Friday Food and Drink Post: A “Rum Go”

 

It’s a chilly morning on the farm this January 17 (there’s a bit of snow), a perfect setting for National Hot Buttered Rum Day! (Who knew?)

You can read a very interesting little history of rum production here, where I learned that it came into being as a way to use up the by-product (molasses) of sugar production on Caribbean sugar plantations in the mid-seventeenth century. Getting any further into the weeds will teach you that rum production and commerce was inextricably linked to the slave trade, a nasty part of its history that we, and rum, must acknowledge and live with. No good comes from papering over it, so there it is.

I really can’t drink rum in anything but the tiniest quantities. It’s one of two alcoholic beverages that messes with my head in very unpleasant ways. But a little toddy now and then? Hot buttered rum? On a cold and windy day, when something resembling tiny shards of glass are falling from the sky and being blown, at speed, right at my face? Yes, please!

Here’s a recipe from The Spruce Eats:

1 tablespoon butter (soft)
1 teaspoon ​brown sugar
1 dash ​​cinnamon (ground)
1 dash ​nutmeg (ground)
1 dash ​allspice (ground)
1 splash vanilla extract
2 ounces ​​rum (dark)
5 ounces water (hot)

Place the butter, sugar, and spices into the bottom of an Irish coffee glass or mug, and mix well or muddle.

Pour in the rum, and top it with hot water

Stir, and enjoy!

Tips: Hot water, not boiling, or it will ruin the flavor. You can use more, or less butter, and adjust the spices, to taste.

Probably the most famous evocation of “rum” in popular culture comes from the Andrews Sisters, whose song, “Rum and Coca-Cola” is a song of “Mother and daughter, Working for the Yankee dollar,” and was a huge hit during World War II. According to Maxine,

The lyric was there, it was cute, but we didn’t think of what it meant; but at that time, nobody else would think of it either, because we weren’t as morally open [Note: I find that a bit of an odd phrase] as we are today and so, a lot of stuff—really, no excuses—just went over our heads.”

The point is made a bit more explicitly in the original calypso, which includes some social commentary, and is sung here by its author, Rupert Westmore Grant, better known as Lord Invader.

Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose.

Do you have a favorite “warmer-upper?” Please share.

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  1. Percival Thatcher
    Percival
    @Percival

    She: Here’s a recipe from The Spruce Eats:

    Needs more rum.

    • #1
  2. SkipSul Inactive
    SkipSul
    @skipsul

    Mmm, hold the butter…

    • #2
  3. SkipSul Inactive
    SkipSul
    @skipsul

    I have a favorite for a punched-up hot chocolate.  Best made in a double-boiler so you don’t risk scorching anything.  If you don’t have one, you can make in a saucepan or larger pot, but you have to stir constantly to avoid burning, and you have to be a lot more careful with your heat so you don’t boil or overcook the milk.

    Put about 5-6 cups of milk in the pot, or mix in some half and half or heavy cream.  Set to heating on the boiler.

    Once up to temp (really hot, enough that your cocoa powder actually mixes in, but not boiling in the upper pot), gradually mix in about 1/4 cup of cocoa powder, and sugar to taste (I go sparingly here).  I prefer the dark cocoa when I can get it.  You can use chocolate shavings here too, either milk or bakers, or about anything else.  Whisk constantly to make sure it all blends in.  Correct the taste as you go.

    Add a teaspoon or two of vanilla extract.  Possibly a bit of nutmeg.

    Add a tablespoon or two of rum and/or Irish cream and/or chocolate liqueur shortly before serving (you do not want to add it too soon as the booze can curdle the milk or cream).  You want enough booze in there to give it a bit of a pleasant afterburn, but not so much as you wallop the palate up front.

    Serve hot.

    • #3
  4. Susan Quinn Contributor
    Susan Quinn
    @SusanQuinn

    The only time I drink rum is in a mojito–and that’s on ice! Yum! Otherwise a nice hot cup o’ tea, thank you.

     

    • #4
  5. She Member
    She
    @She

    Susan Quinn (View Comment):

    The only time I drink rum is in a mojito–and that’s on ice! Yum! Otherwise a nice hot cup o’ tea, thank you.

