Caesars

The Caesar is a Canadian cocktail similar to the Bloody Mary. I actually didn't realise it was Canadian until Peter and I took a roadtrip to San Francisco and found them missing from the menus. Both Calgary and Edmonton lay claim to having invented the Caesar, but that may just be intercity rivalry. The main difference between the Caesar and Bloody Mary is the clam juice. That may not sound tasty, but the clam in clamato is a subtle taste--that noticeably lacks from a Bloody Mary.

Homemade Caesars are one of Peter's specialties. Usually we just buy Clamato, mix it with vodka, touch up the spices, and garnish with spicy beans. Lately, however, Peter's been tossing around the idea of making our own clamato from scratch. Tonight we tried just that.

To make the clamato shake together:

• 2 14oz. cans of claim juice
• 28 oz. tomato juice
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 5 dashes each celery salt, garlic powder, crushed red chili powder
• 2 "medium drops" of your favourite hot sauce (we used red El Yucateca Picante Habanero)

To make the Caesars:

• Rim a tall glass with celery salt
• Pour 1 oz. vodka (or to strength) over ice
• 2 drops "more than you feel comfortable with" of Worcestershire sauce
• Fill glass with clamato
• Tabasco sauce to taste
• Sprinkle 2 dashes garlic powder, and freshly ground black pepper (Montreal Steak Spice is also a good addition at this point)
• Garnish with spicy pickled beans 
• Remember to stir

These Caesars are a lot fresher tasting than using the store-bought mix that is chock full of salty seasonings and unpronounceable ingredients. Reading the label of the store-bought mix, you could add molasses or sugar to get an ever so slight sweetness. Making Caesars from scratch is more expensive, but considering the fourth ingredient is MSG, I think the few extra dollars you spent is worth it. Ultimately the Caesar is a drink you can adapt to suit your taste for spicy, Worcestershire-saucy, etc. I think for us the next step might be crazier garnishes.

Cheers!