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Summertimes beverages: whatever
floats your boat

One of the typical Christmas presents for young boys in the 1950s and 1960s was a Gilbert chemistry set. Arranged in neat rows were bottles and vials of various chemicals, test tubes and beakers for mixing, and a booklet that contained step-by-step directions for experiments that resulted in predictable colors, textures and aromas. I think all boys had the same instinct to work their way through the book quickly and then follow their own creative instincts to a potentially explosive conclusion.

My father had a similar set-up in the liquor cabinet. Along with a selection of basic distilled products from chartreuse to vodka and additives like grenadine and Angostura bitters, there was a measured glass with a stainless-steel shaker top, a strainer, a long-handled spoon for stirring and a small mallet for crushing ice. There was also a red pamphlet that contained the formulas for every drink in the standard mixologist’s repertoire. I used to read through the index and enjoy the exotic vocabulary of the highball era: whiskey sour, sidecar, Presbyterian, gimlet, fizz, rickey and martini. Who was Tom Collins, and how did he rate a cocktail of his own? It’s easy enough to stock your own “speed rack” with a bottle each of vodka, gin, tequila, bourbon and rum. Expand your horizons with liqueurs like triple sec, Midori, crème de cacao and Kahlúa.

Then fill in the blanks with bitters, maraschino cherries, grenadine, sour mix and lime juice. Make sure you have some fresh lemons and limes on hand, lots of ice, a blender and a few nice tall glasses. Here are some recipes for classic summer cocktails; adjust the formulas to lower or eliminate the alcohol content if you like.

Ingredients:
Collins

2 ounces liquor (see variations, below)
2 teaspoons powdered sugar
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Splash of club soda
Fruit “flag” (skewered orange slice and maraschino cherry)

Morning Glory Fizz

2 ounces scotch
Juice of 1 lemon
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 ounce egg whites (or substitute)
1 dash Angostura bitters
Club soda

Singapore Sling

1/2 ounce grenadine
1 ounce gin
Sweet-and-sour mix
Club soda
1/2 ounce cherry brandy

Tequila Sunrise

2 dashes grenadine
6 ounces orange juice
2 ounces tequila

Gin Lime Rickey
11/2 ounces gin
Tonic water
Splash Rose’s lime juice
2 lemon wedges

Strawberry Colada
7 ripe strawberries
5 ounces pineapple juice
11/2 ounces coconut cream
1 cup crushed ice

Directions:
Collins:

Put 4 to 5 cubes into the shaker along with the liquor, sugar and lemon juice. Shake well and pour into a tall glass. Top up with soda, and serve with a fruit flag. (Gin=Tom Collins; Vodka=Vodka Collins; Rum=Rum Collins; Scotch=Jock Collins; Bourbon=Joe Collins; Tequila=José Collins)

Morning Glory Fizz:

Add the scotch, lemon juice, sugar, egg whites and bitters to a cocktail shaker. Shake well. Pour over ice cubes in a tall glass. Add club soda and garnish with an orange slice.

Singapore Sling:

Pour the grenadine into a tall glass. Fill with ice. Add the gin, equal parts sweet-and-sour mix and club soda, and the cherry brandy without stirring. Garnish with a cherry.

Tequila Sunrise:

Put the grenadine into the bottom of a tall glass. Top with ice cubes. Shake the orange juice with the tequila and some ice. Strain carefully into the tall glass and watch the sunrise.

Strawberry Colada:

Put all the ingredients into a blender and blend at high speed until smooth. Serve in a tall glass with a cherry and pineapple wedge garnish.

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TOP 10 ESSENTIALS FOR COOKING
Here's my top-10 list of kitchen essentials for a well-equipped kitchen:

1. An 8-inch chef knife and 3-inch paring knife. Make sure they are high-carbon stainless, forged knives. Avoid the "82-knife set."

2. Cutting board. I favor nylon or bamboo. In either case, make sure it is lightweight and at least 12-by-20-inches.

3. Measuring cups and spoons. You'll need a 2-cup and a 4-cup liquid measuring cup, a set of measuring cups for dry ingredients and a set of measuring spoons. Stainless steel is the most durable.

4. A 12-inch nonstick skillet with cover. Tri-ply such as All-Clad is the best for even heating. This pan does everything from omelets to sautés.

5. An 8-quart stock pot. This is essential for boiling pasta, steaming vegetables or making large batches of chili, soups and stews.

6. Colander. Get stainless steel with firmly riveted handles.

7. A 3-quart covered saucepan. This rounds out your pots-and-pans inventory for small boiling projects and heating canned soups.

8. A four-sided cheese grater. Freshly grated cheese is a big flavor boost for your cooking. This tool is also useful for grating vegetables and shredding lemon zest.

9. Sheet pan. This inexpensive pan has raised sides and can be used to bake cookies, breads and pizza, or to roast vegetables and meats.

10. A 6-quart slow cooker. This is a working couple's best friend. Ten minutes of prep in the morning yields a dinner entree and loads of leftovers. The models with the thickest insert provide the slowest, most-even cooking. Be sure it's at least a 5-quart capacity.

- Chris Fennimore