Beverages

This was on the bar at every establishment in New York City during the holidays in the Gay Nineties.

Family: Punches—A very similar recipe for this punch was detailed in 1958 by David Embury, and following his instructions I use [simple syrup—without it, it's far too dry.](<epi:recipeLink id=)

We found this recipe in Jerry Thomas's 1862 How to Mix Drinks or the Bon Vivant's Companion, in a recipe for a single serving. It called for Holland gin—or genever, as we know it today—and was probably a very popular drink. The back story is that when planning our first End of Prohibition party we were searching for punch recipes that could be served in teacups. So we started going through books and shot a few ideas back and forth until we found papa Jerry's recipe. We replaced the genever with Plymouth gin, and with a few more tweaks we got it perfect. The decorative ice block adds a great visual effect.

This is one of our End of Prohibition party special punch recipes and it was adapted from the Philadelphia Fish House punch, which was a favorite of Generals Washington and Lafayette. We replaced the original cognac with our local Laird’s AppleJack and got something fantastic as a result. We use all seasonal fruits for this—a beautiful feature that also makes it extra tasty.

On New Year's Eve 1996, we decided we wanted a warmer place to celebrate, so we jumped on a train to New Orleans, took a paddleboat down the Mississippi, and ate dinner while watching the fireworks. The next day, there was the Sugar Bowl game and the Court of Two Sisters on Royal Street, in the French Quarter, where we went for mimosas and brunch. This routine became a tradition for a few years—but now it doesn't beat toasting in the year with our girls, so we brought the flavors home. This recipe holds a particularly funny memory for us. One year we had a bowl of some of these saucy, spicy shrimp at a restaurant on the pier, just before jumping on the paddleboat. Pat couldn't keep the spoon away from his mouth, and he ended up spilling a tremendous amount of that dark roux down the front of his white sweater. So there he was, sipping champagne and watching the fireworks with a huge stain! He didn't mind a bit.

Chef Nancy Oakes was initially underwhelmed when developing this dish. "The eggs were just poached and a little squishy," she says. "Frying them in breadcrumbs made things more interesting." For maximum crispiness, chill the poached eggs before giving them a pre-fry roll in the egg whites and panko.

Thick and creamy vanilla bean-infused Greek yogurt replaces the usual dollop of whipped cream for a delicious and low-fat dessert.

This slightly sweet side pairs well with pork or chicken, and a serving offers about 3/4 of your daily need for vitamin C.

"Brining the turkey overnight keeps it moist and seasons the interior of the meat," says Lo. "The ingredients, except the cider, are classic 'red-cooking' flavorings used in Chinese cooking to braise and glaze meats like pork or duck." Tent the turkey—especially the wings—with foil if it darkens too quickly while roasting.

Meyer lemons, a cross between lemons and oranges, start to ripen in November. They add a deliciously fragrant sweet-and-sour note to this cocktail.

Herbaceous, nutty, and bright, this rendition of the Prohibition-era classic doubles the gin for a more robust cocktail.

The Pacific Northwest is the birthplace of America's specialty coffee culture, and beyond the coffee shops that dot every street corner of the region, bars have gotten in on the action, mixing locally roasted coffee into cocktails like this one from Seattle bartender Andrew Friedman, which features espresso from Stumptown Coffee Roasters. "Their Hair Bender espresso is so expressive that I thought it deserved to be in a cocktail," says Friedman. Taking inspiration from the classic froth of a flip cocktail, this velvety concoction harmonizes the rich, chocolaty notes of the espresso with vanilla-flecked Navan liqueur. Mandarine Napoléon adds the perfect splash of orangey sweetness.

Wassail is a deeply rooted tradition in the Midwest and a popular regional staple throughout the cold-weather season. Every winter as the holidays approach, many Wisconsinites still take part in the age-old "wassailing of apple trees," a ritual dating back to the fifteenth century that involves sprinkling wassail on apple trees to ensure a strong, healthy harvest and to keep the trees safe from evil spirits. Wassail always blends apples and winter holiday spices, but the sweeteners and spirits often change from recipe to recipe. This version comes from the Rittenhouse Inn in Bayfield, an area that leads apple production in Wisconsin. The cranberry juice is a perfectly tart counterpart to the sweetness of the apple cider and brown sugar, and the bourbon lends a full, rich quality, and the ginger, pepper, and spices offer a final kick of flavor.

In the early 1900s, New York state had more than one thousand stills on local farms. Then Prohibition started in 1920, spelling the legal end for the country's distilleries, both large and small. It took eighty-three years for a New York distillery to pick up the torch, but finally, in 2003, Tuthilltown Spirits launched, becoming New York's first small-batch whiskey distiller since the "Noble Experiment" put everyone out of business. When New York City bartenders Jim Meehan and Karen Fu set out to craft a cocktail that honors their home state, which happens to be the second largest producer of apples in the country, they reached for Tuthilltown's Heart of the Hudson vodka, made from apple cider from local orchards. Muddled Granny Smith apple plus fresh mint and saké give the drink a deliciously fresh, green-apple crispness.

Raspberries are pureed and strained, then the mixture is partially frozen, and, finally, the slush is served in sugar-rimmed glasses. If you prepare the dessert ahead and freeze the mixture until hard, defrost it in the refrigerator for an hour or so before serving, to achieve the desired silky consistency. Individually quick frozen (IQF) berries, available year-round at most supermarkets, are generally of high quality and have been picked at the peak of ripeness and frozen without sugar. If fresh raspberries are in season, of course, you can use them.

Artichokes have more sodium than most vegetables but should nevertheless be enjoyed from time to time. Choose artichokes that squeak when you squeeze them. This recipe, inspired by Martha Rose Shulman, makes butter dunking sauce unnecessary.

The vanilla sapote is misnamed since it is actually not a member of the sapote family but a member of the citrus family. Vanilla sapotes, also called white sapotes, are green on the outside with pale ivory flesh. The green sapote (a true sapote) is green on the outside and orange on the inside. Look for vanilla sapotes at Latin markets and specialty produce stores.

Editor's note: This recipe appears as part of our editors' Christmas Cookie Swap, 10 beloved holiday recipes from the editors of Epicurious and Gourmet Live. These bite-sized cookie balls are made of all the best things: ground vanilla wafers, ground pecans, confectioner's sugar, white Karo syrup, and good bourbon whiskey.

Our
Ramos Gin Fizz cocktail video gives you step-by-step instructions for mixing this classic drink