We have a new pastry chef consultant/supplier at the hotel, he’s a bit of a celebrity here in northern Italy, and he happens to be a very thirsty guy. Last delivery he made, he brought along some carrot and ginger muffins, which are delicious, and, while he was sampling our new selection of potato vodkas, we had a discussion about carrot juice in drinks. This guy was the first one to import the centrifuge juice concept in our little provincial town, and it took him a while to convince customers that fresh juice from veggies and fruit was much better than prebottled commercial stuff. Nowadays customers mind is set on a better quality product, like our slow-juiced extracts, and they don’t mind waiting a bit longer for their drinks. The conversation moved from food, to healthy drinks, and then it inevitably landed onto booze. He challenged me to create a liquid version of his gorgeous muffins, and I am not one to back down from a challenge.

ROGER’S DELIGHT


Ingredients:
1.5 oz. Rum Diplomatico Reserva Exclusiva
0.75 oz. Grand Marnier
0.5 oz. Galliano
1 oz. Carrot and ginger extract
0.5 oz. Lemon juice
0.75 oz. Rich Syrup
4 dashes Angostura Bitters

Garnish:
Carrot and ginger sticks on an ice shell, phisalis.

Prep:
Pour all the ingredients except Angostura in a shaker and shake well for few seconds, Pour in a tall glass over crushed ice, add Angostura on the top, complete with an ice shell (crushed ice pressed with the lime squeezer) full of carrot and ginger sticks. Add a phisalis fruit if available.

I love Diplomatico, it’s an excellent rum, a joy to work with because it pairs so well with many ingredients, while still retaining a lot of character. This drink is named after Roger Rabbit, and it came very close to replicate the flavor of those muffins. With added booze of course. Grand Marnier, lemon, carrot an rich syrup combine together to give a tart flavor, which is balanced by the spicy notes of ginger and the herbal ones of Galliano. Diplomatico in my opinion is just the perfect base for this one, and its flavor persists from the sip to the swallow. The aroma is all about ginger and Angostura, so very spicy and pungent. I would have thought this one to be a bit more refreshing, but it turned out a rum fest. It is a bit boozy, Mai Tai like, and it reminds me of those real tiki potions, full of flavor, spices and lots of booze.
The pastry chef was happy about it (he would have drank anything though, to be honest), I was happy about it, and the picture came out quite good too. Can’t ask much more than that from a weekend morning shift.

This post is part of my Veggie Program, click here to check out other veggie recipes!