Bourbon Cream—A little magic in a glass

My friend Mike introduced me to bourbon (a story for another day) and bourbon cream. I am not a fan of Irish Cream, so I didn’t think bourbon cream would be magically delicious. I was wrong.

 

I love to drop gifts off to friends and family around Christmas. They usually have alcohol (see gummy vodka bears from a few years ago). After a few years, it can be a bit challenging to come up with new ideas. So, I decided to make my own bourbon cream.

Be warned: this stuff may be addicting. I gave a bottle to a friend, and then I got a text asking for the formula for my meth. There was some indication if he ended up in rehab, I would get a bill.   

As I said, this stuff is magically delicious, and I certainly wasn’t the first person to make my own. I tried a few recipes. One called for evaporated milk and simple syrup. It was pretty good. I usually put mine in coffee, so I landed on the version with sweetened condensed milk since it was a bit sweeter. Most recipes call to use a blender to mix the ingredients. Do that if it brings you joy. It just seemed to make more dishes for me. I stirred with a spoon, and that seemed to work.

If your Christmas morning coffee needs a little something, here is what I recommend:

2 cups bourbon

1 can sweetened condensed milk (14 oz.)

1 cup cream

2 tablespoons chocolate (let’s be honest, measure with your heart and squirt some in)

1 teaspoon instant espresso (my heart wanted a heaping spoonful)

1 teaspoon almond extract

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

 

I made it by the pitcher full since I was giving it away. Get those measuring cups and spoons out if it brings you joy, but I promise it will work if you measure with your heart.

Sharing with a friend isn’t necessary, but it might bring you and your friend some joy. You should use it within two weeks, but I would be amazed if it lasts that long. And keep it in the refrigerator. 

Cheers to the best BFF

I have had the same best friend since I was four. And I have always had the BEST best friend. I snuck my first drink with her (what were our parents thinking?!). I started this blog with her (but I was always a bit more excited about it). I have had a lot of firsts with her, and there will be many more.

There are a million great things about her, but I am trying to keep this post to a reasonable length, so I will just focus on a few. She is always there when I need her. Always. I am not sure how many people have someone in their life that they know they can count on unconditionally. I think it makes me one of the luckiest people. She knows when to be on my side (even if I don’t deserve it), and she knows when to tell me to buck up and get on with life. She seems to have a sixth sense to know just when I need her most.

But alas, this is a blog about drinks, and besides just wanting to tell the world how awesome my BFF is, there is a reason for this post.

Did you know wine advent calendars were a thing? If you ask me, they are just the thing 2020 needs. And my BFF sent me one. It brings me more joy than it probably should, but why not add joy when possible? And I can tell people I drank a bottle of wine by myself, and it will actually be true.

If you have a BFF as great as I do, maybe you should get her a wine advent calendar. Maybe you should get one for yourself. Maybe you should share a glass of wine with your BFF as frequently as you can.

Dawnette, thanks for being the most amazing BFF a person can have. I am not sure I deserve you, but I am so thankful for you. We were pretty smart to choose each other. We must have been really smart four-year-olds.

If You Were Lucky and Life Gave you Lemons Quarantini

After almost seven years, the drinks blog is back. Why? Because I am stuck in my house, and it seemed like great entertainment.

Something you should know about my recipes: measurements are always approximate. I love to mix drinks, but I don’t like to do dishes. For the sake of a reliable recipe, I do try to measure for you. But if I make a drink for you, you can be sure I will do what my daughter calls, “measuring with my heart.”

Why do I tell you about this non-measurement? Because for this drink, you should measure with your heart, search your cabinet for something delicious, and be creative. Limiting the number of trips to the store is recommended, so here is a recipe with maximum flexibility.

Quarantini

• 4 ounces vodka
• 4 ounces Lemoncello
• 8 ounces lemonade

Makes two drinks (share if you’d like, or store the second one in the freezer for a bit until you are ready for it). You shouldn’t be having people over to your house right now, so a batch of two should be sufficient.

Put everything in a shaker with ice and shake until all your frustrations of not being able to gather with your friends are gone. I recommend serving in a sugar-rimmed martini glass (it’s not like you can go to a bar for a drink, so now is the time to use the good glasses), but I won’t judge you if you use a coffee cup.

Quarantine variations: if you have time on your hands and want to make lemonade, go wild (and maybe drop some off at my house, that sounds delicious). Don’t have Lemoncello? Add lemon juice and some simple syrup. Already went through your vodka supply, and you feel guilty going back to the liquor store (again)? Vanilla vodka, whipped vodka, or even rum will work. Will the drink taste different? Yes. Will it help you get through quarantine? Absolutely.

What drink is getting you through quarantine? I would love the recipe

Cheers!

Ok, if you made it this far, I feel compelled to tell you I was either much worse at proofreading seven years ago, or had a few cocktails before I wrote past blog posts—either is possible. The recipes are solid, but the typos are numerous.