A Spice & Ice Cocktail Party with Kara Newman

My first virtual cocktail party and I’m late. Apologies to Kara Newman, the hostess. I hope you’ll let me join in the fun anyway because I brought a great drink: Red Dawn, from your lovely book, Spice & Ice: 60 Tongue-Tingling Cocktails.

In fact, I had the perfect occasion in which to enjoy it: the Red Carpet ceremony that preceded the Academy Awards presentation. Usually I hold a small ‘Red Carpet Rant’ party, in which a group of us picks apart what the Hollywood glitterati are wearing as they teeter or swagger their way down the crimson path and are forced to exchange words with the likes of Ryan Seacrest. As you might imagine, a good cocktail does much to enhance this experience.

This year, however, feeling beat and somewhat overworked, and having only seen three of the movies in the running (‘Avatar’, ‘Julie and Julia’, and ‘Up’), I decided to forgo the party--though not the cocktail. So it was just my husband, our two kids, and me. My husband, who was diligently working on taxes, did forgo aperitif hour, and as our kids are still of Shirley Temple age, they were not allowed to imbibe. So it turned out to be a cocktail party for one. Still, it was damn good.  

When it comes to cocktails I will almost always choose savory over sweet and spicy over anything. Perhaps Kara knew that about me when she invited me to the virtual party--in which a group of food writers, cocktailians, authors, and bloggers each made a drink from Spice & Ice and wrote a post about it. Kara, whose work appears regularly in Chili Pepper Magazine and on Serious Eats, sent along a list of drink choices from her book and I gravitated without hesitation to Red Dawn, a clever twist on the classic Bloody Mary.

The drink calls for citrus-infused vodka, tomato juice, and--in place of the tabasco and worcestershire sauce--a hit of harissa, a hot red pepper paste used in North African cooking. I did not have citrus-infused vodka so I used unflavored Absolut and added a squeeze of lemon juice. The amount of harissa specified is 1/2 teaspoon, but in the headnote to her recipe, Kara throws down this glove: “Masochist alert: double the amount of harissa if you dare!” Which, of course I did.

The full teaspoon turned out to be just the right amount for this jaded palate; in fact, I may even kick it up a little more next time. The drink was sharp, savory, and yet refreshing. My only quibble (by no means a rant) is that--salt freak that I am--I would have liked my Red Dawn to be a little saltier. This, I figured, could easily be remedied by   dipping the rim of the glass.

So, brava Kara, take a bow. You deserve it.

Red Dawn (from Spice & Ice: 60 Tongue-Tingling Cocktails, by Kara Newman; Chronicle Books, 2009)

Yield: 1 drink

While this makes a fabulous brunch drink (hence the name), and it’s less work than a traditional Bloody Mary, enjoy this harissa-spiked libation any time of day. Harissa is a Tunisian hot sauce or paste made with smoked chile peppers, garlic, olive oil, and spices like cumin or coriander. (Get harissa in a tube for longest shelf life). Masochist alert: double the amount of harissa if you dare!

2 ounces Citron-infused vodka
4 ounces Tomato juice
1/2 teaspoon harissa
Lemon wedge or curl, for garnish

Combine first three ingredients in a glass filled with ice, and garnish with lemon wedge.

Click Here to see Past Recipes