The Pink Peppercorn Paloma

Posted on May 5, 2014 by thekeyofkels

This has been a very weird week for me.

I am not a cocktail maker. I am not even much of a cocktail drinker, unless I am out at a bar that obviously doesn’t have an interesting wine list. And even then, I hardly ever order those funky specialty cocktails. Well, unless it is a bar known for their specialty cocktails…

You get the point. I don’t usually drink cocktails. I’m a wine drinker.

But with the crazy heat wave that overcame Los Angeles this weekend, I wanted something cold and fruity and refreshing. So cocktails it was! If you follow me on Instagram, you saw that I was hanging out with my friends who also like cocktails, and there wasn’t a vodka soda in sight. No, no, no. We did the heatwave cocktails up right.

So today, in honor of Cinco de Mayo, I thought I’d share a classic Mexican cocktail (other than the margarita!) with you. Something that doesn’t require a whole lot of limes, since they are so darn expensive right now. Something that helped me use up the rest of my leftover grapefruit juice.

A Pink Peppercorn Paloma!

The “Paloma” – meaning dove in Spanish – I can only assume got it’s name from being a majestic flash of relief from the heat. The Paloma is actually the national drink of Mexico, not the Margarita, so whip up a few of these tonight and impress your friends! Continue reading →

Grapefruit Mint Julep

Posted on May 2, 2014 by thekeyofkels

It is summer in Santa Monica.

I don’t know how it happened, but we kind of skipped spring and went straight for the dog days. And I’ve quickly realized that I’ve become so accustomed to the 70 degree and sunny norm that I have almost nothing to wear on days when its 95.

Not that I want to wear anything at all. I’d be happy sitting in my underwear on our stoop with a iced down cocktail in my hand.

Which brings me to today’s cocktail recipe…

Tomorrow is the 140th Anniversary of the Kentucky Derby. This means very little to me, except I know there are horses, hats and bourbon cocktails involved. I grew up outside of Baltimore, where one of the other three horse races of the Triple Crown is held – Preakness – and one summer I went. We didn’t wear hats, I think we were drinking Natty Lite (?!), and I can’t even tell you if I actually saw a horse.

Obviously we were doing it very, very wrong.

I still have never gotten into the “greatest two minutes in sports”, but I very much enjoy big hats and I also really enjoy fancy bourbon cocktails. So to cool me down for the weekend, mint juleps it is, Kentucky!

I muddled the mint with the sugar. I cursed myself for not having crushed ice. I used the last of the true Kentucky Bourbon from my bar.

Continue reading →

Candied Grapefruit Peel

Posted on May 1, 2014 by thekeyofkels

Last week at the market, I wore my grapefruit shirt. Therefore, I bought grapefruits. Of course.

Not only was it a no-brainer to buy the fruit that I was advertising on my shirt, but I had been craving candied grapefruit peels ever since I had a greyhound a few weeks ago adorned with a little slice of the sugared candy. The actual greyhound was kind of mediocre, but that candy! The bartender ended up giving me a few extra pieces because I was raving so wildly about how much I loved it.

So this week I broke out the peeler and got to candying.

For some reason, I thought the naked grapefruits were really entertaining. It’s kind of weird how many pictures I took of them. And posted to Twitter about them…Anyway, enough with the grapefruit porn.

I found a couple of different recipes and took the best of the feedback from both of them to come up with my method. I wanted them to be sugary sweet, but to still have the bitterness that I love. Continue reading →

Homemade Butter With Your Kitchenaid Mixer

Posted on April 28, 2014 by thekeyofkels

Last week I stopped by the raw milk stand at the Santa Monica Farmer’s market, which is right next to our dear friend who sells pork and flowers.

(i have such a normal life)

I wanted to buy a gallon of raw milk so I could make myself another batch of delicious homemade mozzarella. But when I stopped by, my raw milk lady had a mason jar out with her, and was showing the guy in front of me a funny yellow blob that was inside.

She had made her own butter!

So, naturally, I asked her all about it. It was something I’m sure I had done in kindergarden or girl scouts when I was young. And I had been wanting to experiment with shortbread cookies ever since making those shortbread caramels, so homemade butter could take my next baking project over the top!

I bought a container of cream with my mozzarella milk and went on my way.

A little nervous about the arm workout I was in for with all the mason-jar shaking in my future, I told Brad about my plan. Of course he had a genius idea.

Skip the mason jar. Use the KitchenAid.

Only halfway feeling like I was cheating (i was making homemade butter! that’s already the opposite of cheating!), I started up my stand mixer and let it go. Brad only gave me one bit of advice: Continue reading →

The Rest of My Life

Posted on April 25, 2014 by thekeyofkels

There is this quote that I used to love.

I used to apply it to relationships. It was originally said in “When Harry Met Sally” about his newly realized love for his best friend.

But this week, I’ve started thinking that it is about finding any little piece of yourself that you have been searching for.

I recently realized that I was already doing what I was supposed to be doing in life. I took ownership of the fact that I am not a teacher or a lawyer or an accountant or whatever. I started telling people that I am a blogger, a baker and a candy maker. I started sharing my dream of one day having a restaurant with my husband. I started an editorial calendar and taking more photos with my actual camera instead of an iPhone.

I decided I was going to be successful and make a career doing the things I love. Continue reading →