5:00 on Friday! The work week is over and another wonderful summer weekend begins. Sure, it’s kinda rainy right now. But the weathermen are predicting sunshine and temperatures in the mid-80s for the rest of the weekend. It’ll be the perfect time to sit on your patio and enjoy a frozen concoction. This one has all the ingredients of a classic margarita, plus watermelon to add some sweetness. Also, it’s pink which is always a plus in my book!

Frozen Watermelon Margarita
Makes 4 Servings

Ingredients
3 c. watermelon, peeled, seeded and cubed
2 oz. fresh lime juice
6 oz. tequila
2 oz. triple sec
2 c. ice
1 lime, sliced into wedges, for garnish
1/4 c. granulated sugar, for garnish

Directions
1. Pour the sugar onto a small plate. Use a lime wedge to wet the rims of 4 margarita glasses. Dip the moistened rims of the glasses into sugar to coat.
2. Place all ingredients into a blender, reserving about 3/4 cup of ice. Puree, adding additional ice, until smooth.
3. Pour into the prepared margarita glasses. Garnish with lime wedges and enjoy!

Perfect Cocktails was a total impulse buy. I was standing in the checkout line at TJ Maxx when I noticed this book’s bright cover. I opened it to find recipes for everything from traditional Manhattans and Bloody Marys to fruity martinis and tropical drinks. It also has glossy pages, pictures of every recipe and only cost $3.99! So you see, I had to buy it.

My new purchase reminded me that I wanted to start doing Happy Hour posts with different recipes that I’ve tried. Ideally, these posts will appear at 5:00 on semi-random Fridays.

When it comes to cocktails, my true love is a margarita on the rocks made with freshly-squeezed lime juice. When I want something sweeter, I adore fruity, girly drinks, preferably in some crazy color like hot pink, lime green or aqua. So I’m kicking off my Happy Hour series with a fun blue drink from Perfect Cocktails.

Ocean Breeze
Serves 1

Ingredients
1 shot white rum
1 shot amaretto
1/2 shot blue curacao
1/2 shot pineapple juice
crushed ice
soda water

Directions
1. Place ice, rum, amaretto, curacao and pineapple juice into a cocktail shaker. Shake to combine.
2. Pour into a short glass and top with soda water. Enjoy!

Recipe Source: Perfect Cocktails by Parragon Publishing.

Key West Pirate Museum

For my long weekend in Key West, my chosen cheesy tourist activity was the Pirate Soul Museum. Between my love of Buffett music & pirate movies, my interest in Caribbean history and my general (admittedly romanticized) fascination with pirates and sailors, I just had to check it out. The story is that the museum, located at 524 Front Street, started as a way to display Entrepreneur Pat Croce’s collection of pirate artifacts. Unfortunately, they don’t allow you to take pictures of these artifacts. I was a little disappointed about that; but I do understand that camera flashes can damage artifacts, and that this is a fairly common restriction in museums.

You're not allowed to take pictures in the Pirate Museum. But they never said the gift shop was off limits...

Lack of photo-ops aside, I enjoyed the Pirate Museum. There are displays of the weapons, medical equipment and navigational tools that were used by pirates. The museum also houses one of the two remaining Jolly Roger pirate flags and the only known surviving pirate treasure chest. There are interactive exhibits and a number of Blackbeard- centric displays. Everything is displayed with signs explaining what the artifacts are, mixed in with general anecdotes and blurbs about pirate life both on and offshore. Having recently read James Michener’s Caribbean, I found the descriptions of life in Port Royal particularly fascinating.

The charm bracelet I've been adding to since Christmas 2008. I wear it almost every day. The pirate charm resides happily between the pelican from a previous vacation to Florida and the graduation hat my husband got me when I received my MBA

Post-museum, it was time for shopping and lunch. I have a silver charm bracelet that I add to when I travel. I still hadn’t located the right charm from Key West. I was looking for a margarita glass. I never found one that I liked. But every time I looked, I was drawn to the skull & crossbones charms. On our way to lunch, I found a silver one at a little shop on Duval. The owner was even nice enough to weld it to my bracelet immediately.

View of Blue Heaven's courtyard from upstairs, indoor seating

I’m not sure really sure how we found Blue Heaven, located at 729 Thomas Street. Honestly, we probably just wandered off Duval Street until we found a promising restaurant. Like many Key West restaurants, it is located behind a tall garden wall in a courtyard with limited indoor seating. In the past, Blue Heaven has been home to a billiard hall, bordello, dance hall and gambling arena. Though it is currently a restaurant and bar, Blue Heaven pays tribute to its shady past. For instance, several of the tables have been decoupaged with cutouts revolving around jazz musicians and pinup girls. They also have live jazz in the evenings and a signature cocktail that is, of course, blue.

