Cooking With Booze Cookbook

Vital Stats:

Where were you born? Ryan: Hamilton, ON--raised in Caledonia

David: Scotland (Stirling) moved to Stratford Ontario in 1982.

How old are you? Ryan: 29

David: 32...Ryan may be younger but I'm the good looking one ;-)

Where do you currently reside?Both in Toronto

Occupation? Ryan: Freelance writer/food stylist.

David: Marketing Director.

Brief Bio of what you've done:

Ryan: I studied at George Brown College's culinary school as well as Ryerson's journalism school. After school I worked as a reporter for a financial trade paper called Investment Executive for a few years then moved on to ELLE Canada magazine where I was the resident Gourmet--writing a monthly food column, setting up photo shoots, doing some food styling etc. before leaving to go it alone in January. Now I'm writing about food and other lifestyle stories including restaurant reviews for Toronto Life; styling food for photo shoots for both advertising and editorial and thinking about writing another book.

David: I currently work as a Marketing Director but my background is theatre and events (which is where my love of food and drink comes from). My experience has included both event planning and venue management - small scale boutique operations to national awards shows. This diversity has given me a lot of exposure to the tricks of entertaining successfully and I wanted to apply these experiences to a book. Cooking with Booze promotes this- it's about having fun with your guests and enjoying the outcome together.

Questions:

Where did you both get the idea to create a cookbook using a variety of liquors?

Ryan: It was Dave's idea. But then we looked for something similar and found nothing available so we decided to write it ourselves.

David: The concept was fairly straight forward; we wanted to develop a cookbook that showcases the depth and variety of flavours that can be found in liqueurs, spirits, wines and beers. It's a concept we refer to as "extending the spice rack into the liquor cabinet".

Where does your love of cooking stem from?

Ryan: I've always loved to cook. I used to spend the whole day in the kitchen with my mom when I was a kid, learning everything she was doing. My grandmother was also a great cook and taught me how to make bread. My mom used to let me stay home from school on occasion if I promised to spend the day in the kitchen making dinner.

David: My mother - where else?

How long have you two been cooking and what's your favourite thing to prepare?

Ryan: I've been cooking since I was probably 6 or 7 years old. Rice Krispy squares were probably the first thing I ever made. I started preparing cakes and pastries when I was young and cooked savoury dishes a little later (when I was 11-12 years old) and I still love to make cakes and desserts. I love playing with the science of baking to see how far I can push things.

David: Both Ryan and I have been avid cooks for a number years, and since summer is around the corner my thoughts always turn to the BBQ. We have a recipe for Cuba Libre ribs. A Cuba Libre is fancy bartender talk for a rum and coke. This recipe uses cola in the cooking process and rum in the BBQ sauce. It also has Ryan's dad admitting defeat in the best-of-class BBQ war. We also have a cool and refreshing white chocolate and raspberry Panna-Cotta which is perfect for the summer heat.

What, in your estimation, makes a GREAT meal?

Ryan: A great meal starts with great people. If you've got your friends over and you're preparing food for them and sharing in a glass of wine you're well on your way to having a great meal. Obviously the food plays a big role, but no matter how it turns out if you've got your friends or family there and a few bottles of wine, you can't go wrong.

David: It's the company that makes a meal memorable, and it's good food combined with good company that makes a meal great. Meals don't need to be complex- simple is better, let the ingredients showcase their flavours. For me, that frequently involves checking out new products or sticking my head way back in the liquor cabinet to find an old friend.

What makes a great meal memorable?

Ryan: Food makes a great meal memorable--people always remember eating great food. They also remember eating terrible food. Hopefully you end up with great more times than terrible!

David: I think I said it best in my last answer.

What's your favourite liquor to cook with? And to drink?

Ryan: It's like choosing a favourite child (Dave probably will say the same thing!)

It's really difficult to choose, but beer is fantastic to experiment with both in food and consumption. If a recipe calls for beer, you've got a huge choice in front of you. What flavours to you want (mild, strong, sweet, bitter, raspberry, coffee, apricots). You can spend your life trying new beer and now THAT'S living!!

David: Hmmmm that's tough. I've been enjoying some great reds recently, specifically Amarone's slightly less posh cousin; Ripasso. I'm also a pretty big gin and scotch fan - classic gin and tonic with cucumber or a lime - scotch, single malt, neat. As for cooking, I think my current favourite is probably Creme de Banane mainly because of it's versatility, from banana curry to a chocolate cake.

