Broiled Grapefruit

Broiled Grapefruit

1 Grapefruit

2 Tbsp Brown Sugar

Cut in half and segment it.

Set the oven to broil and place a rack on the top shelf of the oven.  You want the grapefruit to be as close as possible to the broiler heat.

Halve and segment a grapefruit.  You may need to trim the bottoms of the grapefruit so it sits up straight.

Place in a broiler safe pan and sprinkle with brown sugar.  Place in the oven under the broiler.  Bake for 5 to 7 minutes, keeping an eye on it as it cooks.

Remove from oven and serve warm.

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Firewater Friday - Ooh that smell . . . can't you smell that smell?

I’m not a big pot smoker . . . however, I’ll admit that I’ve puffed a few bones in my lifetime and  . . . unlike certain politicians . . . I freely confess that I did, indeed, inhale. 

I also admit that I like the way weed smells and once you smell burning marijuana you never forget what it’s like.

I was hanging out in the kitchen of a friend’s home who also just so happens to have a teenage son.  We’re chatting it up, cooking dinner and drinking wine.  All of sudden I start detecting the distinctive aroma of doobage.

So, I asked her about it.  She said she doesn’t notice.  So I start sniffing around to see where the smell is coming from. 

I swear up and down that I smell the ganja and she assures me that neither she nor her child smoke pot. 

Sniff, sniff . . . after smelling everything in sight I finally discover the odor is being emitted from a pile of grapefruit sitting in a bowl on the counter. 

Hmmm . . . that’s odd.  I found the smell and it wasn't weed!!!!  Is it just my shnozz?  Or does weed and grapefruit share the same scent?

I’ve noticed the smell since  . . . .whenever I’m in the produce section of my grocery store and in my fridge when I have Ruby Reds in there.  I know I’m not crazy . . . okay maybe just a little, but not about this.  So, I decided to poke around and see if I’m the only one who smells this smell as it relates to grapefruit.

It turns out that there are several strains of marijuana that do, in fact, smell like grapefruit . . . Grapefruit Sweet Deep Grapefruit, Grapefruit Kanji . . . among others. 

They are often grown for medicinal use.  I am by no means an expert but this is what I read . . . these strains are fairly similar. They are supposed be fairly strong and long lasting and good for treating pain and insomnia.  Some have the flavor of grapefruit, some don’t. 

By the way . . . I am all for medicinal marijuana.  I think it is far less dangerous and addictive than many legalized drugs.  As long as it doesn’t affect anyone else then people should be able to do what they need to do to manage their chronic pain and other disorders.

Ruby Red Mojito

This is a fantastic mojito.  It's quite refreshing and flavorful.   Not too sweet, not too tart, and not too minty. YUM! 

Mint Simple Syrup (recipe below)

Mint Sprigs for Garnish

1 Ruby-Red Grapefruit

3/4 Cup White Rum

3 Cups Ice

1 Cup Seltzer

Using a vegetable peeler, remove zest from grapefruit in long, wide strips. Place in a large glass, and add rum. Cover, and let stand for 30 minutes. Strain through a fine sieve into a large glass measure, and discard zest.

Cut grapefruit into quarters.  Fill glass with ice and squeeze juice from grapefruit quarter. Stir 3 tablespoons infused rum, 2 tablespoons mint syrup, and 1/4 cup seltzer in a glass measure, and pour over ice. Garnish with mint sprigs.

Mint Simple Syrup

1 Cup Water

1 Cup Sugar

10 Fresh Mint Leaves

Add all ingredients to a small saucepan and heat over medium heat just until it bubbles. Turn down to low for 2 minutes, and then remove from heat and let sit for 15-20 minutes.

Store in the refrigerator in an airtight container until ready to use.

Ooh that smell . . . can't you smell that smell?
Lynyrd Skynyrd

Firewater Friday - Fighting a losing battle with myself

When I was kid I was just as good a house keeper as I am now . . . which is to say I wasn’t particularly the neatest piglet in the pen.  Getting me to keep my room straightened up and organized must have been a daunting task for my poor mother.   Little things would pile up here and there and soon the little piles were big piles and then bigger piles and eventually they became perilously balanced mounds of stuff.   It took a while, but it would ultimately get to the point that I would be ordered to my room and directed not to emerge until it was clean.   I would be indefinitely confined to dismantle the heaps of clothes and toys and whatnot.  By the time the command was issued the task was overwhelming.  I would sit and cry, having not a clue where to begin.  

So I would start by folding clothes and putting them in dresser drawers.  Picking up playthings and sticking them in the toy box.  Stacking games and piling them in the closet.  Once these depositories were full up I would still have loads of stuff with no place to put it.   

That’s when I would get creative.  I would start shoving some things under my bed, stuffing other things into the closet  . . . until my bed was practically lifted off the floor and my closet door was bulging.  I would then neatly make my bed; arranging the bed skirt to hide the crap I shoveled under the bed.  I would vacuum the particulates off the floor and arrange the bric-a-brac on my dresser and just like that my room was clean. 

Of course I knew that if I emerged too quickly from my room, suspicions would arise.  So I would sit and play quietly until I felt enough time had passed to get away with the pretense of having properly cleaning my room.

Most times I got away with it.  But as I needed to find something the stuff would get pulled out from wherever I had stashed it and the cycle would begin anew.

Yeah, some things never change. 

I know it’s easier to put things away after you use them but it’s just as easy to deal with it later; which is probably why I’m being harassed by a domovoi.

______________________

Dirty Ruby Red Cocktail


This drink is tangy, sweet and refreshing . . . yummy!


1 1/2 ounces citrus flavored vodka, or vodka
1/2 ounce triple sec
3 ounces red grapefruit juice blend
2 teaspoons olive juice


In a cocktail shaker, combine the vodka, triple sec, and juice with crushed ice. Shake well for 30 seconds, then strain into a cocktail glass.