In July I posted a blog entitled “Hooray for Horseradish” and mentioned that I would share my recipe for a great Bloody Mary with fresh horseradish. So here it is, and for all of you Bloody Mary aficionados, the horseradish really adds some depth to this traditional cocktail. It’s always nice when you can use a fresh ingredient instead of something processed.

I used Clamato ® juice in this recipe (thank you, Edgar!), but Spicy Hot V8® or even regular tomato juice will work well, too. I like to rim my glass with a Bloody Mary cocktail rimmer, which you can find at many grocery or higher-end food stores.

As a side note, I made this batch with Grey Goose, which I normally would not use in a Bloody Mary, but it was the only vodka I had (I know, wah, wah, wah.) Go with middle-of-the-road vodka for this recipe, but never, ever, ever use any of the rot-gut stuff. Ick! Just remember that the other ingredients, especially the fresh horseradish, are what make this drink so tasty, so leave the good vodka for martinis or sipping, etc.

Ingredients (makes 1 serving, which, in the case of Bloody Marys, it’s okay if you are drinking alone. For this post I made a pitcher to share and just increased the ingredients to take that into account.)

• 1 ½ parts of vodka, or more to tolerance and taste
• 4 parts of Clamato juice (or other tomato-based juice of choice)
• 1 tablespoon freshly grated horseradish (or more, to taste )
• Worcestershire sauce (a few shakes)
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• Garlic salt to taste
• Fresh ground pepper to taste
• Hot sauce to taste
• Bloody Mary cocktail rimmer (optional)

Preparation

In a cocktail shaker or vessel of your choice, combine all of the ingredients except the cocktail rimmer and shake or stir well.

Take your glass of choice (I like tall ones), moisten the rim of it with the lemon you used for the fresh lemon juice, and coat it with the Bloody Mary Cocktail rimmer.

Fill the glass with ice and add the Bloody Mary mixture.

Select your choice of garnishes — I like celery, pepperoncinis, olives, lime slices, jalapenos, etc. This is where you can tell yourself you’re being healhy – tomato juice with celery on the side? No guilt there!

Enjoy! This goes great with many brunch foods, especially Eggs Benedict and quiche. Or after a rough Saturday night. Just saying.

Remember – drink and drive responsibly!

Bon appétit!

Eat, drink and be merry!

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