Here’s something new and fun to try this Easter. I don’t personally eat ham, but I have a lot of friends and family members who do, so I thought I’d post this recipe I got from Art in the Age and their resident cooking guru, The Reverend Michael Alan.
ROOT and Orange Glazed Ham
2/3 Cup Root
1 Cup Brown Sugar
1/2 Cup Orange Juice
1/3 Cup Apple Cider
2 Tbsp Grainy Mustard
2 Tbsp fresh grated Ginger
1 tsp Cinnamon
1 tsp Black Pepper
1 7-8 lb Ham (bone in)
Cloves
Orange Slices
Heat an oven to 350.
In a saucepan add the Root, brown sugar, orange juice, apple cider, mustard,
ginger, cinnamon and pepper. Simmer for about 30 minutes or until you get a
nice syrup.
Place ham cut side down in roasting pan and score the skin in a diamond
pattern. Secure slices of orange to the ham with cloves.
Pour half of the glaze all over the ham, cover with foil and roast for one
hour. Remove foil and coat with the remaining glaze- continue to roast for
another hour or so, basting intermittently.
Allow meat to rest for about 15 minutes before carving.
One thing is certain- when
Art in the Age comes to town, there’s going to be a fantastic party! I had the honor and pleasure to attend the first ROOT cocktail competition in Colorado at
The Squeaky Bean in Denver and had such a good time, all I can say is, “man… you should have been there!”
I went with Courtney, my friend and newest tour guide for
Local Table Tours. We braved a snow storm and walked into a packed house for Art in the Age’s private event at
The Squeaky Bean. When I say packed house, I mean P.A.C.K.E.D. No snow storm was going to keep the Denver crowd from a ROOT cocktail competition.
I started off with a Gooch, which was one of the featured cocktails of the evening, made with ROOT, apple jack, rye, and a hint of orange. I just love rye… love ROOT… what a great combination.
Sean Kenyon manned the bar all night at The Squeaky Bean and kept the packed house happy. Courtney and I got right up to the front for the cocktail competition. The only person closer was illustrious photographer
Ryan Olsen. If you’d like to see REAL photos, and not iphone photos, definitely check out
Ryan’s images. I am not embarrassed to admit that they are better than mine. But, I was right behind him, tripping him up all night… getting in his way, perhaps, just to capture some blurry images for this post.
Some of the best mixologists in the Denver area created some deliciously interesting cocktails throughout the evening. I am not sure of everyone’s name in my photos, so if you know them, or it happens to be you, please let me know so I can edit my post.
I know this guy here is Tyler French from
TAG in Denver. His cocktail was called the Dark and Rooted, and had:
1.5 parts ROOT
.5 part Sailor Jerry Spiced Rum
2 scoops homemade cinnamon ginger ice cream.
The judges enjoyed themselves! Boulder’s very own Matthew Jansen, chef/owner of
Mateo can barely be seen on the very right of the judges table. He was so nice to Courtney and me and shared every one of the competitors’ drinks with us, so we got a really good taste of what was going on that night.
The judges had the cocktail menu to peruse, so I snapped a quick photo.
And the night just went on and on with cocktail after cocktail. So much fun!
We are lucky to live in a culinary metro area where the art of the cocktail has resurged.
Along with the cocktail comes the unique mixologist image. Check out
Steuben’s Bar Manager, Randy Layman, in his plaid shirt with those suspenders and that fabulous mustache. You can tell he takes his drinks seriously. His cocktail, named Young Americans, was:
1 oz ROOT
1 oz El Tesoro Platinum
.5 oz Lillet Blanc
.25 oz Campari
Stir and strain into chilled glass…
And the winner of the night’s competition was The Squeaky Bean’s own Sean Kenyon with his creation: The General, made of:
1 part ROOT
1 part Four Roses Bourbon
.5 part Cherry Heering
.5 partt Dimi Liquore di Milano
2 dashes Bitter Truth Orange Bitters
If you are like me, you not only DO NOT have those ingredients in your home, you’ve never heard of half of them. But, that’s OK. Sean’s at
The Squeaky Bean and I’m sure he’d be delighted to make you a cocktail.
So, the first time
Art in the Age came to town was a blast at
The Bitter Bar. The second time was Colorado’s First Root Cocktail Competition at The Squeaky Bean. I am eagerly awaiting their next arrival! As long as there are cocktails, I will be there.
This holiday season has been the easiest shopping season ever. I made 3 stops: Liquor Mart, Whole Foods, and Savory Spice Shop.
Liquor Mart is the place to go in Boulder to buy ROOT, which I picked up for my dad and experimented with some amateur mixologists (aka family and friends) in my parents’ basement bar. Order some online if you’re not here in Boulder.
Whole Foods is the local place to buy Chocolove bars. Again, order online and treat yourself to some fantastically created chocolate flavor sensations. I gave away a dozen Chocolove bars to smiling faces in New Jersey.
Finally, I went to Savory Spice Shop for some standard herbs like oregano and parsley, but I also picked up some Korean Aged Black Garlic, some Lavender Vanilla Bean Sugar, and some Spiced Vanilla Bean sugar, which I sprinkled over my apple pie for Thanksgiving. Savory Spice Shop makes beautiful holiday gift baskets, so stop in the shop or order online and make all of your foodie friends happy this holiday season.
Growing up, I always found it so cool that my parents had a bar in the basement. I’m talking about a fully-stocked bar, and as I entered my teen years, I’d hang there with my friends and sneak little sips of things. It was cool. None of my friends had a bar in their basement.
I spent a lot of time behind the bar this year when I visited my parents for Thanksgiving. I brought my dad,
Jack, the perfect gift for his eclectic bar:
ROOT.
ROOT is, in my opinion, the most interesting new spirit on the market. This pre-prohibition era root-beer-tasting spirit made for some fun experimentation.
My dad introduced me to Domaine de Canton Ginger Liqueur, which is sure to please ginger-lovers out there. I mixed a little with some ROOT and some all natural ginger ale. It was good. I also mixed some with apple cider. Then I mixed ROOT with apple cider and maple scotch. There were a number of different combinations.
I’ve always admired my dad’s wine collection, and he spoils me every time I visit by opening a dusty bottle or two. This year it might have been three. It was a special visit, I suppose.
My dad likes to infuse vodka, brandy, and scotch with different things. His wild blackberry vodka was smooth and sippable. The same was true for his wild blackberry brandy. All he does is pick blackberries from his blackberry bush and soak them in alcohol. After a while you have a new flavored vodka, brandy, or scotch.
My sister, Alison, has been making Maple Scotch for years now and my dad still had some of her 2008 batch. My good childhood friend and I sipped on that one night for a while. Just like old times… We had a good laugh talking about how sipping scotch at age 30 was just like hanging out in middle school. I don’t remember drinking scotch back then. I do remember vodka and OJ, vodka and cranberry, gin and soda, rum and coke, etc.
My dad came dowstairs to the bar with us for a while and gave us a taste of 33 year-old Dewars that he had bought before my parents even owned their house. It was almost as smooth as the maple scotch. Just let it sit for 30+ years if you have the patience.
My sister also brought my dad a cool gift this year: Vermont Gold Vodka made from 100% maple sap. We didn’t open that bottle. Maybe next year…
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