Agrumino Green Tea Cocktail and Steamed Artichokes

Mmmmm, cocktail hour. As far as I am concerned there is nothing better than a really good cocktail with a simple snack. Hence my light and citrusy Agrumino Cocktail with Steamed Artichokes.

A note about Agrumino: Agrumino is a citrus liqueur very similar to Limoncello, just using other citrus fruits. I make mine homemade (quadrupling the formula below) once or twice a year using a combination of tangerines and oranges. It takes about a month to be fully ready to drink, but it is definitely worth the wait.


Agrumino

10-15 citrus fruits (oranges, clementines, tangerines, or any combination you like)
1 750 ml bottle vodka or grain alcohol
1 1/2 cups water
2 cups reserved citrus juice
2- 2 1/2 cups sugar

• Wash the fruit very well to remove any wax or pesticides. (Use organic if you can.)
• Using a vegetable peeler or pairing knife, peel the fruit, being careful to leave the white pith behind, as it will make your liqueur bitter. Place peels in a large wide-mouth jar (one that has an airtight seal).
  
• Juice as many of the remaining fruit as it takes to come up with about 2 cups of juice. Freeze the juice in an airtight container. Use the remaining fruit for another recipe.
• Pour vodka over the peels and cover jar. Let this steep at room temperature (preferably in a dark spot) for between 4 and 10 days, shaking jar daily.
• After the peels have steeped, prepare the sugar syrup by bringing sugar, water, and the juice you froze to a boil. Allow this to cool completely, then add to the vodka and peels.
• Allow this to steep for between 1 and 5 days.
• After steeping, strain away the peels and discard. Bottle the liqueur and store in the fridge or freezer, as it should be served very cold. It will take at least a month for the liqueur to mellow and reach its full flavor.

Agrumino Green Tea Cocktail

1 1/2 ounces Agrumino (if not available substitute Limoncello or Cointreau)
4 ounces unsweetened iced green tea
juice of half a clementine
ice
clementine slice to garnish

• Shake Agrumino, tea, and clementine juice in a cocktail shaker with ice.
• Strain into a chilled martini glass, garnish with a slice of clementine and serve.
• Enjoy!

Steamed Artichokes

artichokes (as many as you want!)
olive oil (about a tablespoon per person)
sea salt & black pepper

• Line the bottom of a large pot with a steamer basket. Fill pot with 2-3 inches of water.
• Place washed artichokes stem side down in steamer basket. (I don't bother to trim them.
  As far as I am concerned that's for sissies. But if you wish, then go ahead and trim away.)
• Steam artichokes for between 30 and 45 minutes, depending on size.
• Cool and serve each with a dipping bowl of olive oil, seasoned generously with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
• Enjoy!