well, i’m in love again… i’ve discovered a place where two of life’s simplest and greatest pleasures collide. no, not the COCKCAKE, but the CUPTAIL.

take bar cheffing to a whole new level – bake your drinks and mix your frosting! pisces is the liquor loving sign. venus rules sweets. cuptails is what happens when pisces, taurus and libra get together!

CUPTAIL’S latest creation is the STRAWBERRY MARG CUPTAIL

For Cake:

* 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
* 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 2/3 cup granulated sugar
* 2 eggs (room temperature)
* 3/4 cup unsalted butter
* 1/4 cup of oil
* 2 tablespoons of strawberry flavored Torani syrup
* 1/2 cup milk

For Frosting:

* 6oz fresh strawberries
* 2 tablespoons tequila
* 1 cup heavy whipping cream
* 1/3 cup confectioners’ sugar

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Line a 12 cup muffin pan with cupcake liners.
3. Sift flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl and give it a quick stir to combine.
4. Place eggs and sugar in a bowl and beat on medium with an electric mixer until light and foamy. About 2 minutes.
5. Melt butter (about 1min in microwave) and pour over eggs and sugar whilst beating.
6. Add oil and Torani syrup to eggs, sugar and butter mixture then turn mixer to low.
7. Add half the dry ingredients to the mixer, then the milk and combine.
8. Add remaining dry ingredients. Continue mixing until remaining dry ingredients are combined (no more than a minute) being careful not to over mix the batter.
9. Immediately divide batter equally among the 12 cupcake liners. I like to use an ice cream scoop to do this. Helps keep each cupcake uniform size.
10. Bake for 25 minutes or until a toothpick stuck into the middle of the cupcakes comes out clean, with no crumbs.
11. Place on a baking sheet to cool

Remember: Be especially careful not to open the oven during the first 20 minutes of baking as it will increase the chances of your cupcakes falling flat on their butts.

When cupcakes are completely cooled you can begin to make the frosting.

1. Place 1/3 cup of confectioners’ sugar, tequila and heavy cream in a bowl and mix on high until at peak form.
2. With a fork, mash up strawberries on a plate.
3. Fold strawberries into whipped cream.
4. With a small paring knife cut a conical shaped top off each cupcake (see picture below), fill with cream and replace top.
5. Place a final dollop of cream on top and add strawberry upside down!

visit cuptails for explicit directions on applying the frosting.

VIA CUPTAIL

THE BACKYARD BARTENDER is a refreshing read, in more ways than one! it is truly a BAR CHEFFING book, as opposed to a BAR TENDING book. this is due to the author’s culinary background – NICOLE ALONI has written several cookbooks before. she has now applied these cheffing skills to the art of mixology, resulting in an innovative bar book that takes much of it’s inspiration straight from the garden. this creation is perfect both for the adept and novice tippler. it provides an excellent foray into the world of bar cheffing with simply explained mixology terms with interesting and understandable recipes.

i love that there is a chapter on DESSERT drinks (who needs regular sweets, when you can have sweetly spiked ones?) and PITCHER drinks (i’m the biggest fan of “batch” drinks, except i just throw a bunch of ingredients in a pitcher until it tastes right, so it’s nice to have some “formal” measurements) and VIRGIN drinks. the book also gives some great ICE ideas such as flavored cube recipes and how to make your own ice bucket.

i never gave much thought to states’ drinking habits, but apparently, NEW YORK and the WESTERN states drink twice as much vodka as the rest of the country and have a real enthusiasm for tequila. SOUTHERN states pour more bourbon, scotch and gin. Oy veh, who knew?!

BUY THE BACKYARD GARDENER

BLOODY MARY SOUP is the answer to your surplus september tomatoes. truly a leoan liquid lunch – enjoy!

