Author Archives: msshoescocktails

Dark ‘n’ Stormy

Posted on November 9, 2009 | 1 comment

It was a dark and stormy night….Ms. S&C was busy preparing sweet potato skins (with bacon, marshmallows and molasses) for a friend’s annual Halloween bash. She kept watching the clock. The dish was looking good, but there was still a lot to do. And, what about a cocktail? There was no time! No time for simple syrups. No time for punches. She couldn’t show up empty-handed. She’s Ms. S&C! She didn’t want to disappoint. She spotted an almost-full bottle of Gosling’s Black Seal Rum in her cabinet (leftover from last year’s holiday party eggnog). She wondered if she could use it for something. What about the Dark ‘n’ Stormy? Yes, it is a Bermudan cocktail, but it has a spooky name…

Surprisingly, Ms. S&C has never tried a Dark ‘n’ Stormy before (rum is usually not her first choice of spirit). But, she’s heard good things. Read good things. And, she’s seen it on plenty a cocktail menu.

The zesty combination of the sweet rum and spicy ginger brew (only use the good stuff), and the easy breezy preparation — the Dark ‘n’ Stormy will undoubtedly have a regular spot in Ms. S&C’s cocktail rotation. Not to mention, it is great drink for any time of the year — a Bermuda bash or a Halloweeen fest — the ingredients are always available. And they’re always tasty.

Dark ‘n’ Stormy
serves two

Ingredients:

4 oz. Gosling’s Black Seal Rum
Bottle of Ginger Beer (Ms. S&C prefers Reed’s Extra Ginger Brew)
Lime wedge

Directions:

Fill a collins glass with ice. Add 2 oz. rum. Top with half of a bottle of ginger beer. Garnish with lime wedge. Repeat.

posted by Ms. S&C

1 Comment

Posted in dark rum, fall/winter cocktails, spring/summer cocktails

Tagged dark n stormy

Vegging out

Posted on November 4, 2009 | 2 comments

Last week’s Top Chef episode was all about vegging out, in one way or another.

For the Quickfire Challenge, the cheftestants created a TV dinner, inspired by an iconic television show. Kevin won the challenge with his Soprano’s meatballs with polenta.

For the Elimination Challenge, the chefs created vegetarian dishes for guest judge Natalie Portman. Kevin, Michael Voltaggio and Eli were the faves. (Mike Isabella was not.) Kevin won again. And, Micheal Voltaggio came off looking like an ungracious jerk. Even Tom Colicchio thought so. Read his blog for great behind-the-scenes insights.

Kevin’s Vegetarian Dish: Duo of Mushrooms, Smoked Kale,
Candied Garlic and Turnip Purée

Kevin’s vegetarian dish reminded me a lot of Moosewood Cookbook‘s Warm Salad, which I make at least once or twice every winter — and, I drink fairhillsred red wine with it every time. True, I drink red wine with most dinners, but I particularly love it with hearty kale and mushrooms. Since eco-friendly Natalie Portman was guest judge for this episode, and since October was Fair Trade Month, I’m going with the Fairhills Bus Stop Red for the drink pairing. I picked up a bottle at Whole Foods for less than $10. It was also highlighted on the Whole Foods blog, telling us that the wine is a product of one of the world’s largest Fair Trade projects, a joint venture between exporter, Origin Wine, Mendoza Vineyards in Argentina and Du Toitskloof Winery in South Africa.

The Fairhills Bus Stop Red is a dryish, medium bodied wine, with aromas of berry fruit and chocolate and hints of plum. Meatballs or kale, it should go great with either of Kevin’s dishes.

And, what makes the wine taste even better? Proceeds are dedicated to purchasing a school bus for the children of the over 800 farm employees and communities of San Martin, Lavalle and Medrano in Mendoza, Argentina.

posted by Ms. S&C

2 Comments

Posted in wine

Tagged environmentally-friendly, for a good cause, red wine, top chef drink pairing

Sense of place

Posted on October 29, 2009 | Leave a comment

Milla Jovovich was the bright spot in last week’s Project Runway. She was insightful and smart, thoughtful and funny. She had a great rapport with Michael Kors. She even shed a tear over Nicolas. I want more Milla.

