Suzi's Blog
Pineapple Perplexity: Brian’s Gin and Pineapple Zippy
What is the origin of new recipes? Experimentation. Inspiration. Desperation.
It’s fall here, the peak weekend for red and yellow leaves and I’m getting ready for a fall party. I need to come up with a great cocktail.
I was going to serve Pina Coladas, sort of a last, long farewell to summer.
Suzen said, “No. Wait here, Sweetie.” Those are harmless words, but I did not like the tone at all. In a few moments, she returned holding a book, one of my favorites: Biophysics Demystified by Daniel Goldfarb. It’s a geek book, filled with equations and diagrams explaining how our bodies function.
“You need to read this,” she said, opening the book for me. And then I knew. I remembered that tone. I had not heard it in twenty-five years, but it was straight out of that attorney’s office when we were discussing our prenupt. My lawyer told me not to … Well, it’s been twenty-five years.
I looked at the page but could not focus. “Let me explain it to you,” Suzen offered. “In a normal human, the heart pumps about 5 liters, a bit over 5 quarts, of blood a minute.” She stopped and looked at my muscular chest. “In you, maybe 5.1.
“Now, when blood leaves the heart, most of it goes through the aorta, which starts with a diameter of 3 centimeters, a bit over one inch. But the aorta soon ends and the diameter is 33% smaller then. What does that mean, Brian”
“The blood has to flow faster at the end,” I said. I know my bloody fluid dynamics.
“Exactly. But that Pina Colada is made with coco lopez, and what do you think happens when you eat that stuff?” She did not pause for me to answer. “It’s ingested immediately, goes into the blood stream, into the heart and out the aorta. When you pour that lopez stuff out of the can, it’s all slow motion. When it’s going through your aorta, it just clings to the sides.
“It’s going to create eddies in your blood flow. And then turbulence.”
“Oh, no,” I reacted. I used to work on airplanes and turbulence is bad, very bad.
“Yes, Brian, noisy turbulence. If you drink this stuff, I’ll soon be able to hear your blood flow from across the room. You’ll sound like a clogged drain. And while I might appreciate the white noise during the day, it would keep me up at night. We don’t want that, do we, Brian?”
“No.” I heard my own meek voice.
“That’s right.” She walked the can of Coco Lopez over to the garbage can and released it from two feed up. There was thud, a rattle, and it was over.
I turned to walk away.
“If you are going to the basement now to get that stack of two more cans you hide at the bottom of that box topped with pliers, I threw it away yesterday.”
Let’s just look at the bright side here. She’s trying to help me. And that walk down to the basement and then, Lord, back up would be tough on my heart.
I’m left with pineapple juice I had bought. A lot of it, in those little cans than tend to migrate to the back of the shelf and then hibernate way, way past their expiration date. Like from one century to the next. Not good.
I’m in a gin mood. Suzen always is. So I created this gin and pineapple juice concoction I call a zippy. Why? Because I first made it without the tonic water and I thought my brain might explode. Gin is unforgivingly strong. So, I retried with a little more pineapple juice and some tonic water. You should feel free to adjust both when you try this.
This cocktail is very refreshing, with waves of flavor and the competition of gin against the sweetness and the tonic water.
Suzen will be gone next week. I’m going to do some more beverage experiments. I regret that she found that stash of Coco Lopez under the pliers. That was not very cleverly disguised by me. I think the pipe wrenches on the higher shelf will prove more effective.
.
Gin and Pineapple Zippy
Yield: Serves 1
Ingredients:
- 2 ounces gin, ideally chilled in the refrigerator
- 1.5 ounces pineapple juice
- 1 ounce simple sugar syrup
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 2 ounces tonic water
Preparation:
Fill an 8 ounce cocktail glass with crushed ice.
Place all the ingredients in a cocktail shaker with several ice cubes. Shake well until fully chilled. Pour into the cocktail glass.
Source: Brian O’Rourke
Pineapple Upside Down Cake
I don’t like neurotic people or things. So I have never been fond of Upside Down Cakes. The world is upside down already. Who needs another reminder?
Of course, being fair, the “upside down” part could refer, not to the economy, but to yoga. I don’t do headstands – fear of a broken neck – but lying next to a wall with my feet extended straight up against the wall is actually rather comforting.
So I was so pleasantly delighted to taste this cake. And so will you. This can become a new comfort food buddy for you. The cake is luscious and the pineapple bottom and glaze are full of flavor without being sickly sweet. Turning this cake out of the skillet, before your guests, will generate some smiles and “ahs”. The lovely complexity of that pineapple top, coupled with its intense out of the oven aroma, is definitely an end of meal treat.
The success of this cake comes, in large part, from the use of real, not canned, pineapple for the topping. And then using a little rum and lots of pineapple juice in the cake itself. That cake, just the cake, is a delight.
You can amplify the experience by adding some flavored whipped cream or ice cream or by accompanying with a glass of sweet wine.
Pineapple Upside Down Skillet Cake
Yield: 8 servings
Ingredients:
For the topping:
- 1/2 medium pineapple, peeled, quartered lengthwise and cored
- 3/4 stick unsalted butter (6 Tbsps.)
- 3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
For the cake:
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons. ground cardamom
- 2 teaspoons. baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¾ stick unsalted butter, softened (6 tablespoons)
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon dark rum, plus 2 tablespoons, for sprinkling over cake
- ½ cup unsweetened pineapple juice
Preparation:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
For the topping, cut the pineapple crosswise into 3/8-inch-thick pieces. Melt the butter in a 10-inch cast iron skillet. Add the brown sugar and simmer over moderate heat, stirring, for about 4 minutes. Remove from the heat. Arrange the pineapple on top of the sugar mixture in concentric circles, overlapping pieces slightly.
For the batter, in a medium bowl, sift together the flour, cardamom, baking powder, and salt. Beat the butter in a large bowl with an electric mixer until light and fluffy, then gradually beat in the granulated sugar. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla and rum. Add half the flour mixture and beat on low speed just until blended. Beat in the pineapple juice, then add the remaining flour mixture, beating just until blended (batter may appear to be slightly curdled).
Spoon the batter over pineapple topping and spread evenly. Bake the cake in the middle of the oven until golden and a tester comes out clean, about 40 minutes.
Let the cake stand in the skillet for 5 minutes. Place a plate over the skillet and invert the cake onto the plate (keeping plate and skillet firmly pressed together). Replace any pineapple stuck to the bottom of the skillet. Sprinkle rum over the cake and cool slightly.
Serve cake warm or at room temperature.
Source: Adapted from Gourmet Magazine, 2002
