Happy Hour!  But every hour is happy at Blackened Brvnch!

This month’s cocktail is called ‘Roselle’.  Roselle is another name for the hibiscus flower.

And… this week’s cocktail is extra eco-exciting because it includes freshly created soda water by SodaStream.  From here on out, this Eco-Bartender no longer has to create bottle waste by purchasing soda water.

1 1/2 oz. Puro Verde organic silver tequila

1 oz fresh Asian pear juice (made from NY state pears purchased at Union Square Green Market)

1/2 oz. organic lemon juice

1/4 oz. homemade hibiscus syrup

1 oz. soda water

ice

To see the full recipe live visit Puro Verde.

Here at The Blackened Brvnch, we like our guests to be able to express their creativity by fixing up their own plates (like our highly successful Breakfast Burrito Bar), so when we decided to make crepes, to go along with Kyle’s wonderfully fresh and spring-like Roselle cocktail, throwing a bunch of various fillings and toppings at our guests sounded like a grand idea. We started with a basic vegan crepe:

ingredients

• 1/2 cup soy milk
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/4 cup melted soy margarine (we use Earth Balance)
• 1 tablespoon turbinado (fancy word for raw) suar
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup
• 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

instrux

1. In a large mixing bowl, blend the soy milk, water, margarine, sugar, syrup, flour and salt. Cover and chill the mixture for at least 2 hours. And try to resist eating it all right on the spot (Rika and have to constantly restrain ourselves. You’re welcome.)
2. When you’re ready to go, lightly grease a 5 to 6 inch skillet with some soy margarine. Heat the skillet until hot. Then pour about 3 tablespoons of batter into the skillet. Swirl to make it cover the bottom and cook until golden. Flip and cook on opposite side.

MAKES: 4 crepes
CREDIT: AllRecipes.com

For the rest of your sweet ‘n savory crepe bar:

• Mushroom Bits Filling
• Sweet ‘n Savory Filling
• Fresh Fruit (we used blueberries, blackberries, strawberries and bananas)
• Field Roast Soyrizo, sliced and cooked until heated through on the stove, with a little thyme thrown on
• Fresh greens for garnish

Lay everything out in serving bowls and let your guests have at it!

The Saturday of the weekend of our February brvnch, I went to Yaffa Cafe for brunch with some friends. Yaffa is a very special place for me. The summers I interned in the city, I lived a mere five blocks from there, and every Saturday night, at 4 a.m., I’d stumble in with my friends, where inevitably an Israeli waiter named Shai would play us The Cure and bring us free tiramisu. 

But the first time we went to Yaffa, while we were exploring our new neighborhood, was during a weekend brunch, and we fell in love with their crepes. And I fell in love again when I was back there in February. This partially inspired this months crepe bar ‘n fillings. 

ingredients

• 2 bags frozen mixed mushrooms (you can use fresh ones, or choose your favorite kinds)
• 1 bag frozen spinach or 1 bunch fresh spinach
• 2 large yellow onions, chopped
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder or minced garlic
• 2 teaspoons cumin
• 1 teaspoon salt

instrux

1. Take your frozen bits out and let them thaw for an hour or two before you’re ready to cook them up.
2. In a large pan or wok, heat up a little olive oil on low-med heat, then toss in the onions and sautee them for 3-5 minutes. 
3. Add in your frozen mushrooms and garlic (if you’re using minced garlic) If you’re using fresh mushrooms, add about 1/3 cup of water in, as well. You want the filling to be a little juicy. 
4. Once the frozen mushrooms have thawed, add in your spinach, along with the salt, cumin and garlic (if you’re using the powder).
5. Keep on medium heat, stirring every once in a while, until everything is heated through. Add more water if it starts to stick. 
6. Once everything is good and mixed in, transfer to a serving bowl. 

MAKES: Enough for 10 crepes (cut down if you need to!)
CREDIT: Meghan Louttit

For our vegan crepes we want to have options between savory and sweet, and our sauces needed to reflect that! Thank you, Internet, for letting me stumble onto Vegan Yack Attack, which had two very awesome crepe filling recipes tested and waiting.

CREAMY CASHEW FILLING

ingredients

• 3/4 cup raw cashews (soak for 2 hours, or boil with a little salt and turmeric, on low, for 30 min-hour)
• 1/3 cup water
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• Pinch of salt

instrux

1. In a high-speed blender or food processor blend together the soaked cashews, water, maple syrup, vanilla, cinnamon and sea salt.
2. *If your blend burns out on you while you’re making this, it still tastes delicious even if it’s a little chunky!

CHOCOLATE FILLING

ingredients

• 1/3 cup vegan chocolate chips (huge fan of Ghirandelli)
• 2 tablespoons unsweetened coconut milk (we used almond milk)
• 1/2 teaspoon coconut oil (we used vegetable oil)

instrux

1. Using the double boiling technique, with a water-filled pot and empty glass bowl, melt the chocolate chips down.
2. Once the chips are starting to melt, introduce the coconut milk and oil into the mixture and stir until they are fully combined and have a sauce-like consistency. Let it cool for a couple of minutes.

MAKES: Enough for 4 crepes
CREDIT: Vegan Yack Attack

Somehow, Kyle always knows just what we need. For February, he smartly whipped up this concoction of pineapple-y sweetness to help balance out our heavy meal. This version was served with gin, but you could use any liguor (preferably organic, though!). All the ingredients in this cocktail were freshly juiced. 

ingredients

• 1 1/2 oz TRU Organic Gin
• 1 oz. pineapple juice
• 1/2 oz. lemon
• 1/2 oz. dry vermouth
• 1/2 oz ginger and cardamom infused agave simple syrup

^ for the agave syrup

• Fresh ginger
• Dried cardamom pods
• Light agave

Water

instrux

1. Make the syrup by blending water with the ginger and cardamom. Then add to the light agave at a one-to-one ratio.
2. Combine all the ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake and strain contents into a glass over fresh ice.
3. Garnish with a lemon twist or a fresh piece of pineapple.

CREDIT: Kyle Bullen, the Eco-Bartender

*Note: When possible use a juicer to extract the juice from a fresh pineapple (one pineapple makes a little less than a quart of juice). If a juicer is not accessible then a bottle of organic pineapple juice will also work.