    Well, I’m British, so yes, a nice hot cuppa works wonders too.  Do you have a special blend you enjoy?  

    • #5
  6. She Member
    She
    @She

    I thought I’d look up the origin of the word, “rum,” just because it’s so . . . well . . . rum (in the British sense, meaning “odd” or “strange.”  As in the phrase, a “rum go,” meaning “a strange thing”).

    Turns out, according to the OED, the word rum was first mentioned in the records of Connecticut Colony in 1654, when the following reference was made:

    Berbados Liquors, commonly called Rum, Kill Deuill, or the like.

    It goes on to say that the word is unknown, but may be related to “rumbullion” or “rumbustion.”  (No idea why, and apparently, they don’t have one either.  Except that they may describe the sort of mayhem that breaks out after a person has had one too many glasses of the stuff.

    Rum was also called “Kill Devil” at the time.  Which made me wonder about Kill Devil Hills, NC, but the town website says that the name came from the shore bird known as “killdeer” which were once prolific in the area.  Hmm.

    I dunno.  This sounds a bit vague on all fronts.  I’m favoring another account of the origin of the word “rum” which says that it might come from the Latin word for sugar, saccharum.  Or from roemer, a glass used by Dutch seamen which were known by the English as “rummers.”  Both of those sound plausible, but I guess we’ll never know.

    • #6
  7. Susan Quinn Contributor
    Susan Quinn
    @SusanQuinn

    She (View Comment):

    Susan Quinn (View Comment):

    The only time I drink rum is in a mojito–and that’s on ice! Yum! Otherwise a nice hot cup o’ tea, thank you.

    Well, I’m British, so yes, a nice hot cuppa works wonders too. Do you have a special blend you enjoy?

    Well, you probably wouldn’t approve, but I like teas from Upton Tea–one is a Chung Hao Jasmine Imperial green tea; the other is called Lemon Drop, in a black tea.

    • #7
  8. She Member
    She
    @She

    Susan Quinn (View Comment):

    She (View Comment):

    Susan Quinn (View Comment):

    The only time I drink rum is in a mojito–and that’s on ice! Yum! Otherwise a nice hot cup o’ tea, thank you.

    Well, I’m British, so yes, a nice hot cuppa works wonders too. Do you have a special blend you enjoy?

    Well, you probably wouldn’t approve, but I like teas from Upton Tea–one is a Chung Hao Jasmine Imperial green tea; the other is called Lemon Drop, in a black tea.

    Doesn’t matter whether I approve or not, if it floats your boat.  The Lemon Drop one sounds very nice.  I like jasmine with my rice (which doesn’t actually have anything to do with jasmine), not so much with my tea, but I bet it smells lovely.

    I’m a “British Breakfast Tea” girl myself, the stronger the better.  And I put the milk in first.

    • #8
  9. SkipSul Inactive
    SkipSul
    @skipsul

    She (View Comment):

    Susan Quinn (View Comment):

    She (View Comment):

    Susan Quinn (View Comment):

    The only time I drink rum is in a mojito–and that’s on ice! Yum! Otherwise a nice hot cup o’ tea, thank you.

    Well, I’m British, so yes, a nice hot cuppa works wonders too. Do you have a special blend you enjoy?

    Well, you probably wouldn’t approve, but I like teas from Upton Tea–one is a Chung Hao Jasmine Imperial green tea; the other is called Lemon Drop, in a black tea.

    Doesn’t matter whether I approve or not, if it floats your boat. The Lemon Drop one sounds very nice. I like jasmine with my rice (which doesn’t actually have anything to do with jasmine), not so much with my tea, but I bet it smells lovely.

    I’m a “British Breakfast Tea” girl myself, the stronger the better. And I put the milk in first.

    Same, except I take it black.

    But I also love a good darjeeling from time to time, or jasmine black tea (I’ve never developed a taste for green tea), or an Earl Grey if it’s not too overloaded on the bergamot (the double-bergamot is like chugging a hot oil slick).

     

    • #9
  10. Randy Weivoda Moderator
    Randy Weivoda
    @RandyWeivoda

    Susan Quinn (View Comment):

    The only time I drink rum is in a mojito–and that’s on ice! Yum! Otherwise a nice hot cup o’ tea, thank you.