VIA KOCHTOPF

1 medium onion, chopped
3 celery stalks, diced
1 bell pepper, diced
2 tb olive oil
250 g fresh tomatoes, peeled
250 ml homemade broth
salt, pepper
Tabasco
1 tb lemon juice
4 tb vodka
Garnish
celery stalks to garnish

In a large pot, sauté onions ad celery and bell pepper in oil.
Add tomato, sauté 1-2 minute.
Add broth and let simmer 10 minutes.
Put all in a food processor and mix until smooth.
Add other ingredients.
Serve either hot or chilled, garnish with celery stalk.

Did you ever wonder, which sign rules the Cannabis plant? Well, I’m
here to tell you that would be Saturn, who along with Uranus, co-rules
Aquarius. Technically speaking, any substance that produces a mind-altering affect would belong to pisces. however, because the hemp plant is one of the hardiest plants on earth, which makes some of the strongest fibers on earth, with a speed of growth rivelled only by bamboo, it belongs to the workhorse planet of saturn. and a plus, if grown legally it does not require pesticide for it is naturally bug-resistant. did you know that the constitution was written on hemp paper? or that it was illegal not to grow hemp during george washington’s presidency? today, when we think of hemp fabric, a course canvas comes to mind. but actually, i have felt hemp that was spun so fine it was like cashmere to the touch. and of course, the medicinal benefits of hemp are completely underated. i was staying in friend’s apartment in brasil, and came down with this super bug. i thought, really, seriously, that i might die. i’ve never had a fever like that, where i sweated eternally for days. i could barely move, and looking back, i can’t believe that i didn’t make my friend take me to the hospital. however, my point is that one day i decided to crawl, quite literally, to an old joint my friend had left out on the coffee table. i lit it up, almost dreading the expected effects. because, honestly, i hate marijanna. only once have a had a good experience with it, and that involved my couch, godiva chocolate and a spaniard. so, i lit up this roach and inhaled every last bit of it until it burned my fingers. in only a few miraculous minutes, i was up on my feet and walking around hardly aware that i was even sick. the medicinal power was truly amazing and that is a true story my friends. so let’s
FIGHT FOR OUR RIGHT TO PARTY, and make pot legal NOW. aaaaanyway, back to the sauce…. Today, our IZ guest blogger, RADICAL MUSE, weighs in with her very own far out libation.

It’s just been killin the RADICAL MUSE… throwin out all those perfectly good stems. I mean, at $50 a gram, a single stems gotta be worth like $20. Talk about throwing the green stuff away, in more ways than one. Finally, salvation to your inner eco pothead… you can repurpose the pot stems…!!! The more stems you recycle, the better your karma. So roll up a fattie, save up your stems, and grab a handle of vodka…
you’ve got a 420′tini that’s gotta get made. After your finish inhaling of course.

RADICAL MUSE: As a guest contributor to this intoxicating blog, I thought I would touch on the greening of alcohol. No, not the usual kind of greening, but rather the sometimes illegal, always-controversial kind of green. Marijuana. Yes, the stuff you used to smoke in your friend’s basements in the 80′s is back with a vengeance. This time it’s making it’s way to a bar near you in the form of a martini. According to Wikipedia,”4:20 or 4/20 (pronounced four-twenty) is a term used in North America as a discreet way to refer to the consumption of cannabis and, by extension, a way to identify oneself with cannabis culture. Although many diverse theories exist to explain the origin of the term, it is widely accepted that in 1971, a group of teenagers at San Rafael High School in San Rafael, California used to meet after school at 4:20 p.m. to smoke cannabis.”

Enter the 420 Martini. The makers of Cannabis Vodka have created a perfectly legal (in most places) alcohol that is infused with cannabis. If you’re more of a do-it yourselfer, it’s super easy to make yourself using a bunch of old stems. The Cannabis stems have just a touch of THC content but not enough to smoke. When the stems infuse with vodka it releases the THC and you can get a euphoric feeling (aka known as “wasted”) from drinking the THC laced vodka without having to smoke the Cannabis stems. What a great way to recycle those old throw away stems!

