Eaten Not Stirred

My mother’s great grandparents came from Russia and one of the stories that I found most fascinating was their tradition for a Bloody Mary. According to them the Bloody Mary’s that we are all familiar with stray far from its origins. There was a time when the tomato and the vodka never married together in a glass instead the tomato was eaten with a little salt and then washed down with ample amounts of vodka. Over time when the Russians introduced this tomato eating vodka drinking tradition to the United States many people started to add their own twists and created the many versions of the Bloody Mary that we are all quite enjoyably familiar with today.

Since my cherry tomatoes in my garden are red, ripe and bountiful why not pay homage to them by making some bite size Bloody Mary's.

Please make sure you have some ice cold vodka chilling to wash these down with, we wouldn’t want to break from tradition afterall.

Bite Size Bloody Mary’s

1 box ripe cherry tomatoes or fresh from the garden, even better

1/4 c. very cold vodka

2 tbsp. kosher salt

Save the rest of the Vodka for drinking

Poke 3 to 4 holes in each cherry tomato using a toothpick, place tomatoes in a container that has a cover. Pour vodka over tomatoes, give them a stir then cover and refrigerate over night or longer if necessary. To serve place tomatoes in serving dish, in separate dishes have toothpicks and kosher salt. To eat place tomato on toothpick, dip in kosher salt and eat.

FYI- may also provide dishes of chopped dill and some hot pepper for those who like it spicy.


Bloody Mary

Girls Just Wanna Have Fun!

A thirsty girl needs to start planning for all the hot weather ahead and what better way than with a pink girly girl cocktail. This will put the blush in those pretty little cheeks and keep you smiling through the rest of the day.

These slush type drinks are the perfect thing to keep on hand during the summer months. Whether it's a party of one or one hundred, it never hurts to be prepared!

Pink Lady Slush

1 lg. can pink frozen lemonade
1 lg. can water
1/2 c. grenadine
1 cup of vodka

Mix well and freeze until mixture turns to slush (at least 2 to 3 hours); stir occasionally. Fill glass 1/2 full with slush. Fill remainder with 7-Up or if you want your drink to pack more punch skip the 7-Up and use sparkling wine or champagne instead.

Just keep doubling and tripling the amounts, so your freezer never runs dry.

Vodka...not just for drinking.

We were out with friends the other night and went to an Italian buffet. The amount of choices were staggering, they even had tripe and fried calamari as part of their offerings.
One of the biggest draws was their pasta bar; they had five types of pasta, five different sauces and more than a dozen ingredients for you to choose from to mix in. They had prosciutto; pine nuts, artichokes and sun dried tomatoes just to name a few. Once you decide on your ingredients they make your pasta to order right in front of you, it was really very nice. I had linguini “Ala Oglio” which is olive oil, lots of garlic, crushed red pepper flakes and just a couple anchovy filets all topped with freshly grated cheese and parsley. One of our friends had “Penne Ala Vodka” which I tasted and have to say it was absolutely delicious. Vodka, tomatoes and cream are definitely a winning combination.


Penne Ala Vodka

1 lb. Penne pasta
1/2 stick butter
3 cloves garlic, chopped
6 to 7 scallions, chopped
2 cans tomato sauce (15 oz. total)
1/3 cup vodka
1/4 cup heavy cream
Basil, oregano and pepper to taste

Sauté chopped garlic and scallions over low flame with butter. Add tomato sauce, vodka and spices. Let come to boil and simmer 45 minutes. Add heavy cream; cook 10 minutes. Put water up for pasta.