Mother’s Ruin (Gin) Punch

Originally created by master bartender Philip Ward, Mother’s Ruin Punch is a refreshingly light tasting punch made from gin, grapefruit and lemon juice, vermouth and sparkling wine. My version serves one.

Lately, I’ve been rediscovering the deliciousness of grapefruit juice in cocktails. My libation of choice when I was in Texas this summer was Deep Eddy’s Ruby Red Vodka with a capful of Campari, topped up with club soda. While in the south of France visiting friends in July, their “house” cocktail was a concoction of grapefruit cordial with sparkling rosé wine, served over ice. And now, Mother’s Ruin Punch. It’s supposed to be mixed up in greater quantities and served, as the name implies, as punch from a punch bowl but is easily adapted to serve one. For the original recipe, check out this link on Food and Wine.

This week the Sunday Supper theme is Back to School and everyone is bringing you recipes for great lunch box fare or quick dishes that are perfect for a busy school night. I couldn’t resist going in another direction to bring you a delightful cocktail that is as celebratory as it is refreshingly delicious. For many parents, it’s been a long hot summer, full of keeping children busy and barbecues and campouts and sleepovers and late night snacks and summer book assignments and ball games and lazy mornings. But you made it through! Tuck the children into bed and treat yourself to a special cocktail.

Do you have any special rituals for the first day of school? My baby graduated from university in May so this is the first year since 1995 that I won’t be sending anyone off to school. It’s bittersweet, friends, bittersweet.

Ingredients for one cocktail
Several cubes ice
1 tablespoon simple syrup (I used simple syrup made from demerara sugar.)
1 1/2 oz or 45ml gin
1 1/2 oz or 45ml fresh grapefruit juice, plus thinly sliced grapefruit, for garnish
3/4 oz or 22.5ml fresh lemon juice
3/4 oz or 22.5ml sweet vermouth
About 1/2 cup or 120ml chilled sparkling wine or Champagne

Method
Cut a couple of thin slices off of your grapefruit for garnish and then juice the rest of the fruit.

Tuck one of the grapefruit slices in a tall glass then add in several cubes of ice.

Pour in the simple syrup, grapefruit juice, lemon juice, vermouth and gin. Give it a good stir, adding another cube or two of ice and a second grapefruit slice.

Top up with sparkling wine.

Enjoy!

Many thanks to our hosts this week, DB from Crazy Foodie Stunts and Caroline from Caroline’s Cooking. We hope you find lots of recipes that make Back to School more enjoyable and fun!

Getting Started On School Days

• Banana and Chocolate Chip Muffins by Caroline's Cooking
• Caramel Apple Granola by What Smells So Good?
• Chocolate Coconut Granola Bars by Ruffles & Truffles
• Cinnamon Chocolate Overnight Oats by Whole Food | Real Families
• Funfetti French Toast by Brunch with Joy
• PB&J Muffins by Sew You Think You Can Cook

Ideas for the Lunchbox

• Grilled Chicken Sandwich by Cooking Chat
• Healthy Lunchbox Snack Mix by Noshing with the Nolands
• Mini Pepperoni Calzones by The Redhead Baker
• Turkey Bacon Ranch Wrap by Hezzi-D's Books and Cooks
• Vietnamese Fresh Spring Rolls by Curious Cuisiniere

After School Snacks and Beverages

• Back to School Cookies by The Freshman Cook
• Fruit 'n Chocolate Peanut Butter Granola Bites by The Weekend Gourmet
• Homemade Buttermilk Biscuits by An Appealing Plan
• Mother’s Ruin Punch by Food Lust People Love
• "Nut Butter" Rice Crispy Balls by Books n' Cooks
• Parmesan Crisps Recipe by Life Tastes Good
• Peanut Butter & Jelly Monkey Bread by Grumpy's Honeybunch
• Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Apple Nachos by Cupcakes & Kale Chips
• Quinoa, Oat and Pecan Blueberry Peach Crumb Bars by Simply Healthy Family
• Waffle Pizzas by Our Good Life

