemon to the blender, peel and all. Add the basil, a pinch of salt, and some ground black pepper, to taste. Puree in the blender until everything is incorporated. Strain through a sieve and pour into ice cube trays and freeze overnight until solid.