marymc

This one has always been a big hit when I've made it! I usually
start it in October to give it for holiday gifts. If you want to
know the origin of the name, the story is at
http://www.casagordita.com/caroline.htm

This recipe originally appeared in _Gourmet Magazine_, but I've
tinkered with it enough to call it my own creation. I'm using less
simple syrup here than they did, and their version called for twice
as much brandy and no rum. I've adjusted the amounts of the spices,
too. Sometimes I've added just a touch of chocolate liqueur. You
might want to play around with it to suit your own tastes.


Caroline Cogswell's Celebrated Morning Tonic

2 cups granulated sugar
1 cup water
6 Tbsp instant coffee crystals
1 vanilla bean, split
5-10 whole cloves
10 whole allspice
2 1-inch pieces cinnamon stick
1 cup dark rum
1 cup brandy

Make simple syrup by heating sugar and water in a heavy saucepan,
stirring to mix. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until sugar
is dissolved, about 3 minutes. Add instant coffee and spices and
remove from heat. Cool. Add rum and brandy and pour into a glass or
ceramic container (not metal or plastic). Cap tightly or cover
tightly with plastic wrap. Steep for three weeks in a cool, dark
place, shaking or swirling around in the container every three days
or so.

Strain out the spices and discard. Line a funnel, a sieve or a coffee
cone with a dampened coffee filter and pour the liqueur through.
Change the filter regularly. This is a SLOW process! After filtering,
cover tightly and age another three or four weeks (or more--the
longer it ages, the better it gets). Makes about 4 cups.

Note #1--If you're multiplying the recipe, you will still want to
steep it in containers no bigger than about a quart, dividing the
spices up between them. The flavor doesn't seem to develop as well in
bigger containers. I've bought a box of quart canning jars that I
re-use every year.

Note #2--When I make this for holiday gifts, I make such a
quantity--seven or eight times this recipe--I'd get old and gray
waiting for it to dribble through a paper coffee filter. So I
invested around $20.00 in a gold-plated permanent coffee filter (look
for them in a gourmet coffee or kitchen store). The results might be
a bit more cloudy, but I think it's still perfectly acceptable and
it's MUCH faster.
--

Mary McGhee
marymc11@mindspring.com

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