School Night Suppers

• Beef Peppers and Onions Burritos by Family Foodie
• One Pot Bacon-Cheeseburger Pasta by A Gouda Life
• Oven Fried Portabello Mushroom Fries by Food Done Light
• Peanut Chicken Cutlets by Magnolia Days
• Smoked Salmon Ravioli with Cream Sauce by Crazy Foodie Stunts
• Turmeric Chicken and Couscous by Cindy's Recipes and Writings

Sweets to End the Day

• Gluten-Free Almond Joy Cupcakes by NinjaBaker
• M&M Chocolate Chunk Cookies by Fantastical Sharing of Recipes
• Oreo Rice Krispy Treats by The Crumby Cupcake
• Paleo Cherry Blondies by Pies and Plots
• Plum Crumble Bars by Feeding Big
• Stuffed Peanut Butter Rice Krispie Treats by That Skinny Chick Can Bake

Summertime Fresh Corn Salad #BloggerCLUE

Sweet summer corn on the cob and vine-ripened tomatoes join green pepper, carrot, jalapeño, olives and feta in a light oil and vinegar salad dressing for a substantial salad that is perfect light fare for a hot summer day.

It’s August and in the northern hemisphere, where most of our Blogger C.L.U.E. members live, August means it’s hotter than the hinges on the gates of hell. Or perhaps that’s just Dubai. Not to imply that it’s hell here. In fact, most of the year, Dubai is a very pleasant place to live with clean roads (never mind the crazy drivers), well stocked shops, good medical care, decent internet speeds and despite the recent cessation of nationwide subsidies, pretty cheap fuel for our cars. So we tolerate summer, hibernating in our air-conditioned homes, until the heat lifts and we are free, free once more to enjoy the great outdoors, sailing in the clear blue waters of the Arabian Gulf and enjoying life in the heart of the desert.

But for now, we are living on salads.

Every month for Blogger C.L.U.E. Society, each member is assigned another blog in which to hunt for recipes which fit our clue or theme. What could be more perfect for August than “beat the heat?” My assignment is the delightful blog A Palatable Pastime and I had a great time searching around Sue’s tasty site for summer treats, lingering on her cantaloupe margaritas and raspberry gelato before coming back to page one in the search and, given my love of sweet corn, this wonderful fresh corn salad.

The only thing I cooked, and even that ever so briefly, was the corn on the cob. Sue parboiled her carrots as well but I left ours raw because we like them very crunchy. I also don’t have garlic powder on hand so I subbed fresh garlic. This salad is way more than the sum of its parts. Put together, the ingredients elevate each other and become a meal. This is a very versatile and forgiving salad. If you adore carrots, by all means, add more. Not a fan of green peppers, leave them out. It can be made ahead or eaten right away. In short, this recipe is a keeper. Thanks, Sue!

Ingredients
2 fresh ears corn, shucked – I also halve mine so they can fit in my pot.
1 small clove garlic
1 fresh jalapeño
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoon white balsamic vinegar
1 medium carrot
1 medium bell pepper
Generous handful pitted black olives (read: half a can!)
Small bunch green onions
1 medium to large fresh tomato
3 oz or 85g feta cheese
1 large bunch fresh cilantro
Salt and pepper

Method
Boil your corn on the cob in salted water for 3-4 minutes, then drain and cool in very cold water. It should be cooked a little, but still crunchy.

Measure your vinegar and oil into a large bowl. Mince your jalapeño and garlic clove and add them to the oil and vinegar. The garlic and pepper start to infuse into the liquid, which will help the over all flavor later.

Peel your carrot and split it down the middle lengthwise. Slice it thinly on the diagonal. Cut your green pepper into similarly sized pieces and slice your olives.

Add them to the large bowl.

Your corn should be cool enough to handle by now. Cut the kernels off the cobs and chop the onion tops and cilantro. Core and chop the tomato into pieces.

Add all four to the large bowl.

Give everything a really good stir, making sure to get all the way down to the olive oil, vinegar and garlic at the bottom. (That’s why I had you put it in a large bowl, better for a thorough stirring.)

