Recipes

Original Recipe No. 85 —

Carmen Miranda

With this drink I wanted to create a cocktail that was summer appropriate and had a velvety mouth feel. The freshly juiced cantaloupe combined with the egg white gives this cocktail a wonderfully rich and creamy experience. People always ask, “what does egg white do in a drink”. I tell them it’ll make the cocktail creamy and delicious and not to be scared. 50% of the time they pass and it’s a shame. Raw eggs are in a lot things you eat like desserts and salad dressings. Not to mention the alcohol will kill any bacteria you’re concerned about.

This cocktail also includes rum and home made orgeat (you can buy orgeat at the store as a short cut of course). This combination works well in a lot of tiki drinks, so it’s no surprise that it’s a perfect match here too. You can play around with your choice of rum as well. If you need a more dessert friendly version try a spiced rum. You can even go lighter with a white rum. I chose a middle ground with Mt. Gay, although most gold or amber rums (or even rhum agricole) should workout just fine.

I also like to combine a little spearmint with the pineapple mint when shaking just to kick up the mint flavors. Pineapple mint is on the milder side, but is a beautiful garnish.

the Carmen Miranda

  • 2 oz Mt. Gay Rum
  • 1 oz freshly juiced cantaloupe
  • 1/2 oz house made orgeat
  • 1 egg white
  • 4 spearmint leaves
  • 4 pineapple mint leaves
  • 1 pineapple sprig garnish

Incorporate egg white first without ice. I use a handheld frother. Give your 8 mint leaves a good spank and shake with the rest of the ingredients with ice. Double strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with one pineapple mint sprig.

HOW TO MAKE ORGEAT SYRUP

Ingredients

  • 7 oz blanched sliced almonds (no skins)
  • 18 oz of water
  • 2 oz of vodka
  • 3 cups of sugar
  • teaspoon of rose water
  • 8 dashes of Post Prohibition Orange Bitters
  • 1/2 teaspoon of almond extract
  • 1/8 teaspoon or less of xanthan gum (very light dusting)

Directions

  1. In a bowl cover almonds with water and allow to soak for 20 minutes. Strain and discard water.
  2. Then add the 18 oz of water and the 2 oz of vodka, allowing to soak at least 3 hours or over night. I add vodka at this point to help extract the oil from the almonds. Plus the vodka will help preserve the syrup. If you are using the orgeat for something other then cocktails feel free to omit the vodka.
  3. With a food processor or hand blender, blend the almonds to release their oils.
  4. Strain almonds through cheesecloth and a sieve and collect the water in a separate bowl.
  5. Squeeze the almonds in the cheesecloth to get all the liquid out.
  6. Now take your almond water and sugar and bring to a low boil on the stove until the sugar is completely dissolved.
  7. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
  8. You will notice the almond oil and the water tend to separate, this is where the xanthan gum comes into play. With a whisk or hand blender incorporate the xanthan gum.
  9. Add the almond extract to taste. This will kick up the almond flavor and is not totally necessary, but I think it’s a nice touch. Also, add the rose water and orange bitters. You could use orange flower water here instead of a combination of the orange bitters and rose water. Be careful with orange flower water because it is very strong and if you put too much your syrup will taste like perfume.
  10. Bottle in sterile bottles.

3 Notes on Carmen Miranda

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