B-24 LIBERATOR

I found this vintage serving piece — a quadruple condiment caddy — on eBay:

The last time I saw one of these was at The Stables, a Houston steakhouse that unfortunately closed in 2003.  It was used at the restaurant to tote toppings for baked potatoes — crumbled bacon, grated cheddar cheese, green onions, maybe sour cream (it might have only had three dishes — my memory has faded).

I’m sentimental about The Stables — it was the first “nice” restaurant I ate at in Houston. My roommates hadn’t made it down from New York yet, and I was dining by myself.  I remember that my meal was good, but what was really exciting about that dinner was that Tom Laughlin, star of the Billy Jack movies, and his wife Delores Taylor (who also starred in the Billy Jack movies), were also dining there.  No one believed me, but I’m positive it was them.  If only I’d had an iPhone 40 years ago.

Do you remember the Billy Jack movies?

Billy Jack was half American Navajo, a Green Beret Vietnam War vet, and a hapkido master.  His feet were lethal weapons.  He was very popular.

We could do worse

My husband and I loved The Stables.  The bar was always thick with smoke and packed with people — often with prominent Houstonians — kicking back drinks.  We discovered B-52s there — a layered drink consisting of shots of Kahlua, Bailey’s Irish Cream, and Grand Marnier.  We ordered one every time we went.  On one occasion our waitress asked, “do you want that frozen?”  McScuse me?  Turns out, with a scoop or two of vanilla ice cream, a B52 becomes a delicious boozy shake.  There was no looking back from that point on.

Inspired by the quadruple condiment caddy and memories of The Stables, we made a batch of frozen B-52s recently, except instead of grabbing Kahlua, I grabbed Frangelico by mistake.  Well, my oh my, that was a happy accident!  We dubbed our creation a B-24 Liberator.  It goes down really easy, and if you’re not careful, you may indeed end up bombed.  🙂

5 from 1 reviews
B-24 LIBERATOR
Author: 
 
Ingredients
  • 5 ounces Frangelico (hazelnut liqueur)
  • 5 ounces Bailey's Irish Cream
  • 5 ounces Grand Marnier
  • 1 pint good quality vanilla ice cream
  • 1-2 cups ice
Instructions
  1. Place liqueurs and ice cream in blender and blend just until combined. Add ice, about a ½ cup at a time, until desired thickness, blending just until ice is incorporated. Divide among 4 glasses.

 

I said divide among four glasses!

HALLOWEEN-Y CROSTINI AND A HALLOWEEN COCKTAIL

While waiting for trick-or-treaters tonight, my husband and I will be enjoying some Halloween treats of our own.

About a week ago, I made black maraschino cherries to use as a Halloween cocktail garnish. They’re easy — just add black food coloring to a jar of maraschino cherries, and let them sit in the refrigerator for about a week.  Depending on the size of the jar, use about 1/2-1 teaspoon of black food coloring.  Rinse and drain the cherries before using.

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McCormick black food coloring works great

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Steeping in the inky liquid

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Black cherries!

Because it’s almost always hot and muggy on Halloween here, a cold drink is welcome on Halloween. Aperol is an apertif made with bitter and sweet oranges and other “herbs and roots.”  An Aperol Spritz, with its neon orange color, garnished with black cherries, makes a very Halloween-y cocktail.

APEROL SPRITZ
Author: 
Recipe type: Beverage
 
Ingredients
  • 1-1/2 ounces Prosecco
  • 1 ounce Aperol
  • Splash of club soda or seltzer
Instructions
  1. For each cocktail, fill cocktail glass with ice. Pour Prosecco into the glass, followed by Aperol and a splash of club soda. Garnish as desired.

aperol[1]

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 Aperol spritzes in their Halloween costumes

Now you can’t just drink on Halloween — or can you?  Halloween-y Crostini is a colorful twist on tapenade, made with kalamata olives, carrots, and pickled banana peppers.

HALLOWEEN-Y CROSTINI
Author: 
 
Ingredients
  • ½ cup pitted kalamata olives
  • 1 tablespoon capers
  • 2 tablespoons chopped jarred banana pepper rings
  • 1 small clove garlic, minced
  • 1 small carrot, peeled and chopped
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • ¼ teaspoon dried oregano
  • Toast crackers or toasted baguette slices
Instructions
  1. Place olives in a food processor or mini-chopper, and process until finely chopped, but not pureed. Transfer to a small bowl. Place capers, banana peppers, garlic, and carrot in food processor, and process until finely chopped. Add to bowl with olives. Stir in olive oil and oregano, and mix well. Transfer to a small ramekin or serving container, and serve with toast crackers or baguette slices. Provide spreaders to spread mixture on crostini.

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 Halloween-y Crostini

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