Rose-Flavored Wedding Drink (Sherbet)

We are well into the summer wedding season in North America.  In many cultures, weddings are associated with particular foods.  In Mexico, a spicy lamb stew called birria is the centerpiece of the traditional wedding meal.  The English serve fruitcake as their wedding dessert.  In Italy, five sugar-covered almonds known as Italian confetti or Jordan almonds are given to guests as favors.  The almonds symbolize happiness, longevity, health, prosperity, and fertility.

In my community, the traditional wedding dish is beef biryani.  The meal is finished with ladoos (sweet chickpea balls) and gathiya (savory deep fried chickpea dough).  In addition to food, sherbet (a rose-flavored milk drink) is traditionally served at weddings, engagements, and other celebratory events.  This sweet beverage is thought to augur a sweet marriage.  It is easy to make and keeps for several days (without the nut garnish).

Ingredients

6 cups whole milk

1/2 can (7oz) sweetened condensed milk

2-3 teaspoons rose water or a few drops of rose essence

2-3 teaspoons vanilla extract

3-6 drops red food color

finely chopped almonds and pistachio for garnish

Directions

1.       In a large pitcher combine the first five ingredients.  Use a long spoon to mix well.  Adjust rose, vanilla, and food color as desired.

2.       Pour into 6 to 10 glasses.  Garnish with nuts and serve.

Mexican Hot Chocolate

We had friends over a couple of weeks ago to celebrate the Mexican holiday of Cinco de Mayo which has become an increasingly popular occasion in the United States. As I’ve described previously on this blog, this is a holiday I regularly celebrate.

At our dinner party, we served quesadillas, guacamole, green salad, Mexican chicken salad, and Spanish rice. For dessert we fried churros, Mexican doughnuts that are traditionally served with a spicy hot chocolate. I decided to make this sweet beverage for the first time.

Hot chocolate originated over 2,000 years ago with the Mayan culture which made a cold chocolate drink from cocoa seed paste, water, cornmeal, chilli, and other ingredients. When the Aztecs gained control over Mesoamerica, they created a bitter and frothy version that also included water, vanilla, and achiote seeds. Xocolatl, the Aztec word for this drink, is the likely origin of our word ‘chocolate’. In Aztec culture, chocolate had medicinal properties, sacred uses, and divine associations.

During the Spanish colonization of Mexico in the 16th century, xocolatl became a favorite of the conquistadors. Later it was introduced into the court of Charles V and became a popular drink among Spanish nobility and the European elite. By this time it was sometimes served hot; the Europeans removed the chilli and added cane sugar, cinnamon, and other spices.

At this time, drinking chocolate was the only form in which chocolate was consumed. In the 19th century, the Dutch created a press to separate cocoa butter from cocoa seeds. This allowed for the creation of solid chocolate which led to the manufacture of bar chocolate. The world has never been the same since!

This hot chocolate recipe uses a variety of spices to provide a rich and complex palette of flavors. Cornstarch thickens the mixture and approximates the consistency of the hot chocolate served in Spain and Mexico with churros.


Serves 4 to 6

Ingredients
5 or 6 cups milk
2/3 cup brown sugar (packed)
6-8 tablespoons cornstarch dissolved in a little water (optional)
3/4 teaspoon cardamom
1/2 teaspoon cloves
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon crushed cayenne or other chilli powder
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
cinnamon sticks (optional, for garnish)

Directions
1. In a large saucepan or pot, heat first eight ingredients over medium heat. Stir until sugar dissolves. Do not boil and be careful that milk does not burn on the bottom of the pot.
2. Once the sugar has melted, remove from heat and steep spices for 30 minutes.
3. Return mixture to heat and simmer. Add cocoa and vanilla and stir vigorously until cocoa has dissolved.
4. Decant into mugs. Garnish with cinnamon sticks.

Pimm's Cup

Spring has sprung, and in these times of rising temperature and humidity, nothing quite quenches my thirst like a Pimm’s Cup. While this drink will be well known to British and Commonwealth readers, those from the United States may be scratching their heads.

The posh British answer to “an ice cold beer”, Pimm’s Cup is a cocktail made with Pimm’s No. 1 Cup (commonly referred to as just Pimm’s), a gin-based liqueur infused with a secret recipe of herbs, and served with cucumber and fruit. Incidentally, cucumber replaces the traditional borage leaves which provided a touch of green to the original drink. One might describe it as a British sangria, associated with high society events like Henley, Ascot, Glyndebourne and May Balls.

Pimm’s has humble roots – created by James Pimm, a farmer’s son who went on to own an oyster bar in London’s financial district (known as ‘The City’). The drink became wildly popular in the 1850s and 1860s and inspired a chain of Pimm’s Oyster Houses. Five other Pimm’s drinks were invented, each based on a different alcohol. They have now almost all been phased out except for brandy and vodka versions which are sold in small quantities. The brand is now owned by Diageo, one of the world’s largest alcohol conglomerates.

I last had Pimm's in San Francisco after an excursion to a lovely farmer's market. I've included photos (below) of some of the interesting items we saw there including 'torpedo' onions, huge raspberries and fresh chickens (I was a bit disturbed by the human-like nails on their feet). We also saw kumquats (above) which inspired our non-traditional addition to the Pimm's Cup recipe.

Ingredients
1 part Pimm’s No. 1 Cup
3 parts lemonade or ginger ale, chilled
bunch of mint
fruit including strawberries, Granny smith apples, navel oranges, lemon or any other fruit that appeals (we included kumquats)
ice
cucumber, halved lengthwise and cut into cigar-sized wedges

Directions
1. Mix Pimm’s and lemonade or ginger ale in a large pitcher. Infuse with mint leaves.
2. Slice up fruit – lemons and oranges in cross-section, kumquats in half, strawberries in half or quarter and apples in thin wedges.
3. Serve over ice in highball glasses. Garnish with a wedge of cucumber.