Just about the time the early settlers to North America were on the verge of starvation during terrible winters in those first years at Jamestown, the native tribes came to the colonists’ rescue with meat and corn and berries. Cranberries to be exact, or as the Algonquians called them, “sassamanash.”
It is safe to say that the first Thanksgiving featured these savory little items, native to New England, and the rest is history. Of course, if there had been a New Orleans back then – and if they had bothered to ask the denizens of our community – no doubt they would have learned how to incorporate the fruit into a distilled or fortified or vinified beverage of some type.
So, while we may be a bit late with this advice to Captain John Smith and his best gal Pocahontas, and in the spirit of this season, we now offer the recipe for the ultimate Cosmo, created at one our community’s legendary martini bars, The Bombay Club in the Prince Conti Hotel in the French Quarter.
Note the use of two early American fruit staples, cranberries and apples. Oh, and thanks to the Swedes for their invaluable contribution.
The Cranapple Cosmo
2 ounce Absolute Citron Vodka
1 ounce Applekorn
1 ounce cranberry juice cocktail
Mix ingredients in a stainless steel shaker with ice, shake vigorously and strain into a martini glass. Garnish with a twist of lemon.
