11/6/10 - Jalapeno Margaritas: Spicy & Sweet Goodness

OK, these are not for the faint of heart. Laura got the idea for these when she had a similar cocktail at the Santa Monica restaurant Fraiche recently.

You have to start a few days ahead of time by infusing a bottle of good (but not too expensive) silver tequila with jalapeno peppers. We used a half-finished bottle of 1800. It will give you a nice spicy tequila base, probably not great for doing shots, but perfect for this cocktail. Infusing the tequila is very easy to do. Cut up 4 jalapeno peppers, sliced into fours. Take all the seeds out. Let sit at least 3 days. When you use the tequila, the peppers stay in the bottle.

From there, we follow the basics of our 3-2-1 margarita recipe:

JALAPENO MARGARITAS

3 shots of the jalapeno tequila
2 shots of lime juice
2 shots of fresh orange juice
1 shot of simple sugar syrup
1 shot of orange liquer

We salt the glass rim with a mixture of celery salt, sea salt, ground cayenne pepper & sugar. And add a slice of jalapeno for good measure.

Coming up next...Laura attempts her mom's split pea soup with a ham bone we found in the freezer....

SPLIT PEA SOUP

1 bag of green split peas
1 ham bone
2 large carrots, chopped finely
2 large celery stalks, chopped finely
1 medium onion, chopped finely
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
1/4 tsp. fresh ground pepper
1/4 tsp. sea salt, or to taste
1/4 tsp. dried thyme
1 bay leaf
10 cups of water

This soup is so easy and perfect for a fall afternoon. Just bring the 10 cups of water to a boil. Add the bag of split peas. Inspect them before throwing them in just to make sure there is no debris in them. You do not need to soak them first. Add the ham bone (it can still be frozen, it will defrost in the water), the diced carrots, celery, onion, garlic & the herbs and spices. Reduce to a simmer. Simmer for 90 minutes, partially covered. Keep stirring the soup so the peas don't stick to the bottom. The peas will melt into the soup and any ham left on the bone will fall off in small pieces. We like to eat it chunky, but you can also take the soup and blend it or put it in a food processor before serving. I've tasted split pea soup ruined from too much salt before so don't overdo it. The ham bone already adds a salty, savory flavor.

Thanks, mom....the soup came out just like I remember you making!!