    That’s funny, I like many rum-based cocktails but the mojito is the only one I’ve tried and really disliked.  Maybe it was made with a really cheap, low-grade rum and I’ve never wanted to try one again.

    SkipSul (View Comment):

    I have a favorite for a punched-up hot chocolate. Best made in a double-boiler so you don’t risk scorching anything. If you don’t have one, you can make in a saucepan or larger pot, but you have to stir constantly to avoid burning, and you have to be a lot more careful with your heat so you don’t boil or overcook the milk.

    Put about 5-6 cups of milk in the pot, or mix in some half and half or heavy cream. Set to heating on the boiler.

    Once up to temp (really hot, enough that your cocoa powder actually mixes in, but not boiling in the upper pot), gradually mix in about 1/4 cup of cocoa powder, and sugar to taste (I go sparingly here). I prefer the dark cocoa when I can get it. You can use chocolate shavings here too, either milk or bakers, or about anything else. Whisk constantly to make sure it all blends in. Correct the taste as you go.

    Add a teaspoon or two of vanilla extract. Possibly a bit of nutmeg.

    Add a tablespoon or two of rum and/or Irish cream and/or chocolate liqueur shortly before serving (you do not want to add it too soon as the booze can curdle the milk or cream). You want enough booze in there to give it a bit of a pleasant afterburn, but not so much as you wallop the palate up front.

    Serve hot.

    We like to have hot cocoa with peppermint or butterscotch schnapps.  Or Raspberry Chambord liqueur.

    • #10
  11. She Member
    She
    @She

    Randy Weivoda (View Comment):
    We like to have hot cocoa with peppermint or butterscotch schnapps. Or Raspberry Chambord liqueur.

    Oh, the chocolate with raspberry sounds delicious.  I’ll have to try that.  Thanks.  (Raspberries are a magic food, like ginger.  They can be combined with almost anything to make it edible, I think.)

    SkipSul (View Comment):
    But I also love a good darjeeling from time to time, or jasmine black tea (I’ve never developed a taste for green tea), or an Earl Grey if it’s not too overloaded on the bergamot (the double-bergamot is like chugging a hot oil slick).

    Thank you!  You’re the only other person who’s ever said (in my presence anyway) that Earl Grey tastes like motor oil.

    One of my fond childhood memories is of tea parties at my Aunties (three of them, sisters who lived together, all unmarried) in the late 1950s.  I’ve never seen a better representation of it than that of the “Fanshaw-Chumleighs,” second place winner in the Monty Python “Most Awful Family in Britain” skit from sometime in the 70s I suppose.  A beautifully laid table, full of silver tea service and platters, and everybody talking at once, in unintelligible upper-class British accents, shouting at each other and nobody listening to anybody else.  In my version of it, Auntie Mary sits at the head of the table, with two large silver teapots, pouring out the tea, and asking each of us if we prefer “China” or “Indian.” Even the little children had their cup of tea.  (I always chose Indian.)

    • #11
  12. Ontheleftcoast Inactive
    Ontheleftcoast
    @Ontheleftcoast

    Here’s a great passage from Kenneth Roberts’ Northwest Passage, his excellent historical novel about Richard Robert Rogers. I think that @bossmongo has quoted from Rogers’ famous Rules of Ranging.

    • #12
  13. Arahant Member
    Arahant
    @Arahant

    SkipSul (View Comment):
    (the double-bergamot is like chugging a hot oil slick).

    *Goes into kitchen to pour another mug of Double Bergamot Earl Grey.*

    • #13
  14. Arahant Member
    Arahant
    @Arahant

    She (View Comment):
    (Raspberries are a magic food, like ginger. They can be combined with almost anything to make it inedible, I think.)

    FTFY.

    • #14
  15. Arahant Member
    Arahant
    @Arahant

    Ontheleftcoast (View Comment):
    Rogers’ famous Rules of Ranging.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Rogers%27_28_%22Rules_of_Ranging%22

    • #15
  16. Locke On Member
    Locke On
    @LockeOn

    She (View Comment):

    Susan Quinn (View Comment):

    The only time I drink rum is in a mojito–and that’s on ice! Yum! Otherwise a nice hot cup o’ tea, thank you.

