Blended Bebida
“There are a few key things to bear in mind with blended drinks. Try to have everything cold when it goes into the blender; dropping room-temperature ingredients on ice will just cause it to melt and you’ll be left with a runny drink. About 250 g (1 cup) of ice per drink is good. Because the cold numbs your flavour receptors, you can pump up the sweetness more than you usually would in a drink, otherwise they taste thin. You also want to keep an eye on how much booze is in there because of alcohol’s lower freezing point; too much and it won’t freeze. Here I have used Pear and chamomile puree, but any puree or frozen fruit can be used to flavour all manner of spirits. If using fresh fruit, chop it and stick it in the freezer for a few hours before using. I have done this recipe per drink, but you can scale it up with as much as will fit in your blender.” - Cara Devine
SERVES 1
60ml blanco tequila
30ml Pear and chamomile puree (see below)
15ml sugar syrup (see note)
30ml lime juice
250g (1 cup) ice
dehydrated pear, to garnish
Pear and chamomile puree
500g pears
100ml honey, to taste (try to use a lighter-flavoured honey, or use half regular honey half sugar if you don’t want the honey flavour to take over)
100ml brewed chamomile tea
pinch salt
½ tsp ascorbic or citric acid (optional)
Method - Working as quickly as possible, add all of your chilled ingredients to the blender with ice. Start blending slowly then go to full speed. As soon as all the ice is blended, stop. Otherwise, you may overheat your drink. Pour into your glass and garnish with dehydrated pear.
Non-alcoholic option - Use a fruit juice like grapefruit or watermelon in place of the spirit.
Note - Orange liqueur would work as well as sugar syrup here, but you will need to decrease the tequila to 45ml to lower the booze.
Pear and chamomile puree
“At Bomba, the bar I managed for many years, one of the best-selling drinks is the ‘Bomba Bellini’. The original Bellini is made with peach puree and prosecco and is, of course, delicious, but they’ve taken that template and switched it up with more seasonal fruit purees, and often with another flavour layered in there as well. It’s a perfect example of the premise of this book: using seasonal and affordable ingredients to put a spin on your drinks. This recipe is one of my favourite versions of puree to use in the Bellini format.”
Prep - If you’re using fresh pears, wait until they are properly ripe or poach them lightly beforehand so they are soft enough to blend easily. Peel, core and chop them roughly. Otherwise, you can use tinned pears, but look for ones in juice rather than syrup (or replace the sugar in the recipe with syrup from the tin to taste; you won’t need much as the pear flesh will already be sweet). Brew the chamomile tea according to the packet instructions. You can use either loose leaf or a teabag, just remove it before blending. Warm the honey slightly so it is pourable.
Method - Add everything to the blender and blitz until smooth. The puree will be thicker than a syrup or a shrub but should still be pourable. You can add the tea in stages, if you like, to make sure you achieve the desired texture. Store in a sealed container in the fridge for a week, or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Try instead - Peaches or apples fit easily into this recipe with the honey and chamomile, but we switch it up with all sorts of seasonal fruit and matching accent flavours throughout the year.
Pairs well with - Sparkling wine! But also vodka, London Dry or contemporary gin, lighter rum, blanco tequila, brandy and whiskies.
This is an edited extract from Behind the Home Bar by Cara Devine, published by Hardie Grant Books. Available in stores nationally from the 1st of July. NZD RRP $36.99. Photography by Gareth Sobey.
