It was said in “The red book of the West Indies” by A MacMilian that “Without the Angostura bitters the aperitif would loose its charm and aroma, and many of the most popular “pick-me-ups” would cease to be, for its the Angostura Bitters that give them piquancy, potency and individuality. They are the magic drops that blend sweets and acids into an exquisite harmony of taste and odour.”
Today we have a whole range of bitters of which many i haven`t had the chance to try yet but look forward to experiment with, as soon as i can lay my hands on them. In this post i will share some fruit treats that i have made with the regular Angostura bitters, enjoy!
ANGOSTURA GRAPEFRUIT
Based on a recipe from 1934 this is my version of the Angostura grapefruit, the original recipe calls for a yellow grapefruit, a dash of Angostura bitters and a maraschino cherry. I didn`t find any other grapefruit but the pink one but on the other hand that´s the one i like the most:
Take one grapefruit and cut in half. Place the grapefruit halve on ice in a dessert glass or plate. Dash Angostura bitters on top of the fruit. Place a maraschino cherry in the middle.
I don`t like those red maraschino abominations that are in the shop so i make my own, (there are different recipes out there, just google..) they are not so red but they are tasty and they are all natural. This is a nice little treat, and the Angostura bitters gives depth to the grapefruit.
SCORCHED ANGOSTURA & LEMON HART 151 DEMERARA RUM PINEAPPLE
Another nice little fruit treat with Angostura is with Pineapple. I usually serve my pineapple like in the pictures but this time i decided to brulee the Pineapple.
The Pineapple is scorched with a mix of Angostura bitters and Lemon Hart 151 rum. Start cutting a Pineapple in two and then cut the halves again so you get four. Then cut in between the fruit and the skin so the fruit is loose and cut away the hard core in the middle. Cut bite size pieces and arrange them as in the picture. Sprinkle some Demerara sugar on top.
Now i wanted to scorch this pineapple and bruleè the demerara sugar with my spraybottle with the mix through a flame over the fruit. Just like i did with my Campari Sunset Cocktail and its of course all inspired by the beautifully scorched Pisco Sour and the awesome Rosewater Rickey.
So after a quick scorching the fruit looked like this.Then for topping i used some of the coconut chips leftovers from my Coconaut and chopped them.
The flavor of the Angostura bitters and rum were subtle but it was there and the Pineapple was deliscious.
TRINITY COCKTAIL (1934)
3 dashes Angostura bitters
1/3 Gin
1/3 French Vermouth
1/3 Italian Vermouth
Twisted lemon peel
And then a last recipe. I found this in the booklet “Angostura bitters and its many uses” from 1934, By Dr J.G.B Siegert&Sons Ltd. The combination of equal amounts ( 1 liqueur glass) of Angostura bitters and syrup reminds me of the Trinidad Especial.
