Recently, Shelley Yates, our very own marketing director, won a very important contest. The name she entered was chosen as Pensacola’s new minor league baseball team, the Pensacola Blue Wahoos. Since I didn’t name the team, I decided to do the next best thing: Name and create the official drink for the Wahoos. The Blue Wahoo easily came to mind. The drink had to satisfy four requirements:
1. Be delicious 2. Be blue 3. Make Shelley proud 4. Include some Bacardi rum and Finlandia vodka
Given the above, I sought to create a drink that encompassed all of these, yet would be easy enough to make at home, or try at the game (wink to the owners). Let’s begin with the Bacardi flavored rum. I chose the newest addition to their lineup, Bacardi Arctic Grape. Made from the Arctic berry — also known as the lingonberry — it’s native to the Arctic tundra throughout the Northern Hemisphere, from Europe and Asia to North America.
Next, I added Finlandia Mango Vodka to give the drink a little tang.
We live in Florida, so I have to throw in some fresh orange and pineapple juices to add a tropical flavor.
The color will come from Blue Curaçao, a blue liqueur flavored with the dried peel of the laraha citrus fruit grown on the island of Curaçao.
A fresh flavor to add is Solerno Blood Orange Liqueur. Don’t be thrown off by the name; this rich orange complement will certainly match well with the orange juice and mango flavors.
Top off with a splash of Sprite, and you are ready to catch a ballgame and cheer on your new favorite local team.
THE BLUE WAHOO
1&1/4 ounces Bacardi Arctic Grape
1&1/4 ounces Finlandia Mango Vodka
1/2 ounce Blue Curaçao
2 ounces pineapple juice
2 ounces orange juice
Splash of Solerno Blood Orange Liqueur
Splash of Sprite
For an extra dimension, add some St. Germain, a botanical spirit derived from the elderflower.
Enjoy, and PLAY BALL!
The Fish House, 600 S. Barracks St. 470-0003, or visitwww.goodgrits.com.
Since we last reported, our house has been filled with merriment. We have had many wonderful events on the deck, most notably the welcome-home party of the University of West Florida’s baseball team, where they celebrated their NCAA Division II College World Series victory. And we have become home to the Pensacola Bama Club and their happy-hour meet-ups, which will take place the third Thursday of every month on The Deck Bar. If you are an Alabama fan, come on by and join in the fun. Membership to the club is very affordable and they have lots of fun events. If you don’t like Alabama — well, sorry — start your own team’s happy hour at our house. There are seven days in a week and three bars to choose from. We’d love to have you! Call Shelley Yates for more information: (850) 748-9001.
Our bartender Samantha was selected as a finalist in GoPensacola’s Sexy Server Contest. The results will be posted on GoPensacola.com. Be sure to tell Samantha that you voted for her. Even if you didn’t, she loves to hear that.
UWF baseball player Chad Allen holds the NCAA Div. 2 national championship trophy the team was awarded for winning the College World Series in Cary N.C. A public celebration was held for the team at The Deck at the Fish House. / Gary McCracken/gmccracken@pnj.com
University of West Florida head baseball coach Mike Jeffcoat barely had time to catch his breath on Monday night.
He wouldn’t have had it any other way. Fresh off their NCAA Division II national championship on Saturday, hundreds of fans, alumni and community leaders gathered at the Fish House in downtown Pensacola to give the champs a warm, electric welcome. Jeffcoat and his players were bombarded with congratulations, hugs and well-wishes. “For our team to be generating this kind of buzz and happiness, gosh, I don’t know,” Jeffcoat said. “It’s special.” His team caught the Pensacola area’s attention last week as it made a run through the Division II College World Series in Cary, N.C.
By the time UWF went 3-0 during the week and made it to Saturday’s championship game, the buzz had reached an all-time high as local establishments were throwing watch parties and the game was put on national television.
The Argos crushed Winona State 12-2 in the championship game to give the school its first NCAA national championship in a traditional team sport.
Back home with trophy in hand, this was the first real opportunity for the Argos to bask in the excitement.
“It’s just amazing to see all the support,” said team member Eric Kroll, a former Pace High standout who also won a high school state baseball championship with the Patriots in 2006. “It’s unbelievable to see almost the entire community come out to UWF alumni to people living in the community, it just makes it all worthwhile to see everyone excited for us.” The team was also presented with a congressional congratulation submitted by U.S. Rep. Jeff Miller, R-Chumuckla. “Is this a great day to be an Argonaut?” UWF President Judy Bense asked the crowd. “I’m just proud, happy, this is what the university has needed for a long time. It is wonderful. I know you’re proud of the team, proud of the university and so am I.”
Jeffcoat led his team out between the crowd while hoisting the national title trophy over his head. He then introduced each one of his players and gave credit to his assistant coaches, athletic trainers, weight training staff and his family. After the ceremony, Jeffcoat was mobbed by close friends, former players and his family.
