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Happy 5775!

honey apple brandy cocktail

I lifted this photo from Bon Appetit… which should be obvious from the carefully cut out star pattern in the perfect apple slice. I don’t think I could even pretend to have the patience to garnish my drinks like that. Perhaps in my next life…

So here it is, the first day of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish new year.

I am not Jewish, but my husband is and our daughter proudly embraces pretty much any religion that involves gift giving and/or the eating of sweets, which makes for a busy holiday season. It begins now and basically slides on down the slippery slope through Yom Kippur into Halloween, Thanksgiving and then the holy grails of Christmas and Hanukkah. We finally get to rest our wallets (and our sweet teeth) in January.

One of the great things about being a multi-faith family is that we are able to pick and choose our favorite bits from all of the traditions we grew up with and create our own mixed green salad of celebrations. And one thing I think I may add to the pot this year is the above pictured absolutely delicious looking drink I saw on the Bon Appètit website yesterday.

It’s got apples (in the form of cider and brandy) and honey (for a sweet new year) some bourbon to add extra kick and some citrus to help ward off the early autumn colds. In short, everything you need to help start the new year off sweetly.

Here’s what you need:

INGREDIENTS
SPICED HONEY SYRUP
2 cinnamon sticks
3 cardamom pods, lightly crushed
3 whole allspice
¼ cup honey

ASSEMBLY
6 ounces fresh blood orange juice
4 ounces applejack brandy
4 ounces bourbon
8-12 ounces hard cider
Apple slices (for serving)

And here’s how to do it:

SPICED HONEY SYRUP
Bring cinnamon, cardamom, allspice, honey, and 1/2 cup water to a boil in a small saucepan. Reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes. Let cool, then strain into an airtight container; discard solids.

ASSEMBLY
For each cocktail, combine 1 1/2 oz. blood orange juice, 1 oz. brandy, 1 oz. bourbon, and 1 Tbsp. spiced honey syrup in a cocktail shaker. Fill shaker with ice and shake until outside of shaker is frosty, about 30 seconds. Strain into a rocks glass filled with ice and top off with hard cider. Garnish with an apple slice.

Or go straight to the source and see it on Bon Appètit!

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