Blogging Minxeats

I haven't written about a restaurant here in quite a while, and I hope to rectify that situation. I'm going to blame Instagram for making me lazy. It's too easy to post a photo with a short caption and call it a day. Creating reels, on the other hand, can be quite taxing. And at the end of the day, I get no more likes, comments, or followers from putting in more work. Instagram has fucked with their algorithms entirely too much for my taste, and I am finding the whole experience unpleasant. Maybe I should get back to blogging more regularly, huh?

Sadly, blogging seems to have become the jurisdiction of Stepford Wives. Most blogs have a similar appearance, and possibly an ampersand in the name. They all have far too many photos for my taste, the same essential shot taken from slightly different angles, as if the blogger couldn't make up his/her/their mind about which one to use, so hell, they'll use them all. IMHO, blogs were better when they were messy and unprofessional. And real. So you won't find me posting a professionally taken headshot in full hair and makeup, looking coyly over my shoulder or holding a tray of cookies. No string of photos depicting brownies stacked in piles of three, piles of two, and singly, plus a couple images of the baking pan with both cut and uncut treats. Oh, and another one with brownies on a plate with a glass of milk on the side, in soft focus. What you will find is probably a lot of gabbing, because I am a storyteller and I like to talk, but feel free to scroll down to the recipe if you can't deal with my writing. (Apparently the number one comment about food blogs is, "just give me the damn recipe." It's not a blog then, is it? It's a recipe. You want those, then buy a cookbook. I have written a couple, which you can find here. Oh, and there's a nice selfie on that page, in case you need to know what I look like.)

Sorry, if you've read this far and expected to find a brownie recipe. There is none on this post. If you've gotten this far and still expected a recipe, clearly you didn't read any of the words preceding this paragraph. Go back and read them. And then go back and read some old posts. New ones are forthcoming, I promise. Some will even have recipes. And I will get back into restaurant reviews. Maybe even a recap, who knows? 

* Any products in this post that are mentioned by name may have been provided to Minxeats by the manufacturer. However, all opinions belong to Minxeats. Amazon links earn me $! Please buy!

Posted on Minxeats.com.

Crabbie's Alcoholic Ginger Beer

For those of you who have never tried ginger beer, it's like an extra-pungent ginger ale. The ginger is usually pretty spicy and it makes a great cocktail mixer, as well as a drink on its own. I often wondered why, since it's called ginger "beer," that there's not an alcoholic version of the stuff.

And then I discovered Crabbie's.

Crabbie's was started in Edinburgh, Scotland, in the 19th century by grocer Miller Crabbie and his son, John, but it's only been available in the US fairly recently. We were offered some samples to try, and as fans of regular ginger beer, we couldn't pass them up. Crabbie's tastes like the perfect spicy ginger soda, nicely carbonated, sweet but not too, with a little kick (4.8% ABV). You can't taste the alcohol, but you'd certainly feel it after drinking a couple.

As you can see from the pic,
 I like Cruzan Black Strap,
which once upon a time was bottom
 shelf but with recent popularity
 has worked its way up closer to the top)

Ginger beer is perfect in a classic Dark & Stormy, but the drink is even better with Crabbie's.

Dark & Crabbie's
1/2 oz dark rum 
1 bottle Crabbie's Original Alcoholic Ginger Beer
Fresh lime wedge

Method: Fill your glass with plenty of cubed ice. Pour over ½ oz of dark rum. Then add your Crabbie’s Alcoholic Ginger beet to create the perfect drink. Garnish with a lime wedge.

Crabbie's can also be used in a pretty tasty Moscow Mule. Serve it in a copper mug, if you can.

Crabbie’s Moscow Mule
3 – 4mint leaves
¾ oz lime juice
½ oz simple syrup
1 ½ oz vodka
Crabbie’s Original Alcoholic Ginger Beer

Method: Muddle the mint gently in the bottom of your glass. Add the lime juice, simple syrup and vodka, along with 3 – 4 ice cubes. Then add a splash of Crabbie’s Alcoholic Ginger Beer.

Here's a third recipe, using the Spiced Orange flavor. I suppose you could use the Raspberry flavor to make a Crabbie's Raspberry Punch, too.

Crabbie’s Orange Punch 
1 oz dark rum
1 oz gin
1 oz vodka
2 oz fresh lemon juice
1 ½ oz cranberry juice
Crabbie’s Spiced Orange Alcoholic Ginger Beer

Method: Add the spirits and fruit juices to a cocktail shaker. Shake well and stir into a pitcher filled with ice. Then add a generous hit of Crabbie’s Spiced Orange Alcoholic Ginger Beer. Garnish with slices of your favorite fruit.

Crabbie's is available at places like the Wine Source, Eddie's, Total Wine & More in Towson, Dulaney Liquors, and at some restaurants. Use the locator tool on Crabbie's website for more.

* Any products in this post that are mentioned by name may have been provided to Minxeats by the manufacturer. However, all opinions belong to Minxeats. Amazon links earn me $! Please buy!



Posted on Minxeats.com.

Our 2000th Post!

When we started blogging here at Minxeats back in 2005, we never expected to reach 2000 posts, much less have the opportunity to write two books and publish articles in local and national magazines. But here we are. Thanks to all of our readers, old and new, for sticking with us.

Posted on Minxeats.com.