420′TINI

• 3 oz. Cannabis Vodka (or make your own)

• Dry Vermouth (enough to coat the glass)

• garnish: bag of munchy chips

Coat a chilled cocktail glass with the Vermouth. Chill vodka in a shaker with ice. Shake well and strain into the cocktail glass. Garnish with a sprig of something green and leafy. Contrary to what you may think, this does not taste like old bong water, rather it has a fresh herby kind of taste.

how is majiuana different than hemp?

VOTE HEMP

photo credit: I CAN HAS CHEEZBURGER

it’s so ironic that calling someone a pansy is snonomous to calling them a wimp, and is seen as a kind of friendly insult. this modest flower is actually made of some of the strongest petals on earth. yes, one would assume that it’s frilly little head, often seen in cheesy table bouquets and on fancy cakes, would die off quietly at the end of summer. but true to aquarius’ surprising and quirky nature, the pansy will keep ya guessin… will it or won’t it show up in the spring? if it is located in a shady spot in the garden, chances are it will impress you by being one of spring’s first blooms. it is a cool, shade-loving plant, like the cold planet of saturn by whom it is owned. and it is particularly hardy, flowering well into january even. i’ve heard we shouldn’t judge a book by it’s cover, and this holds especially true for aquarius – the queen of unpredictability. calling someone a pansy is really a compliment to that person’s fortitude. so the next time you seek to offend someone by doing just that, think again. you’ll really be flattering the person you mean to diss. not that any of us would EVER do such a thing anyway ; )

in keeping in line with gabriel’s FIZZ theme for mixology monday, i absolutely HAD to make use of my fave fizz: SPARKLING SAKE. ask your sauce shop to special order it for you… totally deliciously worth it!

PANSY-ASS SAKE
sparkling sake
pansy syrup
agnostura bitters

in bottom of empty glass, add one drop agnostura bitters and 1/4 oz pansy syrup. then fill the glass with chilled sake. garnish with pansy flower.

PANSY SYRUP:
2 cups sugar
1 cup water
1 cup pansy petals

remove all traces of green from petals and place in food processor. Adding 1/3 cup sugar, grid pansies into sugar by pulsing slowly 4 times. Finish by processing on high for 30 seconds.

Combine remainder of sugar, mixture from food processor and water in sauce pan. Bring to boil. Stir and allow to simmer for approx 45 minutes. Remove from heat and pour into a final storage container. will keep for months in fridge. adding 1 oz vodka or few drops lemon oil acts as a preservative.

(recipe created by gwen sutherland kaiser)

thanks to COCKTAIL NERD for hosting MXMO XIX.

if you happen to be anywhere near culver city, CA this weekend, catch the opening of his fun art exhibit: conspicuous consumption. it appears the prints have all been sold, but the artist’s website does have some other cute cocktail-related schtuff for sale. love his style!

VIEW CONSPICUOUS CONSUMPTION ONLINE
(VIEW ACTUAL EXHIBIT AT 5790 washington blvd, culver city, CA 90232 – opening 9/15)

no, i am not working for absolut. swear. but i just love what they’re up to lately. check out the new interactive campaign, where anyone can upload their “vision” for the world, for all the world to see. absolut promises they’ll set out to realize the visions that make it to the “toplist”. it took FUHEVAH to draw my vision – the sketching pad’s a little iffy – and i’m rather the perfectionist. i’d stick to uploading your own images if you can. here’s some of my fave visions:

VIA TREEHUGGER

thanks to miss charming for dutifully reporting in on the new product launches at TALES OF THE COCKTAIL, held in new orleans last month. amongst some other interesting new stuff, was ABSOLUT’S new endeavor: ABSOLUT NEW ORLEANS. and i say, hats off to them for this generous, and albeit smart, marketing move! 100% of the proceeds from the sale of 35,000 cases (estimated 2 mil) of the new NEW ORLEANS VODKA will go to the following charities to rebuild the gulf coast:

New Orleans Area Habitat for Humanity, Habitat for Humanity of the Mississippi Gulf Coast, Volunteer Mobile, Tipitina’s Foundation, and the Louisiana Restaurant Association to help rebuild homes as well as the culture and nightlife of the New Orleans area.

infused with mango and black pepper, the flavor is dark, exotic and interesting – just like the city of new orleans! i was there only once, many years ago – and was seduced by it’s beauty. and it’s crawfish if i recall! august 29th marked the second anniversary of this apocalyptic tragedy.