Crumble your feta and add in all but a few pieces. Sprinkle the salad with salt and a few good grinds of fresh black pepper. Give it another really good stir.

Transfer the salad to a serving bowl, if desired, and finish it with the rest of the feta.

Enjoy!

Here's a list of our Blogger C.L.U.E. Society participants this month. I can't wait to see which recipes they've found for our "beat the heat" theme.

• Asian Watermelon Salad by Lora from Cake Duchess
• Beat the Heat Negronis by Christy from Confessions of a Culinary Diva
• Blueberry Icebox Pie by Kate from Kate's Kitchen
• Curried Chicken Salad with Cucumbers by Rebekah from Making Miracles
• Frozen Cherry Lemonade by Anna from annaDishes
• Homemade Gingerale by Lauren from Sew You Think You Can Cook
• Icy Rum Punch from the Islands by Debra from Eliot's Eats
• Mango Jicama Salsa by Lisa from Authentic Suburban Gourmet
• No Bake Berry Cheesecake by Christiane from Taking on Magazines
• Oreo Cookies n Cream Ice Cream by Heather from girlichef
• Peach Ice Cream by Liz from That Skinny Chick Can Bake
• Pecan Brittle by Kelli from Kelli's Kitchen
• Prosciutto Parmesan Arugula Sandwich by Lea Ann from Cooking on the Ranch
• Roasted Tomato Soup by Sue from A Palatable Pastime
• Southwestern Skillet Dip by Alice from A Mama, Baby and Shar-pei in the Kitchen
• Strawberry Rhubarb Sorbet by Kathy from A Spoonful of Thyme
• Summertime Fresh Corn Salad by Stacy from Food Lust People Love
• Tipsy Palmers by Wendy from A Day in the Life on the Farm

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Cheddar Mielie Bread with Sun-Dried Tomatoes #BreadBakers

Celebrate the bounty of summer with sweet corn and sun-dried tomatoes in a cheddar loaf with a hit of spicy chilies. This rich bread is fabulous toasted until crunchy, bringing out its extra cheesiness. 

You’ve heard me wax lyrical about summer cherries when we were living in France and how they are my favorite treat when in the States each summer, but I’ve been holding out on you about my love affair with sweet corn, the cobs of early summer, their tender pale yellow kernels bursting with milk and sugar, cooked ever so briefly and delicious just as is. They don't even need butter or salt. I could eat my not inconsiderable weight in those as well.

As I searched online for inspiration for this month’s BreadBakers challenge to use summer’s bounty in bread, I was looking for something that would celebrate my love of sweet corn. But I didn’t want cornbread. I wanted corn bread, that is to say, bread with corn, if you know what I mean. It was quite a challenge to make The Google separate the two.

Corn. Maize. Maíz. Jagung. Maïs. Milho. These I knew from living in various countries but mielie, pronounced mealy, was new to me. (Even better: Suikermielies which means sweet corn, or literally, sugar corn.). I kept coming across recipes for mielie bread or mealy bread, both of which intrigued me. The first because I was unfamiliar with the Afrikaans word for corn and the second because my immediate thought was, Who the heck wants to bake mealy bread? It didn’t sound like a nice thing. Mealy is not a desirable quality. It also put me in mind of mealy bugs. Shudder. Turns out that mielie bread and mealy bread are one and the same and there is no actual mealiness or bugs involved. Some have cornmeal as well as corn, others are quick bread with corn kernels. Exactly what I was looking for!

My lovely cheesy loaf was adapted from this recipe on Simply Delicious Food.

Ingredients
2 1/2 cups or 315g flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
3 large eggs
1/3 cup or 75g butter, melted and cooled
1 cup or 240ml buttermilk
 1 large fresh corn on the cob
1 small can (8 .5 oz or 241g) cream style sweet corn
8 oz or 227g cheddar cheese, grated
1 oz or 30g sun-dried tomatoes (store bought or make your own!) http://www.foodlustpeoplelove.com/2014/05/sun-dried-tomatoes-how-to.html
2 hot red chili peppers

Method
Boil your corn on the cob for about 3-5 minutes in lightly salted water. Drain and rinse with cool water. Leave until cool enough to handle and then slice the golden kernels off the cob with a sharp knife.

