tips » The Red Shaker

Zesty fun

Jun 302010

If you read the post talking about our friend Simon’s birthday party, you might have caught the part about Shaker One coming up with the brilliant idea for making “tape worms” from citrus zest. A citrus zester is a handy tool to have around.

A rather odd looking gadget, it does a wonderful job of removing just the colored portion of the citrus rind and excluding the pith, which can add bitterness to the recipe, rather then the flavorful part of the rind. You can also create decorative patterns on the fruit skin and then use the slices or wedges as garnish.

Zest is used not only in giving a light essence of lemon, lime, orange or grapefruit to a martini (or other cocktail) but it is also used in many desserts, sauces, cookies and salads.

This Oxo Good Grips Lemon Zester is a good one to add to your collection of gadgets. Shaker One picked her’s up at Surfas, but the Oxo one is great, too. Citrus “confetti streamers” in different colors would be a great garnish for dessert, fruit salads, even fish dishes. It takes a bit of practice to get the really long threads, and of course the larger the fruit the longer the strands you can achieve. A fun garnish can really make a drink or dish feel special. Now get to zesting!

Don't Lose Your Fizz!

Gadgets, tips No Responses »

Jun 162010

Shakers One and Two, though obviously big martini fans, both very much enjoy a glass of something bubbly. Champagne, cava, prosecco……..on their own or with a bit of something added (a splash of St. Germain for example) are all wonderful treats- especially in the summertime.

When there’s a crowd around (and by “crowd” I mean the two Shakers) there’s no trouble finishing up a bottle of the sparkly stuff. But what if you are on your own and not excessively thirsty? Should you forgo the fizz?

Absolutely not! Simply get yourself one of these champagne bottle stoppers. With one of these little gadgets you can keep an opened bottle of bubbly in your fridge for a few days without losing the effervescence that makes it special. Then just pull it out whenever you want a glass of celebration.

The plastic stopper is adequate, but Shaker One prefers the stainless steel model. Either way, don’t let mere moderate thirst levels keep you from opening up a bottle of bubbly. Certainly you can find something to celebrate?

Champagne Stoppers

Bar Tricks

martini 3 Responses »

Apr 282010

The Red Shakers are all about crafting delicious cocktails by hand. But making a drink should never be drudgery. In that spirit, we will occasionally bring you tips and tricks to make your mixology adventures easier.

Today’s Tip: Use a garlic press to juice your key limes!

We’ve been enjoying key limes lately (the key lime pie martini, key lime mousse, Citrus Bliss Martini base….) but juicing each tiny key lime can be tedious. Simply cut them into halves or quarters (depending on the size of the lime/your garlic press) and squeeze them in the garlic press. For even greater juice extraction, heat them up (already cut) for about 15 seconds in the microwave.

Happy Shaking!