HAMPTON ROADS, Va. — Chef Patrick Evans-Hylton joins Coast Live to share a delicious "Peach Smash" cocktail recipe, paired with a delightfully decadent peach cobbler, for National Peach Month in August!
Here's what Chef Patrick has to say about these offerings, courtesy of his Virginia Eats and Drinks blog:
CHEERS TO NATIONAL PEACH MONTH WITH OUR PEACH-MINT BOURBON SMASH
Juicy, ripe peaches are in season now, just in time for National Peach Month in August. We make use of the summertime fruit in our Peach-Mint Bourbon Smash.
A smash is a type of julep, the premise of this nineteenth-century cocktail is to take fresh ingredients such as fruit and herbs, smash them and serve them in a glass with sugar or simple syrup and a spirit of choice, often bourbon or rye, then packed with crushed or shaved ice.
In his 1862 “How to Mix Drinks”, Jerry Thomas gave a recipe for a whiskey smash that included lemon, spearmint, simple syrup, bourbon and plenty of ice. Ours include muddled fresh peaches and mint, ice, and bourbon. We love the bourbon offering from Norfolk’s Reverend Spirits. Here’s how we make it:
- In a cocktail shaker, add 1/2 fresh peach, diced, 3-4 fresh mint leaves, and a generous plash of brown sugar simple syrup; our recipe is below. With a muddler or back of a wooden spoon, mash the peaches gently. Add 2 ounces bourbon (we like Norfolk’s Reverent Spirits), fill with ice, and shake thoroughly until chilled.
- Strain into a rocks glass filled with ice and garnish with a fresh peach slice and fresh mint sprig.
- A note on Brown Sugar Simple Syrup: in a medium saucepan add 1 cup brown sugar and 1 cup water and heat over medium heat, stirring constantly, until sugar melts. Do not allow liquid to come to a boil. Remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature. Refrigerate in a glass jar until use; simple syrup keeps for weeks.
For more information on Reverend Spirits, visit DrinkReverend.com.
BON APPETIT TO SUMMER! CELEBRATE WITH PEACH COBBLER WITH CREME FRAICHE
Have a bumper crop of peaches from your farmers market finds? A classic way to enjoy the bounty of summer is with an old fashioned peach cobbler.
Cobblers began simply in the American colonies with stewed fruit cooked with biscuits or a similar batter on top. They are different from crisps and crumbles, because those desserts usually have a more textured top crust, often with rolled oats.
Just about any fruit can be used in a cobbler such as peach. Enjoy them cold or warm, plain or with ice cream or a sauce.
Our peach cobbler follows a recipe from our friend, master baker Stella Pomianek of Norfolk’s Cafe Stella. We serve it at room temperature with a large dollop of creme fauxche, a simple take on creme fraiche. Here’s how Stella makes it:
- Preheat the oven to 350 F.
- Add 4 cups peeled, cored, and sliced peaches, 1/2 cup granulated sugar, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, and 1 tablespoon cornstarch to a saucepan and stir to combine.
- Cook on medium heat a few minutes, until sugar is dissolved and the mixture is bubbling. Remove from heat and set aside.
- Add 6 tablespoons melted butter to a 9 x 13 baking dish.
- In a large bowl whisk together 1 cup all-purpose flour, 1/2 cup granulated sugar, 2 teaspoons baking powder, and 1/4 teaspoon salt to combine. Stir in 1 cup milk till just combined.
- Pour in pan, over the melted butter and smooth to an even layer.
- Spoon the cooked peaches and juice over the batter. Sprinkle cinnamon and nutmeg over the top.
- Bake for about 40 minutes until the topping is puffed and golden.
- Our creme fraiche is quick and easy to make, and a wonderful tangy foil to the sweetness of the cobbler, and other desserts.
- Creme fraiche is also wonderful aside caviar or lox, stirred into sauces or soups for enrichment and thickening, along side a fruit curd or marmalade with breakfast breads like scones, as a dressing in potato salad, and more. Here’s how I make it:
- In a medium bowl, whisk 2 parts unsweetened Greek yogurt and 1 part half-and-half until combined.
For more information on Cafe Stella, visit CafeStellaRoasters.com.
EAT, DRINK + DO: RAISE A GLASS TO THE DOWNTOWN NORFOLK CRUSH COMPETITION
After a three-year hiatus, the Downtown Norfolk Crush Competition returns, produced by Downtown Norfolk Council. The event takes place on August 11 from 4 until 8:30 p.m.
The challenge involves 12 participating restaurants who will create and compete with their version of the crush cocktail. The winner takes away the title King of the Crush as well as $500 cash. Previous winners include Brick Anchor Brew House and Grace O’Malley’s Irish Pub & Restaurant.
“It’s a fun way to explore Downtown with your friends and see just how creative Downtown bartenders can be when you throw in a little friendly competition,” says Sam Black, director of marketing and communications for Downtown Norfolk Council.
Folks can vote for their favorite cocktail by visiting a participating restaurant and sampling the crushes on the poll link on the Facebook event page. Voting ends at 9:30 p.m. the evening of the event.
Each participating restaurant has a limited number of special Crush Competition cups and will offer $2 samples until they sell out. If you love it, you can purchase a full size cocktail. Score cards will be available to keep notes of your favorites.
A list of participating restaurants, link to the voting page, and more information is on the Events Calendar under the Things to Do tab at DowntownNorfolk.org.
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