BVC Eats: Bloody Mary
There’s a breakfast joint on State Street in Madison, WI that is open 24 hours a day for four days of the week. The rest of the week, they rest. Visit it in summer, when you can breakfast outdoors. Their Bloody Marys have about $30 worth of charcuterie on skewers stuck into them, and they come in a Mason jar as big as your head. Walk back to your hotel.
This summer I had friends coming for a barbecue and the idea of fooling around with the charcuterie amused me, so I tried out my own bloodies. If you want to blow a hilarious twenty minutes, google “bloody mary garnishes.”
For each serving, mix together in a pitcher:
4 to 6 oz V-8 (regular, not spicy)
4 to 6 oz gin or vodka, kept in the freezer until it’s syrupy-cold
(I have also used tequila, in a pinch)
2 to 4 drops Chinese hot chili oil
2 T Worcestershire sauce
1/2 T white sugar
Salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
3 T lemon juice
1 T lime juice
1 T BufaloTM chipotle sauce OR 1 T wasabi horseradish
1/2 t smoked paprika
Stir all that together.
Wet the rims of four 14-oz tumblers and dip them in kosher salt mixed with pounded whole celery seed. Fill the tumblers with ice cubes.
Pour about 8 oz Bloody Mary mix into each tumbler.
Garnishes – These work best on skewers because it’s all about the fun of making your own skewers.
Lemon and lime half-wedges
Olive medley
Sport peppers a.k.a. pepperoncini
Celery stalks with leaves
Carrot sticks or curls
Whole cooked shrimp
Anchovies
Pickled egg halves
Salami curls
Sweet gherkins
Cherry tomatoes
Radish slices