The bottle bears a red-and-silver harmonica engraved “L.O. Smith Trio” – a hat tip to Lars Olsson Smith, whose distillation process more than a century ago gave birth to the company.

the cocktail was reputedly invented in NEW ORLEANS, so that makes it even more significant. try it in a BIG BREEZY:

ABSOLUT BIG BREEZY:

2 oz. Absolut New Orleans
1/2 Simple Syrup
1 Squeeze of lemon
4-5 Chunks of watermelon
Pinch black pepper
Garnish with melon ball & slice of lemon

Directions: Shake and strain ingredients into a martini glass and garnish with a melon ball and lemon slice.

VIA THE SAVVY GIVER
VIA TIPSY TEXAN
VIA MISS CHARMING’S CHARMING NEWSLETTER
VIA NEWSDAY

the bombshell with the delightfully crooked nose won’t be going to rehab. instead, he’s hired a $650/day sober companion to go on vacation with. the blonde beast has alledgedly tried to see the great white light twice before his latest botched attempt. owen, may you never succeed, and be stuck here like the rest of us! need to talk? i’m here for ya. call me! oh i’m so digressing here… what i’m trying to get at is, c’mon, do you really think poor owen is staying on the wagon? i sincerely hope he does, but in the extremely off chance that he does make a little boo boo…. well, it’s a slippery slope. so at least drink something halfway good for you… and that would be st. john’s wart tea. this beautiful flower, with it’s full head of yellow petals (not unlike his golden mane), belongs to the sun and is hence a plant of leo. medicinally, it’s purportedly very good at chasing the darkness out of one’s life with it’s mood-stabilizing properties. and he being a scorpio, there’s no shortage of dark moments. owen, next time you drink, make it a st. john’s wart tea. but if you do slip, at least slide into a Butterscotch Stallion. we’re routing for you handsome!

(photo credit: gay socialites & germes online)

BUTTERSCOTCH STALLION:

2 oz vokda (owen, try omiting this ingredient)
2 oz chilled st. john’s wart herbal tea
1/2 maple syrup
1 oz fresh squeezed lemon

add ingredients to ice filled cocktail shaker and for ten seconds, shake hard. pour into chilled martini glass or tea cup.

(recipe created by gwen sutherland kaiser)

to furthur fight those god awful mood swings, try this from YOGI TEA: sit cross-legged or in a chair with your spine straight and feet flat on the floor. rest the left hand on the left knee, with the tips of the thumb and index finger touching. close your eyes and block the right nostril with the right thumb, with the rest of the fingers straight up. inhale fully through the left nostril. then block the left nostril with your pinkie. release your thumb and exhale fully throught the right nostril. continue inhaling through the left nostril and exhaling through the right nostril for 3 -22 minutes. to finish, take a few deep breaths through both nostrils and relax.

owen wilson’s astrological chart
st. john’s wart, an herb of leo

VIA PEREZ HILTON

i went to vegas a few weekends ago (8/25-8/28) and had the most random trip. allow me to outline some of the bizarro events that unfolded…

1. i sat in emergency seating on three legs of my four legged trip.
now i’ve traveled all over the world, and have never sat near the emergency exit before. it’s a little bit of a big deal… the stewardess make you say “yes, i am able to help” (in case our plane explodes into a gazillion tiny pieces). and if you don’t say it loud enough, she’ll make you repeat it. and do push ups. j/k.

