The 1990′s is the Decade of Disasters because lots of disasters happened. The Y2K bug, the earthquakes, the Gulf War, etc. This is the Decade of Discovery. Scientists discovered how to clone animals, and they released the Hubble Telescope.
During the 1990′s, Billy Bush was a student at Colby College in Maine. I was inspired to do some New England style foods and a “White Mule” cocktail which is the mascot of Colby College. In 1998, Billy Bush married his lovely wife, Sydney.

Mini Lobster Roll
Ingredients:
hot dog buns
chives
premade deli lobster salad
Directions:
- Cut hot dog buns into thirds.
- Fill hot dog buns with lobster salad.
- Garnish with chopped chives.
Dirty Fries
Ingredients:
1 package frozen crinkles fries
Old Bay Seasoning
Tarter sauce
Directions:
- Sprinkle the fries with Old Bay Seasoning.
- Follow the instructions on the back of the package to bake the fries.
- Serve in paper cones.
- Cut a circle out of paper.
- Fold the circle into quarters.
- Cut one triangle out of the circle.
- Fold the circle, overlapping the edges a bit.
- Tape to close together.
- Serve with a dollop of tarter sauce.
Gazpacho with Guacamole and Crème Fraiche
Gazpacho
Ingredients:
6 ripe tomatoes, peeled and chopped
1 purple onion, finely chopped
1 cucumber, peeled, seeded and chopped
1 sweet red bell pepper (or green) seeded and chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
1-2 tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
1 clove garlic, minced
¼ cup red wine vinegar
¼ cup olive oil
2 tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 tsp. sugar
6 or more drops of Tabasco sauce to taste
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
4 cups tomato juice
Directions:
- Combine all ingredients.
- Blend slightly to desired consistency.
- Place in non-metal, non-reactive storage container, cover tightly and refrigerate overnight, allowing flavors to blend.
Guacamole
Ingredients:
2 ripe avocados
½ red onion, minced (about ½ cup)
1-2 serrano chiles, stems and seeds removed, minced
2 tbsp. cilantro leaves, finely chopped
1 tbsp. of fresh lime or lemon juice
½ tsp. coarse salt
a dash of freshly grated black pepper
½ ripe tomato, seeds and pulp removed, chopped
Directions:
- Cut avocados in half. Remove pit. Scoop out avocado from the peel, put in a mixing bowl.
- Using a fork, mash the avocado. Add the chopped onion, cilantro, lime or lemon, salt and pepper and mash some more. Chili peppers vary individually in their hotness, add the amount of your choice.
- Keep tomatoes separate until ready to serve.
- Cover with plastic wrap directly on the surface of the guacamole to prevent oxidations from the air reaching it.
- Refrigerate until ready.
- Just before serving, add the chopped tomato to the guacamole and mix.
To make Gazpacho with Guacamole and Crème Fraiche:
- Fill a votive holder 1/3 of the way.
- Garnish with a dollop of crème fraiche and guacamole.
White Mule Cocktail
Ingredients:
2 oz. vodka
1 oz. crème de cacao
light cream
Directions:
- Pour vodka and crème de cacao over ice cubes in an old-fashioned glass.
- Fill with light cream and serve.
1990′s Inspired Playlist
Here is a great playlist to bring your guests to the 1990′s.

