The Best Damn Bloody Mary

Weekend afternoons at our house are one of my favorite things these days. The sun comes in through the kitchen window just right. The neighborhood is the perfect combination of lively and quiet. We do things like plant, hang, lounge, bake, craft, create, and nap. Lately, it's been particularly delightful. With the cooler weather comes open windows and patio chilling. And now that our house is pretty well together, I hope to have more daytime visitors.

This past weekend, Dale and I saw friends who were in from out of town. Rather than go out for brunch, we decided to make a Saturday afternoon feast of sorts. We had fresh coffee, Chemexed by Dale, which is a treat for me since most mornings I make it myself, and it's just never quite as good. We also had a veggie-loaded frittata with zucchini, mushrooms, tomatoes, and things. I made some butternut squash pancakes with buckwheat and oat flours. And Dale made these damn delicious Bloody Marys. Because my friend can't eat gluten (unless she wants to pass out and feel like poop), everything we made was gluten-free, including the Bloody Marys. It's sort of weird to me that Worcestershire sauce is not gluten-free and is typically not vegan either, so Dale left it out and came up with this amazing concoction, which I have officially declared my favorite Bloody Mary of all time. We found the cutest gluten-free salami sticks at Whole Foods, which we used to garnish. These Bloody Marys fit in perfectly with the rest of our epic brunch, with the chatting, and with the porch sitting, perfect weather afternoon.

The Best Damn Bloody Mary
makes 6 - 8 servings

Bloody Mary mix
zest of 1 lime
juice of 2 limes
zest of 1 lemon
juice of 3 lemons
12 fresh tarragon leaves
1 tsp ground celery seed
2 1/2 Tbsp horseradish
2 Tbsp whole grain dijon mustard
2 1/2 Tbsp hot sauce
2 Tbsp black olive brine
2 tsp angostura bitters
Pinch caraway seeds
46 fl oz tomato juice
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt (or to taste)
1 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper (or to taste)

Garnishes
pickled okra, halved
radishes, quartered
green olives
salami

1 1/2 oz vodka per serving or 9 - 12 oz. vodka total (adjust as necessary for individual preference)

Place all ingredients for the mix in a blender in the order listed. Blend on high until all ingredients are pulverized and thoroughly combined. Transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate until ready to serve. In 12 - 16 oz cup, combine 1 1/2 oz vodka and approximately two cups of mix (or enough to suit your tastes). Add a few cubes of ice and garnishes on a toothpick or skewer. Happy weekend!