Cocktails and Amuse-Bouches by Daniel Boulud

Don't you just love it when you get a gift that is perfect for you!  This holiday good friends of ours - people who apparently know us very well - got us this amazing recepie book by Daniel Boulud and mixologist, Xavier Herit.  It's a two volume collection of modern twists on classic cocktails and hors d'oeuveres- one volume designed for him and one for her.  How absoluely perfect.

This past Friday we made two amazing cocktails from the "for him" volume - the Bourbon T Sour and the Mayfair Sour. 

The Bourbon T Sour calls for Earl Grey tea infused bourbon (which also makes a great Manhattan), lemon juice, simple syrup, Angostura bitters and a an extremely fancy garnish of brandied cherries and lemon peel.



The Mayfair Sour required a new addition to my bar - Benedictine. Given how great the Mayfair Sour tasted, I can see eventually draining that bottle.

The Mayfair Sour calls for the combination of gin (I prefer Plymouth), Benedictine, apricot liqueur, lemon juice and one egg white in an empty shaker,. After a shake or two, add ice, a few drops of peach bitters and shake again.