I got a very cool thank-you gift in the mail from BK Farmyards! They sent me some home made beet liqueur from Sister Liqueurs and a cute tote bag made by one of their teen farmers.
BK Farmyards is a farming network that reclaims spaces in Brooklyn (school yards, private backyards, community lots) and turns them into mini-farms producing fresh food for the neighborhood and giving jobs and education to local adults and teens.
Way back in February of 2010, I donated to a Kickstarter Campaign with BK Farmyards to help raise money for a youth farm at a highschool in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. (So, sidenote here, if you want to help out your community but don't have hundreds of dollars to donate to large non-profits, Kickstarter.org is a good way to find people who could really use your $1 or $10 donation.) The campaign ended up raising more than it's goal, and I was very happy to be a part of it!
Here's the rundown on how my money is being spent:
"We will develop the 1-acre farm over the course of the next four years incorporating farming into the science, health, art, and media classes. We will have a summer youth employment program which will provide summer jobs for the students as well as after-school volunteer programs. In the first year, we will provide fresh affordable produce to 20 families in the community for 16 weeks, and by year 5, we will be providing produce for 80 families. This farm will be one of the only fresh food sources in the neighborhood."
One of the thank-you gifts I received for my donation was this great fresh beet liqueur made from a BK Farmyards space! Here are my ideas for cocktails to make with it:
1. Beet Salad Martini: Sister Liqueurs Beet Beet, Nux Alpina Walnut Liqueur (which I actually got a bottle of for Christmas this year), a dollop of something creamy on top-- would it be weird to put goat cheese on a cocktail?
2. Summer Beet Spritzer: Sister Liqueurs Beet Beet, seltzer water, lime juice, mint garnish and a sugar rim
3. Bloody Beety: Sister Liqueurs Beet Beet, plain old beet juice, lemon, horseradish, salt and pepper, celery swizzle stick
4. Beet Beer: Sister Liqueurs Beet Beet, ginger beer, celery salted rim
So... do you have any other ideas?
Here's the beet liqueur, posing stylishly on my couch surrounded by blankets made by my great-grandmother, a pillow from Marimekko, and a heart buddy made by my friend Alex.
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