Thursday, July 2, 2009

Thirsty Thursdays: Pinstripe Edition

Perhaps you were expecting some sort of red, white and blue beverage this week in honor of the holiday weekend? If so, I'm sorry to disappoint ... I don't do blue drinks. Blueberries notwithstanding, of course.

Since I'll be spending at least one day of the weekend in Yankee Stadium, this classic cocktail came to mind.

The Bronx Cocktail:
  • 2 shots of gin
  • 1 shot of freshly squeezed orange juice
  • 1/2 shot of sweet vermouth
  • 1/2 shot of dry vermouth
Fill a martini shaker with ice and over it pour the gin, oj, and vermouth. Cover and shake well until the shaker frosts. Strain into an ice filled tumbler and garnish with an orange slice, peel or twist. Serve and enjoy, repeat as necessary!

Alternately, you can omit the ice and serve the drink straight up as a martini. The choice is yours. Now that we're finally being treated to some summery weather, I find I prefer the iced version rather than the martini. Nothing says summer refresher like the clink of ice against glass.

This is a classic cocktail and there are as many recipes for it, with varying ratios of gin/oj/vermouth, as you can count. The drink I've posted here is based on a version from Holiday Cocktails: A Connoisseur's Guide to Seasonal Drinks by Elizabeth Wolf-Cohen. Its a charming little book, chock full of potent potables that are sure to please.

The Bronx Cocktail is basically another "gin and juice" variation. I must insist that you use fresh squeezed oj ... at least if you're making one for me. Not a fan of the stuff in a carton. The fresh juice lends the right kind of sweetness and will offset the astringent edge of the gin and vermouth.

Whatever you're up to this weekend, stay safe, have a wonderful time and throw an extra burger on the grill for me.

Cheers!

16 comments:

aoife mc said...

Hi Diva!

Just getting round to catching up on the blogs I missed since our Oz trip.

This looks like a great cocktail, hope you thoroughly enjoy it.

Happy Fourth of July!

Unknown said...

Have a divalicious 4th of july--ah, thats one holiday I miss, that and Thanksgiving!

The Duo Dishes said...

That gin really makes the head spin. Perhaps a quick swap with vodka wouldn't' be so bad? Having it on ice is nice for these 95+ days.

words...words...words... said...

A Yankee fan? I knew you were too good to be true!

stephchows said...

yum! have fun at the game!!

Daniel said...

These drinks keep getting better and better! A couple of these and I'd fit right in up in the upper bleachers at Yankee Stadium!! ;)

Dan
Casual Kitchen

The Vintage Kitten said...

Happy July 4th Diva! X

Astra Libris said...

Happy July 4th!! Your beverage is perfect for the occasion! I quite agree with you about the iced version in this weather... :-)

Thank you so much for your lovely, kind comment about the biscuits! Your comment made my day! :-) So happy to be able to help out with anything involving biscuits! :-) I've actually tried them with all whole wheat flour before, and while they don't have quite the "fluffiness" one often associated with biscuits, they're still quite delightful, and wonderful as a supper roll too...

Thanks again! You're the sweetest... :-)

Marta said...

Lovely cocktail, very refreshing for the season! Nevermind the colours, lovey anyway!
Happy 4th of July!

Lyndsay Wells said...

Fun! I can tell I'm going to like your blog - Thirsty Thursdays is a great idea :-)

Nice to meet you!

Anonymous said...

Excellent cocktail! Hope you had a great holiday weekend!

The Diva on a Diet said...

Aoife - Welcome back! I seriously need to go and catch up on your blog as well. Can't wait to read about your trip!

HH - We did have a Divalicious 4th! I can imagine you do miss the glorious summer holiday. Cheers!

Duo - A vodka swap would certainly work well and be just as delicious, I'm sure. :)

words words words - babe, I'm a New Yorker, what did you expect?! LOL C'mon, you've got Jersey roots ... wait, don't tell me you're a Met fan?! ;)

Steph - we did! Hope you had a great 4th as well!

Daniel - LOL! What a great comment. Thanks!

Vintage Kitten - thank you! Hope you're summer has been a delicious one so far!

Astra - no, thank YOU! Your biscuits are on my "to do" list for this week. I simply can't wait to try them. I will go ahead with the 1/2 and 1/2 flour version, because as you've confirmed, I fear the all whole wheat option would affect the texture. I'll report back and I'm so excited to try them. You made my day with that recipe!!! :)

Marta - thank you! And I hope you enjoyed the weekend as well. :)

Maven - hello and welcome to Beach Eats! Thanks and drop by anytime, drinks are on me every Thursday. LOL Looking forward to checking out your blog as well!

The Diva on a Diet said...

5 Star - hope you enjoyed the holiday weekend too! Can't wait to see what you've been up to in your kitchen!

words...words...words... said...

Ahh, the Mets are even worse! I'm a Phillies fan :)

I'm glad you had a Divalicious 4th!

The Diva on a Diet said...

words words words - phew! The Phillies I can live with ... and I should have known. Since I consider Philly to be my second city ... all is well! ;)

Tangled Noodle said...

I promise to use fresh OJ only! But I also have to check to make sure I have both sweet and dry vermouth. This must be made.