“Nothing says Greece like gray menswear fabric.”
-Milla Jovovich and Michael Kors sarcastically
commenting on Nicolas’ design

Otherwise, it was a rather dull episode. The designers were challenged to create a look inspired by a famous locale. Only seven designers remain. Christopher took on Santa Fe. Irina used Aspen for inspiration. Nicolas chose Greece. Gordana designed for Park Avenue New York. Carol Hannah picked Palm Beach. Logan turned Hollywood into young Hollywood, and Althea was enthusiastic over her St. Tropez pick.

“If this was project-I-didn’t-mind-it, he would win.”
– Milla Jovovich on Logan’s very average design

Irina’s Aspen inspired luxe snow bunny look

frye-studded-boots Irina’s Aspen design won. Yes, there was a little too much camel color, but it was definitely the most complete look. The ski-inspired pants, the open-back cowl neck sweater, the faux fur vest — all very sophisticated. Too bad her personality isn’t as warm as these clothes. But, no doubt she’ll be a finalist at Bryant Park.

For the shoe pairing, I love the Frye ‘Deborah’ Studded Ankle Boot. The distressed leather, embellished with sparkly beads and studs — the boots are Western yet urban. Considering Irina’s snow bunny would likely be drinking champagne at the lodge instead of on the slopes, it is reasonable to chose style over function in this circumstance.

posted Ms. S&C

Anything but revolting

Posted on October 26, 2009 | 1 comment

The Restaurant Wars episode is easily the most anticipated challenge of Top Chef. The judges said that this season was the best they’ve seen in TC history. I don’t think the caliber of the cheftestants has ever been higher. And, having said that, I was so glad they didn’t have to bother with the whole decor planning part this go round.

Here’s a much too lengthy recap (but it was such a good ep):

The Quickfire Challenge was a tag-team relay/cook-off (which may become the most anticipated Quickfire Challenge). It was super fun. The chefs were separated in teams of two, blindfolded, and had to cook one dish total — with each of them cooking for 10 minutes, one right after the other, not allowed to talk, and obviously not able to see what the chef ahead of them was doing. Yes, this is confusingly written, I know — let’s just say, it was much better watched.
The Blue Team (with Jennifer, Kevin, Mike Isabella and Laurine) won with Sablefish, Sauteed Mushrooms, Shitake Broth and Radish Salad. I thought the Read Team (with the Voltaggio Brothers, Eli and Robin) made a tactical error in having the two weakest chefs (Eli and Robin) start off. As opposed to the Blue Team, where perfect-planner-Jennifer started and perfect-closer-Kevin finished.
The Blue Team’s tactical mistakes came when their overconfidence let their $10,000 prize ride, and they chose not to make a dessert for the Restaurant Wars (RW) Elimination Challenge.
For the RW, the cheftestants took over guest judge, Chef Rick Moonen‘s restaurant, rm Seafood. The Blue Team became “Mission,” (think clean, San Francisco-style), and took over the white tablecloth section of rm. The Read Team became “REVolt,” (think rebellious and play on initials, rather than revolting and disgusting), and took over the more rustic-looking section.
REVolt won convincingly, and Michael Voltaggio won $10,000, for his Pressed Chicken with Calamari Noodles, Tomato Confit and Fennel Salad. He shared his earnings with his teammates.
I was shaking in my boots, thinking Jennifer would be sent home for her fish dishes. Instead, Laurine was given the boot, for her poor front-of-the-house performance, and not stepping in when Kevin didn’t properly cook her lamb.

TC_pear-des

Robin’s Pear Pithivier with Vanilla Ice Cream and Elderflower Syrup

For the drink pairing, it was hard not to use Robin’s pear pithivier dessert for inspiration, particularly because of the elderberry syrup. I found the Gigi, a pear elderberry cocktail over on Chow.com, which sounds just about perfect (and slightly reminiscent of the S&C celebratory Elderberry Spritz). According to Chow, Jackie Patterson, former mixologist at Le Colonial in San Francisco, created this stiff cocktail, combining three French spirits. When I try at home, I will likely cut back on the liquor portions, and possibly substitute the pear vodka for pear simple syrup. Or, just find a way to add more pear.

