If you’ve been following the Twice as Tasty blog from the beginning, you might remember how the entire idea of writing a food blog started with my grilled tomato recipes, especially the bloody Mary mix recipe that I share this week column for the Flathead Beacon. The recipe has improved with every season as I fine-tuned a balance between chunky salsa in a glass and thin, overly drained juice. For a long time, I blended some tomato solids back into the juice, but this left slightly chewy bits and too many seeds. I’ve finally settled on using a large-holed colander to separate juice and solids and then pressing the result through a fine-mesh strainer to leave just the seeds behind.

This recipe has also evolved from one I jarred and sealed in a boiling water bath to one I prefer to make in batches from the freezer. The frozen juice tastes fresher, and it keeps the smoky tomato juice on hand for easy winter lunches like Tomato Juice Soup.

Learn more about grilling tomatoes and get the complete recipe for Grilled Tomato Bloody Mary Mix in my column.

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Twice as Tasty

A surprising variety of my homegrown produce ends up in a glass. Some beverages rely on a simple syrup or concentrate, like the mint simple syrup that infuses a Mega-Mint Mojito. For fruit and vegetables, I’m usually separating juice from solids, a process made easier by heat, sugar, or both. I use the remaining fruit solids in various ways, but one of the easiest is to freeze them in cubes to blend into Improv Smoothies.

Excited about more homemade beverages? Here are just a few other recipes on the blog. You can find more in the recipe index.

• Grilled Tomatillo Margaritas
• Rhubarb–Vanilla Syrup
• Roasted Raspberry Syrup
• Strawberry–Rhubarb Shrub
• Watermelon–Basil Shrub

If you’re looking to further upgrade your cocktail bar, check out these recipes for Homemade Orange Liqueur (Triple Sec) and Bourbon-Infused Smoked Cherries. And don’t forget about homemade pickles to garnish your bloody Marys.

Want more Twice as Tasty recipes? Get my books! Click here to order a personally signed, packaged, and shipped copy of The Complete Guide to Pickling directly from me. I also share tasty ways to use pickles in The Pickled Picnic; it’s only available here.