Ampersand Food Groups

2day is National Tequila Day... Check out the TSP Tequila Supreme

This here holiday needs no lengthy introduction as to why it exists or the benefits of partaking in it, it simply is a great day and must be celebrated. Just what are we speaking of you ask? Well today Ladies & Gents, just so happens to be National Tequila Day and with that we must kick a few classic recipes out to our readers as well as a new Libation recipe to get the days events pushing along as planned.

Enjoy!!!

Ingredients:

4 oz Tequila (whatever brand you choose, we suggest Patron or Don Julio)

2 oz Lemon Juice

2 oz Sweet Vermouth

2 ½ tsp Honey

4 dashes Bitters (found in almost every liquor and grocery store)

Crushed Ice

Lemons (washed thoroughly and cut into slices for garnishing)

*Drink Mixer w/ strainer

2 Martini Glasses Chilled

Directions:

Combine tequila, lemon juice and sweet vermouth, honey and bitters in a clean drink mixer / shaker (a previously used one will give this drink an odd flavor, make sure to wash it if you have made other drinks previously to making this cocktail.)

Add ice, cover and shake until the outside of the mixer is cold.

Strain into 2 martini glasses; garnish with lemon twists.

Quick, Easy and Delicious Zucchini & Potato Frittata

Good to the last bite, this Frittata recipe is something of a fantastic nature. Light & fluffy, filled with all sorts of delicious ingredients and easy to put together in literally no time, this is type of dish you need to master for those nights / mornings when someone is sleeping over and you want to impress them with some quick culinary action.

Enjoy.

(Click Read More for the entire recipe)

National Pina Colada Day / Torched Cherry Colada

Ok so the weatherman (no not the great emcee Evidence of Dilated Peoples) said that it would be around 108° today and for the most part, we have to be outside overseeing a few garden projects for the community. With that comes a need for refreshment, and not just any sort of refreshment, something that truly will cool the body down. After being out in the Sun for a few hours, first and foremost, take a shower. No one wants to stand next to the funky cat pouring drinks, even if you are giving em away for free (ok maybe a few people would but that’s another story.) 

So after you are home and all cooled off, fix yourself up a few of these lovely Torched Cherry Coladas and relax in the shade. This recipe is something we hijacked from the great Benihanas of Ontario, California and aren’t ashamed to say its damn good. Now you may be asking yourself why of alldrinks did we choose a Pina Colada? Today just so happens to be National Pina Colada Day and we need don’t need much of a reason to partake in some great Libations and neither should you.

Enjoy!

Torched Cherry Colada

Ingredients:

1 ½ oz Bacardi Torched Cherry Rum

8 Maraschino Cherries (destemmed)
2 oz Coco Lopez®cream of coconut
2 oz pineapple juice
1 cup crushed ice

Pour rum, cream of coconut, pineapple juice and cherries into a blender with one cup of crushed ice.

Blend until smooth & pour into a chilled Collins, cocktail or champagne coupe glass.

Garnish with a slice of pineapple and a maraschino cherry, and serve.

BBQ Jerk Shrimp & Veggie Skewers

Shrimp are great. Fried, grilled, sautéed, broiled, raw (if handled correctly of course) and even boiled the great thing about Shrimp is how they play so well off of just about anything you put them in or next too on a plate. With backyard BBQs breaking out around the globe, we figured now is the perfect time to hit you with a recipe for Jerk Shrimp & Veggie Skewers, that scream “eat us by the pool while consuming massive amounts of alcohol!”

For those of you that don’t want to take the time to skewer the shrimp, you can also use a grill pan, that is safe for use on a BBQ, just lightly spray it with cooking spray before tossing the shrimp & veggies in. The results will be the same, we just love eating food off of a stick like a Savage.

With that said, let us get to work…

(click Read More for the entire Recipe...)

Sparerib 101

 As the 4^th of July draws closer & closer, many people flock to the stores in search of the best Ribs, Chicken & More to get going on that grill they hardly use. One of the most commonly cooked meats is Spareribs, around this time, because they aren’t usually too expensive and you get a good amount of meat compared baby backs that although they taste great, can get rather costly when trying to feed a large group of people.


Just so you don’t get taken advantage of at the counter, Spareribs always mean pork from the belly. A rack of 11 rib bones ideally weighs between 2 and 3 lbs. Spareribs are often sold with a meaty section of the flank attached; when trimmed, they are known as "St. Louis style." 
Now get to Grillin’.