Decoupaged tabletop at Blue Heaven

Blue Heaven’s menu is similar to many of the other Floribbean-styled menus in Key West. This means it’s heavy on seafood, jerk chicken, black beans and fruits and vegetables. They’re open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. We were there around 2:00pm; and they were steady but not overwhelmingly busy. While looking over the meal selections, I ordered the Blue Heaven martini (it’s 5:00 somewhere, right?) which had blue curacao, vodka and fruity mixers. While it was a pretty blue color, the drink itself wasn’t all that great. It was too heavy on the curacao, making it more bitter than sweet or tart.

Luncheon Tortilla with Jerk Chicken and Avocado

For lunch, Jared ordered the Jerk Chicken Plate while I chose the Luncheon Tortilla. His meal consisted of boneless jerk chicken breasts with black beans, rice and cornbread. My meal had the same jerk chicken (or tofu, if I had chosen that). It was served on a tortilla and topped it with black beans, rice, melted cheese, avocado and cilantro salsa. Jared found his meal bland. I thoroughly enjoyed mine. It was not as spicy or as salty as some jerk, but it was well-seasoned and went especially well with the tortilla and toppings. I also loved how cozy the restaurant was. We wound up conversing and laughing with other patrons while waiting for our meals, and lingering over our drinks after we had eaten. To me, this is the mark of a really good vacation meal – good food and drink, punctuated by fun conversation.

Blue Heaven dining room, where we sat after lunch and chatted with fellow travelers and Key West locals

Pretty purple cocktails & flowers made for a great girly night out

Guess why these are called Dancing Lady orchids

Columbus has a surprising number of fun and interesting places to go and things to do. Franklin Park Conservatory is one of my favorite recent discoveries. In addition to a huge greenhouse full of gorgeous plants and flowers, the conservatory has acres of outdoor gardens. Since my visits have both been in the winter (a great way to escape the cold and snow, I might add), I can only imagine how pretty the outdoor areas are when they are in full bloom. The conservatory also hosts rotating, seasonally-themed exhibits and events.

Currently, they have two special exhibits: Orchid Forest and Chihuly Reimagined. Dale Chihuly is an artist who creates large, colorful pieces of blown-glass. The conservatory owns a large portion of his work, and has displayed the pieces amongst various plants and flowers. Several Chihuly pieces are displayed in concurrence with the other special program – the Orchid Forest located in the Pacific Island Water Garden. Until I went to the Orchid Forest, I didn’t know that orchids came in such a wide variety of shapes, sizes and colors.

"Sunset" in the Pacific Island Water Garden

In addition to its seasonal special events, FPC hosts Cocktails at the Conservatory every Thursday evening. They stay open late, have a DJ or live music, and offer hors d’oeuvres and cocktails. The theme of the event changes every month; but the idea is always the same. Use a seasonally relevant plant or flower as the creative inspiration for a cocktail. For example, January was “Spruce & Spumanti” while February’s theme is “Orchids & Orchidtinis”.

Chihuly art among the orchids

“Orchids & Orchidtinis” was  a fairly casual event, kind of like an indoor garden party. You order your drink and maybe a plate of hors d’oeuvres and stand around a tall table chatting with friends. It turns out that an orchidtini is a pretty lavender-colored drink the involves Hypnotiq, some sort of pink liqueur and possibly grapefruit juice. It was refreshing, if a little tart. The food, which was catered by the conservatory’s cafe, included hummus with veggies and pita wedges, plates of cheese and crackers, and sweet treats, among other things. My friends and I shared some hummus and cheese, then decided to walk around the conservatory. The Chihulys were especially vibrant in the darkened conservatory. Some of them were almost glowing. While we walked, we talked and laughed and took pictures and generally enjoyed a break from the workweek.  Since this event is fairly low-key and ends early in the evening, it’s a perfect way to unwind on a Thursday night. I enjoyed it so much that I’ve already made plans to return for “Clover & Lucky Charms” in March.

