Bloody Maria/Hair of the Dog
May 14, 2006
I am unsure why people insist on drinking in the morning after a long night of packing away various elixers of the intoxicating variety, but they do, and I did too on Saturday after a long night of playing poker with friends and heading to the dram shop for billiards and drafts of Buff Gold. In fact, I advocate the brunch cocktail as a curative beverage to ward off the hangover headache and any other Saturday morning ailment you might have (sort of homeopathic really - give yourself a bit of the poison to neutralize the poisoning). Bloody Marias are my favorite brunch cocktail - it is the vitamin c and antioxidant carotenoid lycopene that give me the pick-me-up I need to ward off the night's blurry memory of things gone awry, stave off the regrets, and move on to Sunday already.
This recipe makes 6-8 servings, depending on the size of the glass you use (you can always halve the recipe you know). You should pair this mix with a fine vodka like Grey Goose, Kettle One, or Finlandia. Don't use a cheap vodka here or else you may regret getting out of bed at all. The ratio should be 2 oz of vodka to a 6 oz serving of mix (you can do 1 oz of vodka if you aren't sure how you feel).
You will need:
- a blender;
- 3 cups of Clamato Picante brand tomato juice;
- 2 cups of regular canned tomato juice;
- 1 tbsp of dried dill;
- 1 tbsp celery salt;
- 1 tbsp of Worcestershire sauce;
- 1 1/2 tsp of fresh horseradish (don't buy the creamy kind in a jar, it's not the right kind!);
- 1 tsp kosher salt (add more to taste if you'd like);
- 1 tbsp of tobasco sauce (add more if you cannot find spicy clamato juice);
- 2 fresh garlic cloves, crushed;
- 1 tsp of white or black pepper;
- 3 tbsp of lemon or lime juice;
- lime wedges, green olives, & celery stalk to garnish.
Step One: combine all the ingredients into the blender and blend away until everything is well incorporated.
Step Two: pour the mixture into a tall glass of ice with the proper ratio of vodka (2 oz: 6 oz), and stir (if you have a shaker, even better). Garnish with a celery stalk, the olive and lime wedge. You can also stuff the olives with some fresh gorgonzola cheese if you'd like.
Remember, you aren't trying to get hammered all over again, so go easy and eat up those Huevos Rancheros, Eggs Florentine, or that yummy French Toast with your tasty cocktail.