- Mr. Jones – Counting Crows
- Hey Jealous – Gin Blossoms
- Sex and Candy – Marcy Playground
- Breakfast at Tiffany’s – Deep Blue Something
- Runaway Train – Soul Asylum
- All I want – A Day To Remember
- Little Miss Can’t Be Wrong - Spin Doctors
- Brick – Ben Folds Five
- Everything Falls Apart – Fee
- Lump – The Presidents of the United States of America
- Freshman – The Verve Pipe
- No Rain – Blind Melon
- Pets – Porno for Pyros
- Steal My Sunshine -Len
- Fade Into You – Mazzy Starr
- Mother Mother – Tracey Bonham
- Save Tonight – Eagle Eye Cherry
Nov 04, 2011 | Categories: Celebrate 365, Culinary Curiosity ®, Master Mixology ®, Party Engineering ® | Tags: 1990, 1998, a day to remember, all i want, avocados, bake, ben folds five, Billy Bush, blind melon, breakfast at tiffany's, brick, celery stalks, chives, chopped, cilantro, circle, clone animals, close together, clove garlic, coarse salt, Colby College, combine, counting crows, creme de cacao, creme fraiche, cucumber, cup, Cut, Decade of Disasters, decade of discovery, deli, directions, dirty fries, Dollop, eagle eye cherry, earthquakes, edges, everything falls apart, fade into you, fear, fee, finely chopped, fork, fresh parsley, freshly squeezed lemon juice, freshman, Frozen, garnish, gazpacho, gin blossoms, grated black pepper, guacamole, gulf war, hey jealoys, hot dog buns, Hubble Telescope, Inspired, instructions, lemon juice, len, light cream, little miss can't be wrong, lobster roll, lobster salad, lovely wife, lump, Maine, marcy playground, married, mascot, mazzy starr, millenium, minced, mini lobster roll, mix, mixing bowl, mother mother, mr. jone, New England, no rain, non stop '90s rock, old bay seasoning, Olive Oil, overlapping, package, paper cones, peeled, pets, porno for pyros, purple onion, quarters, red wine vinegar, refrigerate, released, remove pit, removed, ripe tomato, ripe tomatoes, runaway train, save tonight, science, scoop out, seeded, serrano chiles, serve, sex and candy, soul asylum, spin doctors, steal my sunshine, stems, student, sugar, Sydney, tape, tarter sauce, the verve pipe, thirds, tomato juice, tracey bonham, triangle, Vodka, White Mule, White Mule Cocktail, worcestershire sauce, Y2K | Leave A Comment »

Herbs aren't just for tea... infuse fresh florals into your summer cocktail
The Thirtini was the signature cocktail created with SKYY Vodka for the guests this August at The Thirteen Summer House on Fire Island, NY. This is a one-of-a-kind cocktail creation that uses such varied ingredients as cucumber, lavender and citrus juices to create what we think is the number one tipple of the summer. Cucumber is a great summertime cocktail addition because it’s so refreshing and re-hydrating. I’ve always said, hydration is key when entertaining outdoors so cool your guests off this herbal infusion at your next summer party.
Ingredients:
1.5 oz. SKYY Vodka
1.5 oz orange juice
.5 lemon juice
(Santa Cruz lemon juice by the bottle is an acceptable alternative)
6 thinly sliced cucumber wheels
1.5 oz. homemade lavender syrup*
* For the syrup
1 cup of water
1 cup of sugar
1 tablespoon of whole lavender flowers
Tools:
Cocktail shaker
Pairing knife
1-quart saucepan
Fine metal sieve
Wooden spoon
Make the Lavender Syrup in advance:
In a small saucepan combine water the sugar and place it over medium high heat. As soon as the syrup comes to a full boil and the sugar is completely dissolved, add the lavender flowers, push them under the surface with a spoon, and immediately remove the pan from the heat. Cover the pan and let the herb steep in the sugar water for 30 minutes. Pour the syrup through a fine sieve and press down firmly on the herbs with a back of a spoon to extract any syrup that is held in the leaves. Store in a covered bottle or jar in the refrigerator for up to 3 months.
Mix all the ingredients together in a shaker and add ice. Shake hard for 30 seconds until the cucumber wheels break up. Strain over fresh cubed ice and garnish with either a thin stick of cucumber or 1 sprig of fresh lavender.
Aug 17, 2009 | Categories: Master Mixology ® | Tags: bar, bartending, cocktail shaker, cucumber, edible flowers, Fire Island, Infusion, lavender, lemon juice, mixoloy, orange juice, rocks glass, SKYY Vodka, steeping, summer, vodka cocktail | 2 Comments »