Gigi Cocktail
Courtesy of Jackie Patterson, from Chow.com

2 parts Lillet Blanc
1 1/2 parts St-Germain elderflower liqueur
1 part Grey Goose La Poire vodka (or other pear-flavored vodka, if available)
Ice
1 part brut rosé champagne
1 pear slice, for garnish

Combine Lillet, St-Germain, and Grey Goose in a cocktail shaker and top with ice. Shake vigorously and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Float champagne on top of Lillet mixture. Garnish with pear slice and serve.

posted by Ms. S&C

1 Comment

Posted in cocktails, lillet, spirits, st germain, vodka

Tagged gigi, pear, top chef drink pairing

There’s style here

Posted on October 23, 2009 | 2 comments

A year ago, we welcomed Fashion Washington, DC’s new luxury fashion magazine from the Washington Post.

Earlier this week, Ms. S&C attended FW’s one year anniversary party at Masa 14, the new hot spot in Logan Circle. She was thrilled and totally flattered by the invitation. She was slightly underwhelmed by the cocktails (Strawberry Lemonade was waaayyy too sweet), but the people-watching opportunity was first-rate.

In addition to being in the company of DC’s most fashionable crowd, Ms. S&C met the famous fashion photographer blogger (and now author), The Sartorialist. One of Ms. S&C’s greatest dreams in life is to be considered worthy of one of his photographs. His people-on-the-streets photos are a constant inspiration. They are really, really amazing.

book-signing

The Sartorialist signs a copy of his book for Ms. S&C
at FW’s one year anniversary party

You can check out a recap of the anniversary event on FW’s blog, Fashion District. And, the Style Setter column in the FW magazine, has a great article on Scott Schuman (aka The Sartorialist).

So, how did DC do, style-wise? On The Sartorialist blog, Mr. Schuman said, “I expected great things in cities like London and Paris, but DC was a total surprise. What a great-looking and diverse crowd.”

posted by Ms. S&C

2 Comments

Posted in Uncategorized

Tagged DC style

Pigging out

Posted on October 21, 2009 | Leave a comment

The Pigs & Pinot episode of Top Chef made things easy for Ms. S&C’s recap and drink pairing. During this show, the cheftestants drew knives to select a part of a pig to use for a dish, then paired it with a pinot noir — all for a Charlie Palmer (who also was guest judge) and Food & Wine charity event.I was pleased as punch that my favorite four chefs created the four best dishes. You know who they are by now: Jennifer, Bryan Voltaggio, Michael Voltaggio and Kevin. If these are not the last four chefs standing when this season comes to an end, then there’s something wrong in the world. (Ash was the chef sent home, but how cat-food-pork-rillette Laurine survived, I don’t know.)

Kevin, (who loves pork so much that he has a pig tattoo), won the challenge with his pork leg pate. The wine he chose to pair with the dish was the 2006 Sokol Blosser Dundee Hills Pinot Noir, from the Willamette Valley, in Oregon.

Kevin Gillespie’s Pork Leg Pate with Mushroom Salad
and Pickled Cherries

I’ve personally always loved pinot noir (even before watching the movie Sideways). It is often my go-to red wine, mostly because I think you can abandon the age-old tradition of pairing red wine with red meat, and drink it with fish and poultry dishes. When researching the Sokol Blosser Dundee Hills Pinot Noir, I was happy to discover that the wine was $36.99. While that is still quite a bit more than I typically pay for a bottle that I’m drinking at home (usually I go for something in the $12, or less, range), it is an acceptable price point for a special occasion dinner at home. Wine.com highlights the wine’s black cherry, raspberry, truffles and cola/mocha components. Considering Kevin’s pork dish includes cherries and mushrooms, it appears he made a smart and tasty decision. But, that’s the kind-of chef he is.

posted by Ms. S&C

Wedding dress redux

Posted on October 15, 2009 | 5 comments

Last week’s Project Runway took an interesting spin on the wedding dress. Instead of creating a dress for a new bride, designers were challenged to transform an old wedding dress into a new fashionable post-divorce look.