How did you come up with the recipes in your book- are they passed down from your families or did you create them on your own?

Ryan: The recipes are from a number of different places. Great meals we've had with family and friends, our own inventions or interpretations of other people's recipes. We created a book we'd want to cook--like I said before we couldn't find anything on the market like it so we wrote it ourselves with recipes we want to make.

David: Some are passed down, some are researched, created and tested. We wanted to try and present a collection that gives the reader a strong foundation to build on and experiment with.

What's your favourite cuisine style?

Ryan: I love Italian--if I only had to eat one ethnic food for the rest of my life it would be Italian.

David: Rustic French or Italian - great ingredients, prepared simply.

What's your most irritating food peeve?

Ryan: People who take cooking too seriously. Cooking should be something you enjoy not another element of stress. Have fun, experiment and make mistakes- that's the only way to learn. If a dish doesn't turn out have another glass of wine and laugh it off. We all make mistakes.

David: For me, it would be stacks of food made with rings, skewered with rods and dangling with bobbles. Either that or people who chew with their mouths open!

When you dine out in the city- where do you go and why? (Top 3 picks).

Ryan: The Drake for the sushi-fantastic, fantastic sushi!!

Mildred Pierce for service, atmosphere and some of the best food I've ever had.

Mama Martinos for authentic and cheap Italian.

David: For everyday I love the Thai comfort food at Salad King (335 Yonge St)

For something a little special - Brassaii (461 King St. W.)

And for a pretty cool scene - The Beaconsfield (1154 Queen St. W.)

What's your favourite out-the-way, "gem" spot to shop for food?

Ryan: The Cheese Boutique--it's like food porn. The best cheese, meat, bread, pastries, produce and gourmet treats anywhere in the city!

David: The Healthy Butcher (565 Queen St. W/Toronto) incredible sausages! Including a signature line of alcohol infused gems; Turkey / Cointreau, Beer / Jalapeños and various other sausages.

Favourite cook book other than your own?

Ryan: Wanda's Pie in the Sky by Wanda Beaver. I've always had amazing results using Wanda's book.

David: I usually steal from Ryan's catalogue - although, Cooks Illustrated is great for the main stays and references, and Bob Blumer when you need to turn up the charm.

Do you have any tips on getting those afraid to cook with alcohol to crack open a bottle and splash a dash into a dish?

Ryan: Start with something easy like Strawberries, Sambucca and Black Pepper. You'll be able to taste the alcohol (sometimes you can't because it acts as a flavour enhancer) and you'll see how well it goes with the sweetness of the berries and the spiciness of the pepper. It'll turn you into a believer!

David: Get your feet wet with something simple, a recipe you may already know well. Then pick a booze that you think will compliment it, either sweet or savoury. Add a little bit at a time, until you understand how the flavour affects the dish. Celebrate with a cocktail.

If you had to describe yourselves as a liquor, which one would it be and why?

Ryan: That's a tough question. Gin maybe--it goes with almost anything, and might take a bit to get used to. It's spicy but also a touch fruity. And of course a gin martini is neat and very handsome. (Maybe not so tough a question after all.)

David: Hmmm - Jägermeister - a bit complex, a bit intense, and just a hint of a wild streak.

For the Whiskey drinkers out there- Irish, Scottish, American or Canadian - which do you prefer and why?

Ryan: Canadian and American whisk(e)y for cooking and mixed drinks and Scottish for consuming alone. Just like beer you can spend your entire life tasting whisky and the differences in flavour can be slight or massive. It's a lot of fun.

David: Ohh great question! I'm Scottish by birth so there really is only one type of "whisky" in my family and that's single malt. I'm a big fan of a nice peaty Islay or Highland and the smokiness of the scotch goes incredibly well with some smoked salmon!

If you'd like to know more about this beautifully photographed book robust with useful tips, tricks and cocktail pairings, go to: http://www.CookingWithBooze.com. I for one plan to juice up the old Barbie and try those Cuba Libre Ribs and finish off with the Summer Berry Icewine Sabayon. Hello Summer!

Bonus Reading:

For an intriguing look at liquors and their various roots, take a look at Jacqueline Church's piece: Of Herbs and Cocktails.

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