    Well, I’m British, so yes, a nice hot cuppa works wonders too. Do you have a special blend you enjoy?

    Somewhere along the road, I developed a taste for smoked teas, so I’ll have a lapsang souchong, please.

    • #16
  17. She Member
    She
    @She

    Ontheleftcoast (View Comment):

    Here’s a great passage from Kenneth Roberts’ Northwest Passage, his excellent historical novel about Richard Rogers. I think that @bossmongo has quoted from Rogers’ famous Rules of Ranging.

    That’s wonderful, and so on point, thanks.  Robert Rogers, primarily, though?  (I think his brother Richard (who actually did exist) was off writing the lyrics to all those marvelous Broadway songs . . . spelled differently . . . I know.)

     

    • #17
  18. She Member
    She
    @She

    Ontheleftcoast (View Comment):
    Here’s a great passage from Kenneth Roberts’ Northwest Passage, his excellent historical novel about Richard Rogers. I think that @bossmongo has quoted from Rogers’ famous Rules of Ranging.

    That’s wonderful, and so on point, thanks.  Robert Rogers, primarily, though?  (I think his brother Richard (who actually did exist) was off writing the lyrics to all those marvelous Broadway songs . . . spelled differently . . . I know.)

    Arahant (View Comment):

    SkipSul (View Comment):
    (the double-bergamot is like chugging a hot oil slick).

    *Goes into kitchen to pour another mug of Double Bergamot Earl Grey.*

    Philistine.

    Arahant (View Comment):
    (Raspberries are a magic food, like ginger. They can be combined with almost anything to make it inedible, I think.)

    Double Philistine.

    Locke On (View Comment):

    Somewhere along the road, I developed a taste for smoked teas, so I’ll have a lapsang souchong, please.

    I went through a Gunpowder tea phase, which, although it has a distinct smoky flavor, I don’t think actually is smoked.

    The best tea I’ve ever tasted (and which I don’t adulterate with milk, sugar or anything else), is Thailand #17, an Oolong.  It’s sweet, with no bitter undercurrents, clear, and lovely.  It’s also one of those teas that really can’t be made with a small infuser or tea ball, because the leaves expand to full size very quickly, and you end up with far more in the way of leaves than you’ve ever thought possible, if your experience is with the common-or-garden American or British (shudder) tea bag. I always make “full-leaf” tea of any sort in a teapot, with the leaves set free to float around, the way I was taught to make it by Auntie Mary and Maudie Nichols.

    • #18
  19. Percival Thatcher
    Percival
    @Percival

    She (View Comment):

    Arahant (View Comment):
    (Raspberries are a magic food, like ginger. They can be combined with almost anything to make it inedible, I think.)

    Double Philistine.

    He’ll put spinach on pizza but won’t put raspberries on anything.

    At least a double Philistine.

    • #19
  20. Ontheleftcoast Inactive
    Ontheleftcoast
    @Ontheleftcoast

    She (View Comment):
    The best tea I’ve ever tasted (and which I don’t adulterate with milk, sugar or anything else), is Thailand #17, an Oolong. It’s sweet, with no bitter undercurrents, clear, and lovely….I always make “full-leaf” tea of any sort in a teapot, with the leaves set free to float around, the way I was taught to make it by Auntie Mary and Maudie Nichols.

    For me, it was also an oolong.  It would have been in the mid 1980s. My late Tai Chi teacher had a collection of Yixing teapots which had been in use and accumulating a patina for years. Yes, it’s true that you can taste the difference between tea made in a purple clay and a brown clay pot. He especially liked Tieguanyin oolongs.

    After class, he would serve tea in the back and taught us how to brew it gongfu style:

    Use a pot sized for the number of people you’re serving.

    Put in enough tea so that once the leaves open, the pot is completely full but the mass of leaves isn’t too tight. Fill with water of the proper temperature for the type of tea. (He had been using the same kettle on the same stove for long enough that he knew how long to wait after the water boiled.)

    Pour out the water after about 30 seconds, using the waste tea to warm the cups which you have laid out in a circle where they can drain. The leaves have by then started to open, and you rinse any dust off them. 