Sea-inspired art

]]> http://www.howdoyouburncereal.com/2010/02/15/orchids-orchidtinis/feed/ 0 http://www.howdoyouburncereal.com/2010/01/09/tasty-links-lazy-winter-weekends-edition/ http://www.howdoyouburncereal.com/2010/01/09/tasty-links-lazy-winter-weekends-edition/#comments Sun, 10 Jan 2010 01:51:58 +0000 Cassandra http://www.howdoyouburncereal.com/?p=426

Here in Columbus, there is a lot of snow on the ground. The temperatures have been consistently below freezing. It’s too cold to really enjoy any time spent outside. As a result, winter hibernation mode is seriously setting in. To me, this means lots of lazy weekends at home – reading blogs and books, playing games (video, board, tabletop), and enjoying comfort food. In short, winter is a perfect excuse to post this set of links:

• Video game cupcakes are nothing new. I made the ones pictured above a few years ago for a Super Bowl party. I know they aren’t standard Super Bowl party fare. But this is the same group of friends that has spent more than one New Years Eve playing Guitar Hero and Mario Kart. So I knew they would be appreciated. It was my first time using fondant, and taught me a valuable lesson about the importance of using flavorless red dye. For those that don’t know, red dye tends to be very bitter unless you use the flavorless version. I didn’t know this until my cute little cupcakes were topped with bitter red piranha plants. The cupcakes were still a hit. However, these game cupcakes that have been making the rounds on the internet beat my Mario cupcakes by a long shot.
• Jared and I often make homemade pizza on Sunday nights. To be honest, he makes the pizza crust. I just top it. One of these days, he’ll get around to posting his crust recipe on here. Until then, you’ll just have to trust me that it’s really good. Pizza on a Stick looks like a fun variation on regular pizza.
• What is a good weekend brunch without a cocktail? The problem is that mimosas seem very summery to me, and bloody marys are just plain nasty. Mele Kalikimaka Martinis would be a nice winter alternative, even after the holidays are over.
• On winter mornings, it’s always nice to have a healthy, homemade breakfast. Considering extra the drive-time that a winter commute can involve, it’s especially nice if that breakfast that can be eaten on the run or at the office. So I will definitely spend a Sunday afternoon making these Apple Walnut Spice Muffins very shortly.
• I do not give my slow cooker enough credit. Aside from Apple Butter Weekend, I really only pull it out a few times a year.  This winter, I have been trying to change that. I am continually surprised by the things one can make in a slow cooker. For example, it seems like a creamy soup would burn in the slow cooker. I hope this Crockpot Potato Soup recipe will prove me wrong when I try it.

Jared and I decided to order an appetizer and sandwiches. To start, we split an order of Flash Fried Sweet Plantains. Shortly after ordering, a basket full of plantains arrived. They had been coated with a thin layer of seasonings (I think this was salt and cumin with a dash of cinnamon and maybe something else) and fried. Being a fan of salty/sweet combinations, I liked them right away. The plantains were great on their own, and even better when dipped in the accompanying Ya-Ya sauce. This was a sweet sauce with a strong habanero bite. The end result was a spicy, sweet, salty flavor that was full without being overwhelming.

Jared ordered the Little Havana Cubano with a cup of black bean soup. The pork, ham, swiss and pickle sandwich was served on pan cubano. The pork was sliced thickly and had a slight citrus flavor. The bread reminded me of focaccia in both taste and texture. It wasn’t the most authentic Cuban sandwich; but it was satisfying. The soup was even better. It was a thick black bean soup garnished with cheese, sour cream and green onions. The meaty, earthy flavor makes it a definite comfort food. My only complaint is that it could have used a little more heat.

I had the Calle Ocho sandwich with sweet potato fries. This sandwich also had thick pork slices, which were complimented by a salty olive and caper salad and a smattering of manchego cheese. It was served on the same thick bread as the Cubano. The pork and cheese tempered the salad’s saltiness quite well, making the sandwich quite flavorful. I preferred this sandwich since it had less meat and a more interesting flavor. The sweet potato fries were crinkle-cut and slightly salty. They were nothing special, but were perfect alongside the sandwich. Both sandwiches were large. Neither of us could finish them after the heavy plantain appetizer. We took the leftovers home to eat for lunch the next day.

I’m now two for two on satisfying trips to this restaurant. Too often, foods revolve around only one flavor. They’re either really hot or really sweet. Even worse, they are just plain bland. Combining salty, sweet and hot flavors into one dish can be a tricky business. The Banana Bean manages these somewhat unexpected combinations very well. Their food combines flavors so that they compliment one another and taste good without being overwhelming. Since their menu is full of tempting items, I’m sure I’ll be back very soon.

Banana Bean Cafe Info
Location: 340 Greenlawn Ave. Columbus, Ohio 43226
Phone: (614) 443-2266
Website: http://www.bananabeancafe.com
Hours: Mon-Sat 9am-9pm, Sun 9am-3pm
Type of Food: Floribbean cuisine and cocktails