Holiday pic

Holiday pic

Tuesday, January 14, 2014

Martini Monday - Sugar Plum Martini

This week, I have decided to try and re-make the wonderful Sugar Plum Martini that I sampled at the Outback a few weeks ago.  It was super yummy and I needed to re-create it.

The menu of most restaurants will tell you what's in the martini but will not tell you how much of each ingredient is in the drink.  All the more fun, I say, right??  Trial time:)

Following is what is listed on the menu:  Grey Goose Vodka, Elderflower liqueur, DiSarrano Amaretto, Apothec Red Blend, and Pomegranate... mix well and serve in a sugar rimmed martini glass.

Here is me enjoying the one from Outback:
Notice, they also added gumdrop candies to hang from the glass...cute.
OK...so I check out the ingredients and do a bit of research... Elderflower Liqueur is quite a difficult find...I tried 3 different liquor stores.  Apparently, it's pretty popular to put in champagne (according to the clerk at the 3rd and final attempt).  And, a bottle of it (sold through St. Germain brand) has a pretty high price tag.  You see, I am also trying to make these martinis as cheaply as possible with my limited budget:)  So, I did the next best thing, got on the phone to hubby and made him look up possible substitutes for the Elderflower.  According to the all-mighty internet, you can use a liqueur that is berry in nature...for example, blueberry or raspberry...it even recommended Creme de Cassis.  Aha...I found a bottle of Creme de Cassis for $6.99...score!!

Now...onto the Apothec Red Blend.  Did you  know this is a particular red wine??  I don't drink red wine and I had never heard of it.  But, alas, the liquor store clerks knew exactly what I was looking for and pointed me in the right direction.  A bottle of this wine averages $10...and score if you're having guests b/c you can use it as your red wine for the night!!

I have vodka in my house...just not Grey goose and I already had a bottle of the Amaretto (yes, I have the DiSarrano...but they do make a cheaper version...I just happened to already have this one).

Pomegranate- I assumed they meant juice and I generally always have some form of juice in my house.  Pomegranate juice is a great addition to my seltzer during the week...  Oh, and my kids actually drink it too:)

After mixing up the ingredients and playing a bit, I found that a little bit of sour mix (you should all already have this if you have a well-stocked bar) made the drink that much more delightful.

So, here are the ingredients you will need to make the Faux Sugar Plum Martini:
Vodka (whatever brand you have...I had Stoli)
Creme de Cassis
Amaretto
Red Apothic Blend wine
Pomegranate Juice
Sour Mix

Please note that my martini glass holds 10 shots of liquid (yes, I measured it our for you). A typical martini glass holds approximately 4 shots of liquid.  So, my recipe below will make enough for 2 martinis and a little bit extra...hope you have a drinking buddy:)  BTW- my martini glass came from the Dollar Store...

Vodka-         1 shot
Cassis-          3 shots
Amaretto-     1 shot
Wine-           1 shot
Juice-           2 shots
Sour Mix     2 shots

Pour all of your ingredients into a martini shaker that you have already filled with ice.  Shake shake shake and pour into your already rimmed glasses!!

For the rim, you can see I did a regular sugar on it in the picture above.  For some reason, I just didn't like the plain old white sugar.  So, see below...I used honey around the rim and sugar in the raw.  I personally thought this was a much better fit for this martini.

Go ahead and add your gumdrops if you want...I, myself, am not a gumdrop eater so I will skip them.  But, it does make a nice presentation.

Just a quick 'How To'... how to get the sugar to stick to the rim... If you're using plain white sugar, you can just wet the edge of the glass with water (I used a wet paper towel).  Have sugar ready to go on a plate and roll the edge of glass into sugar.
If you're like me and want the crunchier sugar, use honey along the edge of glass as the sugar in the raw won't stick very good with just water.

If you happen to make this, let me know.  Would love to hear how you liked it.

If you have any martinis you want me to try and re-create, just let me know:)  I have no problems with the research!!

Have a great night..er..morning:)


5 comments:

  1. Haven't tried your recipe yet, but thank you for giving me a headstart to recreate the Outback version!

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  2. I tried this tonight and loved it. It was a tad too sweet for my liking so i cut the cassis down from 3 shots to 1 and that seemed to be perfect. Thank you for the recipe! Will definitely make again in the future.

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  3. Honestly, I've been drinking these for a number of years now, long before Outback put them on the menu. If you want a martini without all the extra sweetness, this was the original recipe I had: 1/4 oz Blue Curacao, 1/4 oz Grenadine (mix to make desired shade of purple), 3 oz Grape Vodka and a light splash of tonic. Sugared rim optional. I don't like the sugar or the tonic, and I make these by the pitcher and they are a hit. For cost effectiveness, I buy a large bottle of a cheap grape vodka ($18). I was in a seafood restaurant on the west coast eating fresh caught, perfectly grilled Copper River salmon. The restaurant did not have grape vodka and substituted blueberry. As the waiter brought my drink, several diners asked what the beautiful purple drink was. The blueberry was okay in a pinch, but I prefer the grape vodka. I can't imagine putting sour mix in, Amaretto, Cassis or the pomegranate juice. If this is Outback's version, thank you for the head's up. I won't ever order anything like this! Simplicity is best, and don't add gum drops. It's supposed to be a martini (alcohol) and not overly sweet.

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  4. You are a very talented barista. The cocktail really impresses with its originality. Thank you for sharing recipes with readers. I want to make a cocktail tonight at a party with friends.

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  5. So, I got this drink from outback and loved it. Back in 2014. And I looked up and screen-shot this recipe from your blog. Now I am in 2021 and finally cleaning out my pics and found it. Made it! Very yummy! Thank you!

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