2. i was standing at the top of an escalator in the airport and a woman fell down backwards on it. people were yelling, it was quite the scene. she had somehow positioned herself so that her head was towards the ground, and her feet were up in the air. one false move, and she was sliding down backwards. she was still there when i left to board my plane, surrounded by airport officials who wouldn’t let her move. i felt bad for her, kinda embarrassing.

3. out to dinner in a moroccon restaurant (see sexy above) and this crazy guy comes in and starts yelling. he picks up some wine glasses and threatens the staff and customers with them. he’s running around the tables in the restaurant screaming in some language that wasn’t english. it sounds funny, but it was a bit scary. finally the staff cornered him in a booth and talked him into putting down the glasses. one of the patrons had called the cops, and four cars showed up and reenacted a COPS scene for us. btw, these were donut-eating cops, and they knew how to throw someone down on a hood.

4. in an airport restaurant and decided that if i didn’t get to the powder room asap i would do myself permanent damage. so i told the couple next to me i’d be right back. um, yah, not so smart as it turns out. upon my return that same couple told me that my bag had started a bomb scare! they had to convince the manager not to call security. hmmnn… maybe next time i’ll pay attention to those loud-speaker announcements. i guess that one could have turned out a LOT worse.

5. the guy sitting next to me on the airplane had a heart attack. i had to flag down a steward and walk down the aisles of the plane asking for doctors. luckily, i found a nurse who administered CPR. he was laid down in the aisle next to my seat the whole trip home, and i thought he was dead for sure, but he lived. i sat on the stewardess’ bumper seat and we made an emergancy landing. after traipsing from one to terminal to another trying to catch a flight that didn’t exist, i missed my connection and spent the night at ramada inn. i must say though, that was some of the best tiramasu i’ve ever had. (in times of extreme duress, this vegan-inspired vegetarian allows herself to indulge in dairy laden desserts).

6. all of the above doesn’t even include the drama that was ongoing. such as changing my plane ticket three times, and just missing dinner dates, and getting tickets to an exclusive show and then losing them, and so forth and so on…

so for a three day trip, that’s kind of crazy no? i thought to myself, my god! what is the reason for all this insanity? could it possibly be related to my astrological chart? i asked molly Cliborne, of north-node.com for help on this befuddling tale. here’s what the astro sleuth turned up:

molly looked at the chart for the nutty weekend in question, superimposed on my natal chart. in it, she found a t-square with mercury as the focal point (a t-square is a stressful formation of planets that tends to show up as unsettled energies and conflicting needs or goals.). mercury occupied my 9th house, which rules long distance travel. and apparently, the other aspects happening were strange, dramatic and serious! see below for the technical jargon, but suffice it to say that some wild energy occured in my chart during my trip. now remember that mercury, planet of transportation, travel and the details thereof, is at the head of this t-square in my 9th house of long-distance travel. hanging around the position of my natal mercury the whole time, was pluto – planet of upheaval. so, in addition to all this intense t-square energy happening in my ninth house of travel… i have pluto, planet of life and death, acting out too! bear in mind that mercury is the planet of goings on around oneself, not necessarily oneself, keeping me at a comfortable distance from the drama.

now, if you’re interested in molly’s technical explanation, here it is:

gwen’s 9th house of long distance travel:

a t-square with mercury at the apex, conjunct the south node of the moon. (south node of the moon refers not to a pink floyd song, but in day-to-day life tends to bring up chaotic energies). also, retrograde venus conjunct saturn, (this makes for serious social interactions). gwen’s natal south node was at the midpoint of the conjunction, tying it together and making it very strong and personal to her – and leo made it a dramatic south node too. as the trip progressed, venus squared gwen’s mars in scorpio and applied to a square her natal saturn. (venus square mars brings out the “fight” in and around us, particularly in close relationships. scorpio makes everything intense).

and so, yes, in answer to my question, i found that my wacky trip was definitely related to planetary movements. as i believe so much of our lives are. why not have molly check out what the stars have in store for you?

oh, and next time you’re in vegas, eat at Marrakech. great food, and bellies.