Yea, I finally got my latest Saveur magazine. As I was digging in, I saw a little blurb about a place in England that makes traditional cordials. Apparently they were originally started because all the men were drinking too much and was a way get them them to stop. Then there was a little recipe for a Ginger Cordial. I had to try it thinking it would make a great kiddie cocktail.

Ginger Cordial
2 cups sugar
1 water
4 inch piece of ginger chopped
Mince rind from 1 lemon
1 cup fresh lemon juice (I just used the juice from 2 lemons)

In a pot, add the sugar, water, ginger and lemon rind. Heat to a boil until the sugar dissolves. Add the lemon juice and boil for 1 more minute. Strain into a glass jar and let cool.

Of course with the carnival going on in my head, I had to wonder how else I could change it. I ended up adding a handful of chopped mint to the boiling brew. Strained. Mixed it with club soda and let my official taster try.

I guess I'll be making this again

One of the blogs I follow is from a person on the South Side of Chicago. He recently posted about his sausage week and Oktoberfest. I thought that would be a cool tradition to start too. Well... the first annual Sausagefest got off to a slow start but still had fun. Tried to get several of my friends over but only one could make it.

I stuck pretty much to the three different versions of sausages I normally make; saucisse de Toulouse, saucisse de Ratatoullie and Lemon & Rosemary sausage. Saucisse de Toulouse is a mild French sausage that you can't find here in the US but is fantastic with green lentils. The last two are ones that we've come up with over the years. About 2 years ago I was making sausage when my daughter wanted to make one too.... that is where saucisse de Ratatouille came from. We were at the Spice House and she had to have the Ratalouille seasoning. The lemon & rosemary sausage was borne out of a failed attempt at something I had no idea what I was trying to create.

saucisse de Ratatouille
4 lbs pork (I normally use the shoulder)
1 1/2 lbs pork back fat
2 tbls of Ratatouille Seasoning from the Spice House
2 tbls salt (I use pickling salt)
1 tbls fennel

Lemon & Rosemary Sausage
4 lbs pork shoulder
1 lbs pork back fat
Graded rind from 1 lemon
2 tbls salt
2 tbls chopped rosemary
1 tsp Cardamon

saucisse de Toulouse recipe is here

Cut both the pork and back fat into 1 inch cubes. Add the ingredients into a bowl and mix. I use the meat grinding attachment for my Kitchen Aid and find it works great. Now start grinding.

Once all the meat is ground, mix it lightly so all the ingredients are spread out evenly but the pork and fat are not mashed together. At this point you will want cook some in a pan to taste making sure of the flavor. It's easier to adjust it at this point.

What I'm stuffing this into are 35mm natural casings from the Sausage Maker. These are preserved in salt and will last forever in the refrigerator. They will have to be soaked in water for about 20 to 30 minutes and then rinsed. I made that mistake the first time and it was a bear! Now comes the fun part of stuffing.

From my understanding, the vertical stuffers are the best to use. If you use the Kitchen Aid stuffer attachment, it will warm up the fat and melt it and that is a no no. This one I picked up at Amazon and works well... not the best but works. Using lots of water to lubricate the casings, feed them on to the stuffing tube. Fill the stuffer with your meat and slowly begin to stuff. You can do it with one person but two is easier and more fun. Have the casings come off the stuffer into a try with water in the bottom. This will help the sausage slide around. When done, twist into the desired length,

Now comes the fun part..... eating with your family and friends! Honey... can you clean up for me?