The Perfect Picnic

from 2019 Season Program

Casting a Spotlight on Education

Former HVSF board member Katherine Whiteside is an internationally published author and journalist. She and Peter Gergely (local pediatrician, artist, and HVSF Advisory Board member) have collaborated for eight years on “Gardening Gusto” a weekly, opinionated gardening and cooking column for The Putnam County Courier and The Putnam County News & Recorder.

Local journalist and longtime HVSF fan Katherine Whiteside loves a picnic, especially if it features the promise of a performance under the HVSF Theater Tent, a lazy sunset on Boscobel’s Great Lawn, and one of her mouthwatering recipes. Bring along this seasonal cocktail on your next visit!

Champagne Cocktail with Homemade Hibiscus Bitters

To Make the Bitters To Make the Cocktail

Do this two weeks in advance: Put ingredients listed below in a wide-mouth lidded jar. Screw on lid, shake until sugar dissolves, and store jar at room temperature. • 1 c. Vodka • 1 Red Zinger tea bag (this Celestial Seasonings tea contains hibiscus) • 1 2-inch Cinnamon Stick • 3 tbs. Orange Peel, cut into chunks • 6 whole Cloves • ½ tsp. Ground Mace • 6 whole Cardamom (green) • ½ tsp. Ground Nutmeg • 1 2-inch Vanilla Pod • 8 whole Allspice • ½ Bay Leaf • 2 slices Ginger (fresh) • ½ tsp. Raw Sugar Quickly, deftly dip a sugar cube into the bitters. Drop bittered cube into a Champagne flute. (Glamorous glass or picnic plastic? Your choice.) Fill the flute with chilled Champagne. The hibiscus bitters will tint the Champagne a pale-pink and add a refreshing zing as the sugar cube bounces up and down with joy.