Category Archives: Potpourri

After the wine, the great thing about the Okanagan Valley are the fruit stands. They’re everywhere, and this time of year they are spilling over with plump peaches, tangy nectarines, juicy apricots, sweet cherries and ripe plums. Everywhere you go in the valley, and even over the pass into the Similkameen Valley en route to Vancouver from Osoyoos, there are orchards and fruit stands. It’s hard to fathom coming from Calgary, where we’re lucky to grow tiny carrots and mint.

Not sure why we’re not supposed to squeeze the peaches. Isn’t that how we find out if they’re ripe?

High: Samosas. One word: Omyomyom. Yes, this is a post about fresh fruit, but the bonus at many fruits stands are these deep-fried Indian-style empanadas. Stuffed with potatoes, peas, curry and cauliflower, we plowed through 10 in no time. The obvious question is, why would fruit stands sell samosas? Evidently, many fruit farms are owned by east Indian immigrant families, which explains it.

Low: The winding road. It went on and on and on (as we invariably got stuck behind slow-moving RVs), and now we know why people complain about Highway 3 between Osoyoos and Vancouver.

Outcome: Don’t feel guilty about stopping at three (or more) different fruit stands. The haul will get eaten.

Some years ago on vacation in the Dominican Republic we discovered the tastiest of cocktails at the swim-up bar: the Coco Loco. The bartender whipped up a bunch of booze and, presumably, coconut milk, and served it to us in a fresh coconut with a straw poking out of a hole in the top. The drink was so yummy — and free (hello, all-inclusive!) — the next thing we knew we’d ordered a couple more and were “loco” (Spanish for crazy) from the coco in no time.

This is how they serve them in the Caribbean. In Canada, a wine glass works fine.

I had no idea what the other ingredients in a Coco Loco might be, but I guessed rum was involved. So when I received a bottle of Malibu’s original coconut flavoured rum I decided to try and replicate the DR’s deliciousness at home.

I discovered that Coco Loco recipes vary widely. Some call for vodka in addition to rum (for a Coco muy Loco), others include creme de bananas and still more omit the pineapple altogether. I settled for a recipe featuring  amaretto, hoping to capture that sweet, slightly nutty flavour I recalled.

While my version is pretty good — sweet, tart pineapple and creamy coconut with a hint of almonds — I liked the DR Coco Loco better. Must be the coconut cup!

I like Malibu in this drink instead of regular light rum. It adds an extra “coconuttiness” and makes up for the lack of coconut cream.

Coco Loco

• 1-1/2 oz Malibu
• 1/2 oz amaretto
• 2 oz coconut cream (I used canned coconut milk)
• 1 oz  simple syrup
• 1/2 cup fresh pineapple (or 1 oz pineapple juice)
• 6 ice cubes

Combine ingredients in a blender and puree until smooth and frothy. Pour into a wine glass (or hollowed-out coconut) and garnish with a pineapple wedge.

I will never tire of twists on my favourite cocktail, the margarita. I like them with prickly pear syrup, grapefruit juice or a splash of O.J., and last year I was  particularly enamoured with the Pineapple Ginger Margarita from Earl’s. Today I bring you a Blackberry Margarita, whose star ingredients are tequila, blackberry liqueur or Chambord, and lime juice.

Pretty in purple, the blackberry margarita tastes good too.

Blackberries are just coming into season and I figured their sweet-tart taste would complement the bite of tequila and tang of lime. The colour is lovely too. We have loads of fresh mint in several containers just waiting for a mojito party; sadly, with a flood-ravaged basement, that summer day may never come. Instead, I am  looking for different ways to add mint to cocktails. With tequila, it’s a bit unorthodox, but what the heck (if I’d had fresh blackberries on hand I would have muddled some in as well). In this cocktail the mint flavour is subtle, but as a garnish the aroma is enticing on the nose. And it makes for a pretty picture, no? Altogether this drink is good and just gets better as the ice melts.

You really can’t go wrong with fresh mint, either muddled in your blackberry margarita, or as a pretty garnish (or both).

Blackberry Margarita

• 1-1/2 oz reposado tequila
• 1/2 oz blackberry liqueur
• 3/4 oz fresh-squeezed lime juice
• 1/2 oz agave nectar
• 6-8 mint leaves plus mint sprig for garnish
• Salt for rim

Rim a margarita glass with salt and fill with crushed ice. Muddle the mint leaves in the base of a cocktail shaker, then add the tequila, blackberry liqueur, lime juice and agave nectar. Add ice and shake, then strain into the margarita glass and garnish with the mint sprig.