SET yourself up for a romantic evening at home this Valentine’s Day, because why not? Making a restaurant booking is easy. Creating the perfect evening yourself is something special and is sure to score you a few extra points!
The beautiful thing about Angostura aromatic bitters is that it adds an extra depth of flavour with just a few dashes, whether you’re using it in cocktails or in the kitchen. Not surprisingly, you can play ingredients off each other in savoury dishes and desserts exactly as you would in a drink.
The Perfect Serve
Welcome your better half with a drink so divine you’ll be getting starry eyes from them for days.
Rosé Champagne Cocktail: Place a sugar cube at the bottom of a champagne glass and soak in 2 – 3 dashes of Angostura aromatic bitters. Fill the glass with a chilled Brut Rosé MCC and pop in a maraschino cherry (pictured above).
Monkey Shoulder Cherry Manhattan: In a shaker with lots of chunky ice, add two parts Monkey Shoulder whisky, one part sweet vermouth, ½ part orange flavoured liqueur and two dashes of Angostura aromatic bitters. Stir gently with a long teaspoon until the shaker feels cold. Then strain into a chilled Martini glass and garnish with a maraschino cherry.
To Start
Blow their socks off with Lemon Garlic Prawns
Combine ⅓ cup olive oil, the grated peel of one large lemon, ¼ cup lemon juice, ¼ cup chopped parsley, two crushed garlic cloves, 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon hot sauce and 1 tablespoon Angostura aromatic bitters. Peel and devein prawns leaving the tails on. Then add the prawns to the marinade and stir to coat. Cover and refrigerate of 1½ hours. Drain prawns and thread on skewers. Broil for 3-5 minutes or until cooked through. Serve with your choice of zesty sauce, or none at all.
Enter the Entrée
Everyone loves a good homemade (Fiesta) Burger. Give it a twist with a few dashes of bitters.
Place ±500g lean ground beef in a medium size bowl. In a small bowl stir together ¼ cup dry breadcrumbs, 1 tablespoon chilli powder, ½ teaspoon ground cumin, ½ teaspoon origanum and ½ teaspoon salt. Then stir in ½ cup finely chopped onion and three puréed garlic cloves. Sprinkle these mixed ingredients over the meat in two batches, cutting into meat with the side of a large spoon. Whisk together egg and Angostura aromatic bitters and drizzle over meat, once again cutting it in with a spoon. Form the meat into balls, squash into patties and place on a lightly greased baking tray. Bake for 16-18 minutes at 200°C.
You know how to do the rest – buns, lettuce, tomato, onion, mushrooms, cheese, chilli, pineapple, avo… whatever your – and your loved one’s – heart desires.
Seal the Deal
Forget chocolate sauce and ice-cream, try this Angostura Bitters Mousse. They’ll melt at the sight of it!
Whisk two egg yolks and ½ tablespoon of Angostura aromatic bitters together and set aside. Whisk cream until thick peaks form and place in the fridge. Then melt 150g white or milk chocolate. Fold the egg yolk mixture into the melted chocolate and then fold in the cream.
Make sure you do this one the day before because it will need to be refrigerated overnight.
Deliciously quick and easy, it will be your best Valentine’s Day yet.
For more bittered food and drink recipes visit www.angosturabitters.com