I cut the cob in two to make it easier to hold.

Meanwhile, pour some boiling water over your sun-dried tomatoes and leave them to rehydrate.

Once plumped, drain the water and squeeze any excess out. If you are using tomatoes packed in oil, dry them off thoroughly between some paper towels.

Chop the tomatoes roughly with a sharp knife and mince your red chilies.

Divide your grated cheddar into two relatively even piles and add a small handful of the chopped tomatoes to one of them. Mix thoroughly.

Preheat the oven to 350°F or 180°C and grease a standard size loaf pan.

Meanwhile, sift all of your dry ingredients into a large mixing bowl and then add the fresh corn kernels and the tomato-less pile of cheddar to the bowl and mix well to make sure all the kernels are coated with flour. This will help ensure they stay suspended in the bread batter, rather than sinking to the bottom.

In another mixing bowl, beat together the eggs, butter, buttermilk and creamed corn. Add in the minced chilies and the chopped sun-dried tomatoes. Whisk again.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and fold until just combined.

Pour the thick batter into your greased loaf pan.

Cover the top of the batter with the cheddar/sun-dried tomato mixture and place the pan in your preheated oven.

Bake for 55-65 minutes or until the loaf is golden brown and a skewer inserted comes out clean. If the loaf is browning too fast, cover the top with aluminum foil.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool down for 10 minutes before removing the loaf from the bread pan.

Cool completely on a wire rack before slicing to serve.

Enjoy!

Have you ever baked bread with corn that wasn’t cornbread? What’s your favorite summer fruit or vegetable? Here to encourage you to bake some bread with the bounty of summer is our talented host Pavani of Cook's Hideout and the rest of my Bread Bakers group.

• Almond and Carrot Biscuits from Basic N Delicious
• Cheddar Mielie Bread with Sun-Dried Tomatoes from Food Lust People Love
• Cherry Bread Pudding from Bakers and Best
• Eggless Rosemary Garlic Dinner Rolls from Spill the Spices
• Garden Herb Focaccia from My Catholic Kitchen
• Herb and Cheese Biscuits from Gayathri's Cook Spot
• Herb and Cheese Grissini from A Shaggy Dough Story
• Herbed Butterflaps from Sneha's Recipe
• Herbs, Spinach and Cheese Bourekas from Cooking Club
• Jalapeño Summer Squash Quick Bread from Magnolia Days
• Mango Kolache from Mayuri's Jikoni
• Peach & Blueberry Meringue Pull Apart Bread from Passion Kneaded
• Peach Pull-Apart Bread from Recipes, Food and Cooking
• Peaches and Cream Bread from Cindy's Recipes and Writings
• Pizza Cipolla - Onion Pizza from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Rosemary and Garlic Fougasse from Spice Roots
• Rosemary Breadsticks from A Baker's House
• Spinach Semolina Bread from The Schizo Chef
• Studded Zucchini Yeast Bread from What Smells So Good?
• Sundried Tomato Focaccia with Sauteed Summer Veggies & Garden Salad from Sizzling Tastebuds
• Tomato, Onion, Parmesan Focaccia from Noshing With The Nolands
• Walnut Oat Crumble Courgette Bread from Baking in Pyjamas
• Wholewheat Onion, Spinach & Red Pepper Bread from Hostess At Heart
• Wholewheat Zucchini Bread from Cook's Hideout
• Zucchini Oatmeal Bread from Cali's Cuisine
• Zucchini/Jalapeño/Cheese Corn Muffins from A Day in the Life on the Farm

#BreadBakers is a group of bread loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bread with a common ingredient or theme.

Follow our Pinterest board right here. Links are also updated each month on this home page. We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient.

If you are a food blogger and would like to join us, just send me an email with your blog URL to foodlustpeoplelove@gmail.com.

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