Many of the designers spoke about this challenge being a “fresh start” for the divorcees — out with the old and in with the new, so to speak. Those moments were thoughtful and considerate. But, what I really enjoyed was Michael Kors. Miss Mojito recapped an episode last week, and she thanked the fashion gods for bringing him back on the show. I, too, want to thank the fashion gods. He is responsible for such fierce and fabulous quotes — but, the whole episode was chock-full of them. Here are some of my faves:

“Looks like tinfoil…a metallic garbage bag.” – Michael Kors on Christopher’s ultra shiny and baggy dress
“So, you specifically did not ask for Octoberfest?”– Heidi Klum on Epperson’s beer maid/pirate’s wench design
“Where are the beer signs?” – Michael Kors on Logan’s look, after Heidi said she was having another Octoberfest moment
“You don’t want her to look like a cougar.” – Tim Gunn on Christopher’s dress

Irina was still on the top of her game. She was a close second with her “age appropriate, sleek and expensive-looking” dress. It was quite lovely and sophisticated, and something I could see Helen Mirren wearing. But, it was Gordana, a divorcee herself, who won. And, it was Epperson who was sent home.

Gordana transformed an old wedding dress into
an edgy and chic design

What shoes to wear with Gordana’s edgy and chic design? I thought the dress was pretty awesome, probably the best item she’s made all season. It was hip, wearable, flattering, and a great color. We need something equally edgy and chic for the shoe pairing. I know I pair booties with a lot of PR designs, but I just bought a pair myself, and I have to admit, I’m a fan. Those of you who are skeptical, trust me, they look much better on. So, I’m going with these Dior Cannage Bow Ankle Booties. They have edgy cross-stitching, but also a delicate bow above the peep-toe.

posted by Ms. S&C

5 Comments

Posted in shoes

Tagged booties, dior, project runway shoe pairing

Top Chef keywords

Posted on October 13, 2009 | Leave a comment

During last week’s Top Chef episode, the cheftestants played a slot machine to choose three keywords, which they used as inspiration for a dish. The keywords were words like –> Stressed, Hot N’ Spicy, Asian. Those happen to be the ones Kevin selected for his winning Quickfire dish. Here’s another keyword for you –> Unbearable. And, that happens to be Mike Isabella.

After the slot-machine-keyword challenge, the chefs partnered up for a family-style-dinner-party challenge. Their dinner party guests were members of Macy’s Culinary Council: Tyler Florence (also guest judge), Tom Douglas, Nancy Silverton, Govind Armstrong, and Takashi Yagihashi. –> Strategic Marketing

Here’s how it went down:

Mike Isabella was partnered with Robin. –> Sweet retribution
Micheal Voltaggio was almost sent home because he overcooked halibut. –> Whew
Ash compared Michael V to Picasso, and said he’d be willing to wash his brushes. –> Embarassing and Uncomfortable
Ashley undercooked precious prawns and had a role in oversalted gnocchi. –> Eliminated
Jennifer and Kevin served the best dish of the night: Korean style barbeque, and Jennifer was crowned the overall winner. –> Dream Team

Jennifer and Kevin’s BBQ Kobe Beef with Cardamom, Tomato
and Ginger Broth

When I’m dining on Asian food, I usually drink a lager style beer or hitachino-ale white wine. I’m afraid to experiment, as I don’t want anything to conflict with the flavors in my often-spicy food. When considering the drink pairing for Jennifer and Kevin’s dish, I checked out Takashi Yagihashi’s drink menu at his Chicago restaurant, and ran across the Hitachino Nest White Ale. Hitachino, from a Japanese brewery (Shuzou), is a white ale, similar to many Belgian whites, with hints of coriander, nutmeg, and orange peel. Jennifer and Kevin’s dish includes flavors and ingredients such as: orange zest, ginger, fennel, and I think the Hitachino would compliment nicely. Not to mention –> Refreshing.

