Firewater Friday - Drunken Ice cream jelly spiders

So, there I am . . . quietly minding my own business when all of a sudden my husband yells out, "Ice cream jelly spiders!"


"WHAT??!", was my startled reply.


What initiated his Tourette-like outburst?  He was reading an another blog and that's pretty much how the post he was reading started:

Since I had already been rudely wrenched from the story I was so engrossed in, I picked up my laptop and Googled "Ice Cream Jelly Spiders" . . . and yes, it does pretty much take you right there.  Give it a try if you don't believe me.

Hmmm . . . interesting.  Weird, but interesting.


But me being me . . . I had to kick it up a notch.  

First of all, I substituted Jell-O for the Aussie Aeroplane Jelly . . . same stuff, different name.  And, then to make it more grown-up friendly, I substituted Vanilla Rum for the water in the mixing instructions . . . basically, I made a great big Jell-O Shot.


The Basic Jello Shot Recipe 


1 (3-ounce) Box of Jell-O (I used strawberry)
1 Cup Boiling Water
1 Cup Booze (I used Vanilla Rum)


In a bowl, pour the boiling water over the Jello and stir until thoroughly dissolved. Cool to room temperature, then stir in the booze. Pour the mixture into shot glasses or Jello shot cups. Refrigerate until well-set, at least 6 hours. Makes 32 1-ounce jello shots or two big Jelly Spiders . . . divide the Jell-O into two big tumblers.






Then when those were gel'n I made up a batch of homemade lemonade.



Perfect Lemonade Recipe


1/2 Cup Raw Sugar 
1/2 Cup water 
1/2 Cup Lemon Juice
2 Cups Cold Water (to dilute)


Make simple syrup by heating the sugar and water in a small saucepan until the sugar is dissolved completely.


While the sugar is dissolving, use a juicer to extract the juice from 4 small lemons, enough for 1/2 cup of juice.


Add the juice and the sugar water to a pitcher. Add 2 cups of cold water. 

Okay . . . I admit I didn't make the ice cream, that's WAY too much like too much work.


After the giant Jell-O shots were all gelled up and firm.  I put two big scoops of ice cream . . . Häagen-Dazs, no less . . . and filled the glass with my sweet-n-tart lemonade . . . 


Voilà!  Drunken Ice cream jelly spiders.  


How were they?  Surprisingly good, actually.  Refreshing, sweet, creamy, tart, boozy.  Pretty much . . . yum!






Thanks, Tam, for the great idea . . . you're an inspiration to me and many others!  Cheers!

Firewater Friday - Happy Birthday to me . . . Cheers!

Cheers!

Vodka And Strawberry Lemonade

Dangerously delicious . . . once you start drinking this you won't want to stop!

4 oz Strawberry Lemonade (from this recipe)

2 oz Vodka

Fill a shaker half full with ice cubes. Pour all ingredients into shaker and shake well. Fill a glass almost full of ice cubes, and strain drink into glass.

Men still have to be governed by deception

Herring . . . a fish, of course, but also a food staple for many cultures all over the world.  But this excellent source of protein and nutrients spoils quickly and must be preserved in some manner almost as soon as they are caught.

Before freezing was available, the only practical way to preserve the fish was cure them by means of salting and smoking.  Preserved in this manner the herring can keep for months but have to be softened and desalinated (by means of soaking) to make them edible once again.

Although the flesh of the fish is white, when the fish is heavily cured (up to 10 days) it turns a deep crimson color . . . and gets pretty stinky, as well.  From this we get red herring . . . the food product and the idiom . . .  something that distracts attention from the real issues.   But how does the fish relate to this expression?

A popular English journalist of the early 1800’s wrote a fictional story about how as a boy he had used a red herring as a decoy to deflect hounds chasing after a hare.   He further used this story as a metaphor to criticize other members of the press who printed misinformation without the benefit of verifying the facts leading to domestic complacency in the face of external threats . . . namely; falsely reporting that Napoleon had been defeated and therefore was no longer a threat to the nation. 

He wrote “It was a mere transitory effect of the political red-herring; for the scent became as cold as a stone.”

He repeated this story enough that the symbolic implication of ‘red herring’ became well-established.  The unfortunate result is that people also began to believe that laying a false trail of stinky fish was a normal practice amongst huntsmen.

Homemade Strawberry Lemonade

1 Cup Sugar

1 Cup of Water

1 Pint Fresh Strawberries

1 Cup Fresh Lemon Juice (About 8 Lemons)

5 Cups Cold Water

Make a simple syrup by combining the sugar with 1 cup of water in a saucepan. Place over medium heat and heat until the sugar in completely dissolved; swirl the pan occasionally. Let cool.

Once the simple syrup has cooled, puree strawberries in a blender with ½ cup water.

In a large pitcher, combine strawberry puree, simple syrup and lemon juice.

Add 5 cups of cold water. The amount of water you use will depend on your taste, so add as little or as much as you want to achieve your perfect sweet/tart balance.

Serve over ice. 

Men still have to be governed by deception