    Refill the pot, and brew less than a minute. Pour a little tea in each cup, allowing the pot to drain completely. Refill the pot, and repeat until the cups are full. After a few rounds, you need to brew the tea a bit longer. The second potful which you keep has the best flavor, but by pouring your way around the circle of cups, you distribute the tea from about four or five pours in all the cups. With a really good tea brewed this way, you can put the water over the leaves a dozen times before the taste starts to go. If you have poured the pot dry, the tea doesn’t stew. You’ll know how long a wait before you pour is too long, and how many rounds is too many by the taste.

    Shifu returned from a trip to Taiwan with 4 kg of tea. A schoolmate’s family had been growing tea in the mountains for years, and kept this tea for itself, for entering in tasting competitions, and for gifts to officials. Or to old friends. As he was preparing the tea, he told us that if you could have bought it, it would have cost “more than $400 a pound.” That would be over $1000/lb today.

    Yes, you can remember a cup of tea for 35 years.

    • #20
  21. She Member
    She
    @She

    Ontheleftcoast (View Comment):

    She (View Comment):
    The best tea I’ve ever tasted (and which I don’t adulterate with milk, sugar or anything else), is Thailand #17, an Oolong. It’s sweet, with no bitter undercurrents, clear, and lovely….I always make “full-leaf” tea of any sort in a teapot, with the leaves set free to float around, the way I was taught to make it by Auntie Mary and Maudie Nichols.

    For me, it was also an oolong. It would have been in the mid 1980s. My late Tai Chi teacher had a collection of Yixing teapots which had been in use and accumulating a patina for years. Yes, it’s true that you can taste the difference between tea made in a purple clay and a brown clay pot. He especially liked Tieguanyin oolongs.

    After class, he would serve tea in the back and taught us how to brew it gongfu style:

    Use a pot sized for the number of people you’re serving.

    Put in enough tea so that once the leaves open, the pot is completely full but the mass of leaves isn’t too tight. Fill with water of the proper temperature for the type of tea. (He had been using the same kettle on the same stove for long enough that he knew how long to wait after the water boiled.)

    Pour out the water after about 30 seconds, using the waste tea to warm the cups which you have laid out in a circle where they can drain. The leaves have by then started to open, and you rinse any dust off them.

    Refill the pot, and brew less than a minute. Pour a little tea in each cup, allowing the pot to drain completely. Refill the pot, and repeat until the cups are full. After a few rounds, you need to brew the tea a bit longer. The second potful which you keep has the best flavor, but by pouring your way around the circle of cups, you distribute the tea from about four or five pours in all the cups. With a really good tea brewed this way, you can put the water over the leaves a dozen times before the taste starts to go. If you have poured the pot dry, the tea doesn’t stew. You’ll know how long a wait before you pour is too long, and how many rounds is too many by the taste.

    Shifu returned from a trip to Taiwan with 4 kg of tea. A schoolmate’s family had been growing tea in the mountains for years, and kept this tea for itself, for entering in tasting competitions, and for gifts to officials. Or to old friends. As he was preparing the tea, he told us that if you could have bought it, it would have cost “more than $400 a pound.” That would be over $1000/lb today.

    Yes, you can remember a cup of tea for 35 years.

    Thanks for sharing this, it’s fascinating.  And it gives a new meaning to the term “tea ceremony.”

    • #21
  22. She Member
    She
    @She

    Gunfire is

     a British cocktail made of black tea and rum. It has its origins in the British Army and is also used as a name for early morning tea in the army.–Wikipedia

    Here’s a simple recipe, (the site contains much other useful information) from The Food Gypsy.

    A form of ‘Dutch Courage’ in the rank-and-file of the British Army since to 1800’s, The Gunfire was a simple combination of black tea, fortified with a shot of rum, stirred in the mug and drunk down fast.  Served at Christmas while on maneuvers, it became known as the Gunfire Breakfast.  The Australian and New Zealand Armies followed suit, with their version; rum and black coffee.  Even Queen Victoria had a take on this tradition, which she called Highland Tea; a bracing combination of scotch and tea guaranteed to help you face the drafty confines of Balmoral Castle on cold, damp Scottish mornings.

