It wasn’t too long ago that we were extolling the virtues of bacon-washed bourbon with its intriguing mouthfeel. As much as we love bacon, however, it’s probably not doing us any favors in the health department. Thankfully, Los Angeles is a city filled with as many culinary innovators as there are health freaks, and restaurants like Fig & Olive have created a cocktail that provides the mouthfeel of a fat-infused drink that’s decidedly more refined, using blood orange-infused olive oil as the fat. The result is a drink bursting with fresh citrus, accompanied by a rich mouthfeel and balanced with a slight bitterness.
Sound intriguing? Fig & Olive has graciously provided the recipe below.
The Extra Virgin
Ingredients:
2 oz cucumber vodka
1 oz blood orange
3/4 oz lime juice
1/2 oz simple syrup
1/2 oz blood orange olive oil
1/2 celery sprig
Instructions:
Step 1: Chop up celery sprig and muddle inside mixing tin; then add in blood orange olive oil after the celery is muddled
Step 2: Add juice and syrup to mixing tin
Step 3: Add 2 oz cucumber vodka
Step 4: Add ice
Step 5: Shake and strain over fresh ice
Step 6: Splash of soda
Step 7: Add celery sprig for garnish.
…and of course, if you’re mixology-challenged, you can always head to Fig & Olive as we did and let them work their magic. A couple more drinks and bites to eat don’t hurt either. Catch them during their Aperitivo hours, from 5-8 every day:
Italian Plate: Mushroom, Artichoke, Scallion, Parmesan Crostini; Truffle Mushroom Croquette with Truffle Olive Oil Aioli; Prosciutto, Burrata Cheese and Olives; Rocchetta Cheese
Spanish Plate: Crushed Tomato Crostini; Figs stuffed with Goat Cheese and wrapped in Prosciutto; Manchego Cheese with Fig Jam; Papas Bravas with Pimento Aioli
For more info on Fig & Olive, visit their website here.
Photos by Rachel Many
