With a few pantry shelves dedicated to enticing and often exotic fruit and nut liqueurs, the cool simplicity of that bottle of dry vermouth in the fridge draws me in each time. It's bitter. It's herbal. It's verdant. And, it's versatile.
Vermouth is wine that's been infused or as some say, fortified, with aromatic spices and herbs. Most often French or Italian, it's available both dry and sweet. Dry vermouth, with 18-percent alcohol, is the key ingredient in dry martinis. Sweet vermouth, which is usually 15 percent alcohol and 15 percent sugar, is the key ingredient in Carrie Bradshaw's favorite, the Manhattan.
A relative newcomer on the wine and liqueur circuit, vermouth was developed in the late 18th century and our personal favorite, Noilly Prat, finalized their current recipe in 1855. According to vermouth connoisseurs, Noilly Prat dry vermouth is believed to contain a mix of at least 20 herbs and spices typical of the Provencal region including chamomile, bitter orange, nutmeg, coriander and cloves.
Time and again, dry vermouth is the key 'secret' ingredient in sauces and recipes prepared in the andshecookstoo.com kitchen. From barbecue sauce for braised country ribs to a pumpkin and cream sauce for papardelle pasta, dry vermouth adds so much more than plain white wine to sauces and reductions. It's also a wonderful addition to a court bouillon for poaching fish.
To kickback and enjoy a cool and quick vermouth mixer, try mixing one-part dry vermouth to two-parts ginger ale over ice with a squeeze of lemon. Garnish with lemon slices and a few small sprigs of thyme. It's cool and refreshing as the first breeze of spring.
Vermouth is wine that's been infused or as some say, fortified, with aromatic spices and herbs. Most often French or Italian, it's available both dry and sweet. Dry vermouth, with 18-percent alcohol, is the key ingredient in dry martinis. Sweet vermouth, which is usually 15 percent alcohol and 15 percent sugar, is the key ingredient in Carrie Bradshaw's favorite, the Manhattan.
A relative newcomer on the wine and liqueur circuit, vermouth was developed in the late 18th century and our personal favorite, Noilly Prat, finalized their current recipe in 1855. According to vermouth connoisseurs, Noilly Prat dry vermouth is believed to contain a mix of at least 20 herbs and spices typical of the Provencal region including chamomile, bitter orange, nutmeg, coriander and cloves.
Time and again, dry vermouth is the key 'secret' ingredient in sauces and recipes prepared in the andshecookstoo.com kitchen. From barbecue sauce for braised country ribs to a pumpkin and cream sauce for papardelle pasta, dry vermouth adds so much more than plain white wine to sauces and reductions. It's also a wonderful addition to a court bouillon for poaching fish.
To kickback and enjoy a cool and quick vermouth mixer, try mixing one-part dry vermouth to two-parts ginger ale over ice with a squeeze of lemon. Garnish with lemon slices and a few small sprigs of thyme. It's cool and refreshing as the first breeze of spring.
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