We’re in luck: As soon as it gets too hot to
really want a drinkthick with tomato puree and horseradish, the real tomatoes come in—and we can have an even better Bloody Mary. Restaurant Eve’s general manager, sommelier, and liquid savant, Todd Thrasher, who’s known for working in-season produce into his cocktails, makes them with tomato water instead.
The liquid that leaches from a tomato is
deceptively colorless, but it tastes like ripe, raw summer distilled into a cup.
Add lemongrass, red onion, and serrano and you have borderline tomato consommé,
with none of the fuss and technique.
Making infused tomato water the night before
sounds (and perhaps, in its paleness, looks) fussy, but the method is
surprisingly straightforward and loose. You pile a bunch of fresh summer
ingredients into a food processor, make something resembling gazpacho, then pour
it into a cloth-lined strainer to settle overnight. When it’s time for brunch,
you add lemon, lime, and orange juices and citron (or, in desperation, regular)
vodka. Served tall, it’s almost dangerously quenching for the dog days, and the
vodka, tomato, spice, and citrus play the Bloody Mary card well, without
reminding anyone of cocktail sauce.
Makes 4 drinksTOMATO WATER
4 large beefsteak tomatoes,
quartered
½ serrano chile, coarsely
chopped
¼ red onion, coarsely
chopped
One 3-inch (7.5cm) piece of
lemongrass, tough outer leaves removed and coarsely chopped
Small pinch of sugar
Large pinch of salt
½ lime
½ lemon
½ orange
COCKTAIL
Ice
2 cups (475ml) tomato
water
6 ounces (¾ cup/180ml) Grey Goose
Le Citron (or any citrus vodka)
4 cherry tomatoes, for
garnish
1 To make the tomato water,
puree the tomatoes, chile, onion, lemongrass, sugar, and salt in a food
processor, until smooth. Line a large strainer with a double layer of
cheesecloth, and set the strainer over a nonreactive bowl. Pour the puree into
the strainer and refrigerate overnight.
2 Gather the sides of the cheesecloth up over the puree
to form a large sack and squeeze gently to extract the last bits of water.
Discard the cheesecloth and its contents. Set a strainer over the bowl and
squeeze in the lime, lemon, and orange juices. Stir well.
3 To make the cocktails, fill
four highball glasses with ice. In each, combine 4 ounces (½ cup/120ml) tomato
water and 1½ ounces (3 tablespoons/45ml) vodka and stir. Garnish with cherry
tomatoes.
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