Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Caipirinhas
Turns out I was able to finish that book after all.
How was I able to finish it? My mother-in-law had Peter and I had Henry watch a movie after school so I could completely ignore him and all my other responsibilities and read. Also, it was a really easy read: straight-forward narrative (the daughter and mother supposedly traded off chapters, yet it made NO difference to the story), simple plot, wooden characters...sigh. Since I like to think of myself as a literary snob lover of good literature, I was disappointed (I did bring the book after all - so the blame is all mine).
I still brought the cocktails, but watered them down a bit since I didn't need everyone to feel quite so generous. Even though the book was less-than-stellar, the discussion was spirited enough.
We had my family over on Sunday night where I served these tasty drinks yet again. And this wouldn't be my blog if I didn't go ahead and share the recipe with you.
These cocktails are considered Brazil's national drink (my Brazilian friends assure me I have correct info on this). Like the Cuban Mojito, Caipirinhas have been gaining popularity over the last couple years, especially after they became all the rage in Germany, of all places.
The mojito has citrus, rum and mint going for it - the caipirinha shows off a combo of crunchy turbinado sugar, tart lime chunks and caçhaca. Caçhaca is made from pure sugar cane juice (rum is made from molasses - a byproduct). Some people think it's lighter and smoother than rum, but I think it has a tiny bit of whisky/bourbon taste to it. I don't care for whisky myself, but I like the bit of sweetness the caçhaca adds to the drink.
They are bright, tart, and a bit sweet - perfect for summer (if it ever shows up here in Seattle). Cheers!
Caipirinhas
1/2 of a generous lime, scrubbed and then quartered
1 T. + 1t.Turbinado sugar (like Sugar in the Raw)
2 ounces Caçhaca
cracked ice
(optional club soda)
Put the lime quarters in the bottom of a mixing glass, add 1T. sugar, and then muddle well, extracting all the juice from the limes, and some of the oils from their rinds. (I have a cool muddler that Shona gave me for my birthday last year, but you can use the handle end of a wooden spoon in a pinch).
Add about 1 cup of cracked ice, and shake well to mix. Pour (WITHOUT straining) directly into a glass (traditionally a rocks glass, but who cares?) - ice, limes and all.
Sprinkle remaining 1 t sugar over the top (this makes a nice little crunch).
Some gringos (Giseli - what's the equivalent word for this in Portuguese?) top off the cocktail with an ounce or two of club soda - that's up to you, and whether or not you read the book you're supposed to discuss.
Who am I?
Comments
When can I come over and have one?? sounds fab.
Posted by: Shona | June 20, 2008 06:01 PM
Where do you found cachaca?? It is so good in the chicken too :).
We have other kind of caipirinha too like caipi-fruta (fruta=fruits) instead of using lime you can crushed strawberrys or use frozen passion fruit, guava or mango. Yummy!!!
Gringo means foreigner, but in a funny sense, the kind of foreigner that will arrive in a brazilian beach wearing sandals, socks and a hawaian t-shirts trying to blend in :).
Posted by: Giseli | June 21, 2008 11:21 AM