Dear Food Diary:
Happy Halloween! I’m not big on the festivities but thought a good Bloody Mary recipe would come in handy tonight. What other drink shouts halloween like this red concoction? Plus, you can pretty much dress it up any way you want it!

A few weeks ago, I attended Absolut’s Bloody Mary 80th birthday celebration. Did you know it was originally named “Red Snapper”?.

They had a recipe contest for the best bloody mary in America. Got to sample the winning one from Texas. And made my own Bloody Chubby.

The 10 finalists were flown in for the NYC Food and Wine Festival (see all recipes)

Texas took home the win with A Bloody Beaux Thai – according to Chopped judges. There was a good amount of heat! And I loved the flavors of creole seasoning and celery salt.

After a few drinks we got to make our own…

Here’s the making of the Bloody Chubby, we had so many ingredients to play with, but I kept it pretty classic. Just like my cooking, there wasn’t really a recipe. Like any good potion, a dash of this and a table spoon of that. I discovered the Absolut Cilantro Lime, great splash of brightness.

Bloody Chubby (sorta recipe)
– Absolut Cilantro Lime (more the merrier)
– Bloody Mary Mix (to taste)
– Splash of fresh lime juice
– Teaspoon of horseradish
– Dash of worcestershire sauce
– Sprinkle of celery salt and pepper

– Creole seasoning for the rim
– Lots of ice

And voila! I topped it off with strips of thick cut bacon (as many as I could fit), celery sticks, deviled egg, oyster, cocktail shrimp and the best topping of all toppings – pan fried shishito peppers! Added that punch of concentrated pepper flavor without setting my tongue on fire.

It was practically a meal in itself… pretty darn awesome.

Cheers and Happy Bloody Mary & Bloody Chubby any day!