HESTER STREET GIBSON

I am a pretty dedicated martini drinker, but I also have a fondness for those delicious cocktail onions. I had celery bitters from a sampler set and started thinking that onions and celery are a natural pairing. The bitters reminded me of Dr. Brown's Cel-Ray soda, a staple of Jewish delis. The thyme was added after a friend remarked that I already had the beginnings of a soup. It's name is derived from the street on New York's Lower East Side, once a hub of Eastern European Jewish immigration.

INGREDIENTS

2 ounces Gin
1 ounce Dry Vermouth
A few generous dashes of Celery Bitters (I originally used The Bitter Truth's bitters for this, but I also 
have used Fee Bros.)
2 sprigs of Lemon Thyme
Cocktail onions
 

INSTRUCTIONS

Combine gin, vermouth, bitters, and one sprig of lemon thyme in cocktail shaker w/ice. Shake until cold (and however long it takes you to hum a few bars of Hava Nagila). Strain into chilled cocktail glass and garnish with onions and remaining sprig of lemon thyme.

 Serves 1.

(Previously published in Cathy Kaufman and Culinary Trust. The Cookbook Lovers' Cookbook: A Quirky Compendium of Hand-Picked Recipes from Participants at the Roger Smith Cookbook Conference to Benefit the Culinary Trust. Favorite Recipes Press, 2012.)