Ms. S&C wants to know: What keywords would you use to describe the Top Chef contestants and their dishes?

posted by Ms. S&C

In full disclosure

Posted on October 8, 2009 | 3 comments

In case there are S&C readers out there, who are on the up-and-up in regards to social media, blogging, advertising, and the like, Shoes & Cocktails would like you to know that we are not paid to blog. The FTC recently released new guidelines related to bloggers and advertisers, so we wanted to let you know that no products, brands or stores mentioned in our content are advertisements or paid promotions. We are (unfortunately) not paid to drink cocktails. We are (sadly) not paid to buy shoes online. And, therefore, we are certainly not paid to write glowing reviews of crappy drinks and ugly shoes. Nor, will we ever (write things that are misleading).

In full disclosure, we have, however, received free booze. In further disclosure, we’ve received a lot more booze than we’ve ever written about (much of the stuff they send us isn’t that good, and we’ve got standards, people). There have been two occasions in which we highlighted a specific brand of liquor that we received for free. One of those instances we disclosed (more or less); one we did not (but, in that instance, the booze was vodka, so it hardly counts).

There may be one glorious day when our shoes and cocktails budgets will be financed by advertisers, but we can promise you that we’ll never be at their mercy. If we are, we’ll tell you. Until then, please know that Ms. S&C and Miss Mojito do what we do because we love shoes, we love cocktails, and we think blogging is fun. Thanks for reading!

posted by Ms. S&C and Miss Mojito

3 Comments

Posted in Uncategorized

Dressing boldly (an update)

Posted on October 2, 2009 | 4 comments

About a month ago, Ms. S&C declared that the goal of her fall wardrobe was to dress boldly. In her original blog post, she highlighted a few trends that were catching her eye. Did she follow-through on her own advice? Yes, sort-of.

Below are some of her recent purchases. Obviously, there’s not a lot of bold color and flashy prints in this selection – with the exception of the bright cobalt clutch. She likes this sweet, satin bow clutch because it can brighten up a lot of outfits. She’ll take it out when she’s in distressed denim (or her new black denim), and when wearing the all-occasion black dress.

Biker chic accessories are a popular fall trend. Ms. S&C picked up this studded belt, which she’ll wear high-waisted over her numerous black and gray cardigans, to make them much more exciting.

clutch_belt

As for shoes – Ms. S&C recently tossed a pair of black, peep-toe pumps from Nine West. She’d had them for at least five years, probably longer, and they showed their years. Replacing them was a necessity. She spotted these Nine West platforms when researching suede shoes for a reader, and she loves them. Her first day wearing them — a lady stopped her in Starbucks to comment.

Ms. S&C has been toying with buying a pair of booties for awhile now. She didn’t want anything too flashy, as she plans to wear them with shorter-length skirts/dresses and colorful tights. And, she didn’t want to spend a lot of money. She thinks she satisfied both requirements with these Report Dylan ankle boots.

While Ms. S&C likes trends, she prefers classic items with a long shelf-life. Not purposely, this mentality has transferred over to cocktail preferences of late. The drink in her hand on Friday’s, after work? It was a Tom Collins over the summer. For the early fall, it’s been the classic martini — or more specifically, the original-pre-Prohibition martini, which is currently called the Fifty-Fifty Martini. Confused? It’s the martini with equal parts gin and equal parts vermouth. Why the extra vermouth? Read Jason Wilson’s, WaPo columnist, article “Stirrings of a Better Martini,” or this article from NYT’ Shaken and Stirred column. Vermouth is good in cocktails,people. Use it.

Since there are so many variations of the martini, I find it’s easiest just to tell the bartender what I want in it, and how I want it prepared. For example, tonight, I’ll simply say, “Martini with equal parts gin and vermouth, up, with a twist. And, a dash of orange bitters, if you got ’em.” Please.

posted by Ms. S&C

4 Comments

Posted in cocktails, gin, shoes

Tagged booties, fall 2009, martini, nine west, platforms