Brooklyn Bloody Mary Brigade: November 2009

Saturday, November 21, 2009

Ricks Picks

It is oh so lovely to go out on the town for a bloody mary, but making the Mary at home is a true labor of love. We always try to stay informed on how to get the freshest ingredients for mixes and garnishes (and we all know that the garnish is the BEST part).

Rick's Picks, located at the Brooklyn Flea in Dumbo is there for all of your garnishing needs. Rick's was founded in Vermont and offers hand-packed, all natural, pickled veggies made in season with all local produce.

They supply pickled beets, green tomatoes, spicy green beans, asparagus, low sodium pickles and much more! Not to mention the friendly and informative staff give out tons of free samples at their booth. Yes...I admit, I have been know to take more then my fair share.

The website also has some amazing recipes like Smokra Deviled Eggs, Windy City Wasabean Nicoise Salad, Pepi Pep Pep Antipasto AND of course a stellar recipe for a "Mean Beans Mean and Bloody" Bloody Mary...

Mean Beans Mean and Bloody

Over Ice Combine:

1oz Vodka

3oz tomato juice

2 dashes Worcestershire

1/2 teaspoon prepared horseradish

2 dashes Tabasco or to taste

1 quarter lemon squeezed and dropped into drink

Generous splash Mean Beans brine

Stir and garnish with a few Mean Beans!!

So get busy and throw a bloody Mary party soon!!

Pepi Pep Pep Antipasto

Windy City Wasabean Nicoise Salad

http://rickspicksnyc.com/pickles

and visit there pickle blog

http://blog.rickspicksnyc.com/

Bocca Lupo

The Brooklyn Bloody Mary Brigade strikes again and on this particular Sunday we had our eyes set on Bocca Lupo. This cobble hill, glass fronted, corner spot specializes in small plates, panini, tramezzini and bruschette. The industrial feeling dining room and gorgeous granite bar is the perfect place to sip on a delicious Mary and THAT my dear friends is exactly what we did!

The bloody beverage had a nice overall flavor with a hint of anise and went down quite easy, although was a bit heavy on the tomato juice. To put it frankly... it needed a bit more kick in the pants! We like our Mary's spicy and this didn't cut it. The garnish was so so. I am always up for some olives, but a caper or two would have been nice.

The food was stellar and honestly made our beverages more enjoyable. I would recommend the Tuna Olive Salad (Packed with Italian Oil Tuna and meaty Olives) or Poached Eggs with Cremini Toast and tomato funduta. We found that both dishes accompany a Mary rather nicely.