     

    • #22
  23. Ontheleftcoast Inactive
    Ontheleftcoast
    @Ontheleftcoast

    She (View Comment):

    Thanks for sharing this, it’s fascinating. And it gives a new meaning to the term “tea ceremony.”

    The method is maybe more fluid on the surface than cha no yu. You can do it with all kinds of fancy kit, but the essence is the pot, the tea, the water and the timing. I think it displays some of the differences between Chinese and Japanese culture. I’d say that the difference is that the Chinese structure is more internal; it doesn’t mean much if the tea is not good. The parameters of pot, tea, and water are all physical reality. Successful application is a real skill whether you’re in sweats and t-shirts or formally dressed. Then there’s the the hospitality.

    The Pot: I’ve tasted the differences between the same tea made in pots made from different clays (the pots are unglazed, and you can start to season a new pot by boiling it for a while in the spent tea leaves you’ve collected and dried.) 

    The Tea: By some strange coincidence, the better the tea, the higher the levels of desirable polyphenolic compounds.

    The Water: The water matters a lot, too. Once you’ve tasted the difference that different water makes, you start to think that those stories about making tea from dew drops or raindrops collected from leaves and flowers might have something to them. 

    The Hospitality: It’s also a wonderful social experience.  As you drink more good green or oolong tea, the conversation gets more animated and fluid, but it’s not a coffee-type stimulation or even a black tea type stimulation.

    Shifu told us many times: “Chairman Mao broke the culture.” I am privileged to have participated in a small way in a surviving remnant. 

     

    • #23
  24. Percival Thatcher
    Percival
    @Percival

    Percival (View Comment):

    She (View Comment):

    Arahant (View Comment):
    (Raspberries are a magic food, like ginger. They can be combined with almost anything to make it inedible, I think.)

    Double Philistine.

    He’ll put spinach on pizza but won’t put raspberries on anything.

    At least a double Philistine.

    See there, @arahant? I’m going to put raspberries in my raspberry yogurt, and there is nothing you can do about it!

    Menace.

    • #24
  25. Arahant Member
    Arahant
    @Arahant

    Percival (View Comment):
    See there, Arahant? I’m going to put raspberries in my raspberry yogurt, and there is nothing you can do about it!

    Go for it, so long as I don’t have to eat them.

    • #25
  26. Arahant Member
    Arahant
    @Arahant

    In fact, I am leaving all the raspberries to those who like them.

    • #26
  27. SkipSul Inactive
    SkipSul
    @skipsul

    Arahant (View Comment):

    Percival (View Comment):
    See there, Arahant? I’m going to put raspberries in my raspberry yogurt, and there is nothing you can do about it!

    Go for it, so long as I don’t have to eat them.

    Not willing to try them on pizza?

    • #27
  28. Arahant Member
    Arahant
    @Arahant

    SkipSul (View Comment):

    Arahant (View Comment):

    Percival (View Comment):
    See there, Arahant? I’m going to put raspberries in my raspberry yogurt, and there is nothing you can do about it!

    Go for it, so long as I don’t have to eat them.

    Not willing to try them on pizza?

    And spoil perfectly good spinach?

    • #28
  29. She Member
    She
    @She

    Arahant (View Comment):

    SkipSul (View Comment):

    Arahant (View Comment):

    Percival (View Comment):
    See there, Arahant? I’m going to put raspberries in my raspberry yogurt, and there is nothing you can do about it!

    Go for it, so long as I don’t have to eat them.

    Not willing to try them on pizza?

    And spoil perfectly good spinach?

    Very funny.  I’m enjoying this.  Carry on.

    • #29
  30. SkipSul Inactive
    SkipSul
    @skipsul

    Arahant (View Comment):

    SkipSul (View Comment):

    Arahant (View Comment):

    Percival (View Comment):
    See there, Arahant? I’m going to put raspberries in my raspberry yogurt, and there is nothing you can do about it!

    Go for it, so long as I don’t have to eat them.

    Not willing to try them on pizza?

    And spoil perfectly good spinach?

    Raspberries complement a spinach salad with slivered almonds and a light vinaigrette.

    Then you put that on the pizza.

    • #30
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