Jam Session

By Chilled Magazine

Jars of Jams

Jars of Jams

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Using Homemade Jams in Cocktails

For bartender Karen Grill, what started as cooking jams for friends evolved into making jam for cocktails. As Beverage Program Director and GM at Sassafras Saloon in Los Angeles, Grill constantly seeks out new ways to add flavor depth to her cocktails. Her current menu highlights the allure of New Orleans with its sultry gulf coast heat and rich culinary traditions. In New Orleans, people wake up and ask themselves, “What am I going to eat today?” So, it’s only natural that something like homemade jam would make its way from the dining table to the cocktail glass.

Blackberry Jam

Blackberry Jam

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In approaching her drinks menu, Grill says, “My recipes always start with a flavor profile that I’m interested in or a combination of flavors I’m looking to try out and they sort of grow from there.” Her Sweet Ti, inspired by the ubiquitous sweet iced tea found across the South, marries the funkiness of Rhum JM with the herbal quality of Art in the Age Sage and the bitterness of Amaro Montenegro. The blackberry jam , which has been strained through a Chinois to create a thick, but mixable fruit base, adds the required sweetness, but grounds the drink because of the inherent woodiness and richness of the berry.

Tomato Sauce

Tomato Sauce

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In her drink The Garden District, tomato-balsamic jam takes center stage. Her suggestions when using vegetables or more savory fruits in jams? She cautions, “For vegetable-based jams, like my tomato/balsamic/thyme jam, you want to highlight the natural sweetness in the vegetable that sometimes gets lost or forgotten about. Vegetable-based cocktails usually tend to lean towards herbaceous where I like to add some sugar and citrus peel to amplify the flavor.”

Why does Grill like jams so much? “Jam adds a beautiful velvety texture to a cocktail and adds a punch of bright, fruitiness for spring and summer imbibing,” she says.

“It became part of the program here at Sassafras when I realized how versatile I could be with them and how they fit into the Southern concept here.” Just as cooking for those you love is a sign of hospitality in New Orleans, Grill’s drinks welcome guests with not only Southern, but a uniquely Southern Californian flair.”

Sassafras Sweet Ti

Sassafras Sweet Ti

Photo Courtesy of Sassafras

Sweet Ti

Ingredients:

  • 3/4 oz. Lime juice
  • 3/4 oz. Blackberry jam (recipe follows)
  • 1/4 oz. Art in the Age Sage liqueur
  • 1/2 oz. Montenegro Amaro
  • 1 1/2 oz. Rhum JM Blanc

Preparation: Add all ingredients to a small ball jar, add crushed ice and swizzle. Garnish with a lime wheel and a paper straw

For Blackberry Jam: Add 1 cup evaporated cane sugar, 2 pints fresh blackberries, 2 lemon peels, 2 tablespoons water to a pot. Heat all ingredients on high heat until it reduces by one half. Push ingredients through a china-cap strainer to remove most solids, and allow to cool in a sealed jar. Keep refrigerated.


Sassafras Garden District

Sassafras Garden District

Photo Courtesy of Sassafras

The Garden District

Courtesy of Karen Grill, Beverage Director, Sassafras Saloon, Los Angeles

Ingredients:

  • 3/4 oz. Lemon juice
  • 3/4 oz. Tomato-balsamic jam (recipe follows)
  • 1/4 oz. Ginger syrup
  • 1/2 oz. Ancho Reyes liqueur
  • 1 1/2 oz. Altos Reposado tequila
  • Sprig of thyme, for garnish

Preparation: Add all ingredients to a small ball jar, add crushed ice and swizzle Garnish with a sprig of fresh thyme and a striped paper straw

For Tomato-Balsamic Jam: Macerate 6 Roma tomatoes and add to a pot with 1 sprig of thyme, 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar, 1/2 cup evaporated cane sugar, dash of lemon juice, and dash of smoked paprika. Heat on high heat until mixture reduces by one half and let cool in a sealed jar. Keep refrigerated.

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