Wild Rose Reader: Dinner with Friends, A Poetry Podcast, & A Poetry Month Martini

On Friday, I had the pleasure of having dinner with two of my best literary friends—Grace Lin and Janet Wong. We had a most delicious meal at Upstairs on the Square in Cambridge, Massachusetts. We sampled six different appetizers and soups and shared an entrée—duck saltimbocca.  We devoured the dessert we ordered—churros with a bittersweet chocolate dipping sauce. It was to die for!

After dinner, we returned to Grace’s house. Grace recorded a poetry podcast with Janet and me—which she’ll post on her blog later this year.

Last week, I also invented a Poetry Month Martini. It’s yummy. I think I’ll call it the “Julia”—after my granddaughter. Let me explain why: I love champagne mangoes and bring a couple of them with me every week when I go up to my daughter’s house. My daughter suggested I give Julia some pureed mangoes for lunch one day to see if she liked them. Like her grandmother, Julia loves champagne mangoes too. As I was pureeing a batch of them for Julia on Wednesday, I thought creating a cocktail with the puree might be a good idea. My first attempt was a winner! My daughter thought so too. It’s a potable to write poetry about. Here’s the recipe:

Champagne Mango Martini

(For one cocktail)

2 shots of vodka

2 shots of champagne mango puree
1 shot of triple sec
1 shot of freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 shot of simple syrup

Add ingredients to cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake hard. Pour contents into a martini glass and garnish with a strawberry. Enjoy!