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Bloody Mary, Bloody Caesar, and…oh my.
Photo: Flickr/Huge Cool
Ah, the Bloody Mary. Is there anything better for an early-evening cocktail, when you are feeling both thirsty for alcohol AND a little bit hungry for soup? Does anything go down smoother on those mornings when you are just too hungover for brunch, but still want to convince your body to accept some room-temperature eggs Benedict? And on a holiday morning, when relatives are arriving just a little too early, does anything do a better job of chasing away the winter-gray morning blues?
Making the perfect Bloody Mary is just the beginning, once you begin down this road of tomato juice-based cocktails…which makes it great place to start:
Sunday Morning Spicy Bloody Mary
(Makes 2-4 servings)
Ingredients:
- 16 ounces tomato juice
- 3 ounces vodka
- 2 dashes Tabasco sauce
- 1 dash Worcestershire sauce
- 2 jalapenos, sliced
- Pinch celery salt
- Pinch black pepper
- 1 lemon, juiced
- Ice
- Celery spears, garlic-stuffed olives, and/or Dilly Beans, for garnish
Method:
Combine all ingredients (except garnish elements) in a pitcher. Serve in tall glasses, over ice. Garnish as desired.
My father, a sea captain for his whole life, who swore he was a modern day “real pirates,” always drank his variation on the above recipe, with the spice dialed down. The Bloody Caesar recipe is almost identical, omitting the sliced jalapenos and subbing in Clamato (y’know…the tomato juice with the added deliciousness of clams). If you’re serving these at a party (or boat christening, perhaps), we like rimming the glasses with a combination of sea salt and Old Bay seasoning.
And finally, if you want to take your tomato-based drinking to entirely the next level, we direct you to Alie & Georgia, and their “Bloody Bacon and Cheese,” which combines a standard Bloody recipe with a rim full of bacon, garnished with a slice of grilled cheese sandwich.
