Cocktail Confessions

Yesterday was a little more hectic than usual at work and I was really looking forward to getting the hell out of Dodge and head home.  It was also raining, as it has been for the better part of a whole week now, and I was also looking to make something hearty for dinner, like chili.  Well, I knew I has some flank steak in the fridge, some mexican cheese, a whole pantry full of southwest spices, and some dry gourmet chili mix by ‘Bear’. 

So in the midst of making a really good home doctored up chili with some fresh diced peppers and such, I opted to make myself a drink.  A gin martini sounded pretty good, but since I was in this south western them and I came across some jalepeno stuffed olives in my pantry that I forgot I had, I decided to concoct my own ‘spicy’ libation.

Now I don’t claim that I invented this drink by any means, but the recipe just kind of came together in my head at that moment in time and I did come up with the name ‘Texas-tini’, so here we go:

Texas-tini

• 5 parts gin
• 1 part dry vermouth
• 2 jalepeno stuffed olives
• Favorite pepper sauce
• Jalepeno slice for garnish (optional)
• In a tumbler with ice, combine gin, vermouth, and olives.  Add a dash of your favoite pepper sauce (Tabasco, Frank’s, Kryptonite or whatever floats your boat).  Add jalepeno slice to rim or float on top as garnish.

As an option, if you don’t like gin, then go ahead and try vodka.  For this I recommend ‘Absolute Pepper’ since it has a little spice already infused into the vodka.  Also, if you want a liitle more or less zing, change the garnish to a mild chili or something a little hotter, like a wedge of habenero, but be careful and wash your hands if you come into direct skin contact with habenero oil and warn your guests.  As far as sauces go, Tabasco may prove to be a bit too vinegary for some, so maybe try Tapatio or Chulula for a nice spicy yet mellower taste.