Then he took a breath. “I hope I can experience it again,” Jeffcoat said. “But if I don’t, I’ve been blessed to experience it once.”
By Trina Confusione special to the Pensacola News Journal
Strawberry Cake by Trina Confusione of The Fish House. / Katie King/kking@pnj.com
For this article, I thought I would do a recipe that I am currently preparing at The Fish House and Atlas Oyster House. I have had a lot of requests from people wanting to buy a whole cake, so I thought I could share this simple recipe with you. It is my husband’s favorite. He has never cared for chocolate cake, so I put this together for him one birthday, and it has been a huge hit ever since.
It is really easy to make this cake any size you want; just be sure the pans you use are grease-free, because the cake has to cling to the side of the pans in order to rise. This cake has to be kept refrigerated, but it travels well on ice in a cooler — perfect for picnics.
Boiled Shrimp, veggies and LandShark beer. / Gary McCracken/gmccracken@pnj.com
Last weekend, I was lucky enough to be invited to a friend’s house for family dinner. My friend’s mother and I are so alike that there might have been some baby-switching at the hospital. She goes above and beyond on every occasion. You will never find yourself eating frozen lasagna or delivered pizza at her table. Fresh-grated parmesan — never Kraft — tops her homemade marinara sauce, and fresh-from-the-garden — never frozen — vegetables are served alongside slow-grilled, center-cut steaks. The table is always set with beauty in mind. From fresh flowers to warm candles and modern flatware, it’s like a picture from a magazine.
Once dinner was wrapped and the plates were cleared, my friend told us that it was now time to earn our dinner. With a gleam in her eye and a very large beach/boat party planned for the next morning, I saw a lot of packing and lifting in my future.
Whole Oven-Roasted Rainbow Trout with a crabmeat stuffing
Whole Oven-Roasted Rainbow Trout by Chef Billy Ballou – Whole Oven-Roasted Rainbow Trout Stuffed with herbed lump crab. Served with roasted root vegetables and finished with herb compound butter.
Whole Oven-Roasted Rainbow Trout by Chef Billy Ballou
3/4 cup diced red bell pepper
3/4 cup diced red onion
3/4 cup diced celery
1/2 cup sliced green onion
2 tbls minced fresh thyme
2 tbls minced fresh basil
2 tbls minced garlic
4 tbls unsalted butter
1/2 cup white wine
1 each lemon (juiced)
1 pound lump crab meat
Rainbow trout:
4 each 11oz whole cleaned Rainbow trout
1 each fresh lemon
4 tbls olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
Preheat oven to 375. First what you want to do is take a medium saute pan and cook the onion, fennel, pepper, celery, garlic and butter til translucent which will take about 5 minutes. Then take your white wine and deglaze the pan, let cook for about 1 minute then remove vegetable mixture and let cool. Once cooled mix remaining ingredients with the lump crab. Once the crab mixture is done take your trout and lay the skin side down and season with salt and pepper and a little olive oil. Then take about 1 1/2 cup of crab mixture and stuff the trout. Once that is done that your stuffed trout and place it on a grease sheet pan and bake it for about 12-15 min, or until skin is nice and crunchy.
WILLIAM MORSE • SPECIAL TO THE NEWS JOURNAL • THE FISH HOUSE •
Sangria by William Morse of The Fish House. (Katie King/GoPensacola.com)
Originating in Spain and now enjoyed worldwide, the sangria has much appeal. It was first introduced to the U.S. in 1964 at the World’s Fair in New York, and quickly became a summertime favorite. It is basically a punch, with wine being the base ingredient and including sliced oranges, lemons, limes, apples (or any fruit that suits your taste), triple sec, brandy, fruit juices or pretty much anything else the person mixing it chooses.
The reason sangria is so popular is its versatility. Deriving its name from the Spanish word for blood, “sangre,” red wine is normally used, although white wine can also be used (sangria blanco). There are pretty much no rules on how to make this drink. It is left entirely up to the one making it. Some may like to add a kick to theirs by adding brandy, while others may like a fruitier taste and add fruit juices to theirs. Whichever your preference, remember that there is no wrong way to make it, and make sure you have fun doing so.
To make this at home, I recommend using a medium-size pitcher. Pour in red wine — I suggest a slightly spicy wine like a zinfandel — or, if you like a softer-style sangria, use a merlot. Select fruits like lemons, limes, oranges and such. Slice up fruit, but do not dice, for this will break down somewhat while “marinating.” Add sliced fruit to pitcher of wine. Add some Cointreau, peach and banana liqueurs, and a bit of orange juice. Then chill this concoction for 24 hours. Just before serving this to your guests, add ice and top off the pitcher with sprite or sparkling water.
special to The Pensacola News Journal
