Last night, as we were making some gazpacho for dinner, Meredith and I discussed what to do with the leftover tomato juice. Naturally, our first thought was to bring booze into the mix.

We’re currently vodka-less (well, we do have some Van Gogh Dutch Caramel and some Pinnacle Whipped Cream, but those would be pretty nasty with tomato juice), so I said “What about using some Hendrick’s Gin? It’s cucumber-y, which pairs nicely with the tomato, and we actually have it here.”

We didn’t really get much further with the discussion, because then it was time to eat the gazpacho.

But here I am today, trawling the depths of the internet looking for tasty drink recipes for you guys, and look what I found on Liqurious: Blood-less Bloody Mary’s!

My first thought was “wouldn’t it be more accurate to call them Plasma Mary’s?” Turns out that that’s exactly what Punk Domestics did. Smart cookies!

Plasma Mary

To make tomato water without going through the rigors of canning 100 pounds of tomatoes, simply blitz a few tomatoes in a food processor just enough to break them down, then strain through a few layers of cheesecloth.

2 oz tomato water
1 oz cucumber-infused vodka
1/4 oz (1-1/2 tsp) lemon juice
dash hot sauce
Spicy salted rim (see below)

For the rim, combine roughly equal portions of kosher salt, chili powder and ground cumin. (If you want a finer texture, use table salt or give the kosher salt a whir in a food processor for a second or two.) Dip the rim of the glass in water or vodka, lift directly out, hold the glass (still inverted) in the air for a couple seconds, then rest it into the spice mix.

Mix the remaining ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice. Stir aggressively to chill. (Stirring gives it a thicker consistency and doesn’t introduce air bubbles into the cocktail.) Strain into the rimmed cocktail glass. Garnish with lemon wheel or cucumber round.

Ed. note: For instructions on making your own cucumber-infused vodka, click the link above. Alternatively, you could also probably find a ready-made cucumber vodka at finer liquor stores — but where’s the fun in that?

(Via Liqurious, by way of Punk Domestics)

I love salads. Actually, no, I LOVE salads. Big, dirty salads with every kind of garden veggie present, drizzled with a nice Italian or vinaigrette. But the star of a salad, for me, is always always always the tomato. So it stands to reason that in the absence of lettuce, carrots, celery, etc, a simple Caprese insalata will always be a great, simple alternative: tomatoes, mozzarella, fresh basil and balsamic reduction.

As the weather’s been cooling off, it’s made me crave tomatoes even more, knowing the really awesome in-season ones at the store and from my garden won’t be around much longer.

So what better way to send off the wondrous fruit until next summer than a toast with a tomato-based martini?

This recipe is from TasteOfOregon.com, and originally called a tomato martini, but I feel like that conjures images of something akin to a Bloody Mary, rather than the crisp, clean light cocktail pictured above. To obtain the tomato water called for, check out the following from Saveur.

To make:

Mix 2 parts tomato water with 1 part vodka (I bet a cucumber-infused vodka would be great with this, or perhaps Hendrick’s gin, which has a subtle cucumber flavor) in a chilled martini glass
Rub rim of glass with fresh basil leaf
Garnish with cocktail spear containing grape tomatoes, bite-sized fresh mozzarella ball, and fresh basil leaves

This recipe is pretty open to modification; I think a very teensy drizzle of reduced balsamic vinegar would be a nice addition—feel free to add your own!

For vegans, I think Teese vegan mozzarella is the best bet as a non-dairy alternative to the real thing, as the logs it comes in are most conducive to converting into balls. For the authentic look and flavor, try using a small melon-baller and soaking the balls in some lemon-water for a few minutes before garnishing.

(Via Liqurious.com)