As promised, this recipe is much (much) simpler than the rainbow cookies from my last post. And if you made those cookies, like I did, you deserve a drink!

Although, I have to admit – Our liquor cabinet is in a weird place right now.

We used up all our gin making Uncle Richard’s Three Olive Martinis last week. Last night, we discovered we had two bottles of our favorite blended whiskey* with only tiny dribs and drabs in each. So, CT took care of that by making us a couple Old Fashioneds, his favorite drink.

So, now we are out of gin and whiskey (and also vodka, because something happened)… But, I was in the mood for a congratulatory beverage, seeing as I accomplished a couple of business tasks. So, I decided to invent myself a drink with whatever we had left.

More on the drink in a minute, but first, my business news.

We have an updated logo! Our gorgeous, new, handwritten logo was designed, and executed to perfection, by my mom (it sure is nice being an artist’s kid). And I obtained my business license for my pop-up bakery. This was my first time acquiring my own business license, and it was way easier and cheaper than I expected. I did the whole thing while lying on the couch. Score!

So, about that drink. I was missing some base spirits. However, I did have some liqueurs, brandy, tequila, and a few swallows of scotch in an old bottle… what to make?

That’s when I discovered The Godfather. A dead-simple drink, fit for a Don. And what do you know? I had the ingredients.

The Godfather barely needs a recipe. In its purest form, it is scotch whiskey and amaretto poured over ice. The proportions though, vary wildly depending on the source. Recipes range as far as equal parts amaretto and scotch to mostly scotch with just a whisper of the sweet stuff.

Would this drink even be good? How would the marzipan flavor of amaretto play with the smoky complexity of scotch? Well, there was only one way to find out.

So I mixed one up, and… it worked.

I made the beverage to my taste – lighter on the amaretto (1/2oz to 2oz scotch). If I were to make this with a non-peaty whiskey I would decrease the amaretto even more (to 1/4oz). Those proportions taste right to me, but if you love amaretto, or like your drinks on the sweeter side, do you, and bump it up! Legend has it, this was Marlon Brando’s drink and he liked one part amaretto to one part scotch.

A Godfather purist would make this drink with no garnish. However, I love to use amaretto and lemon zest together in baking. So, why not add a lemon twist to this? Honestly, I think it makes the drink.

An orange twist would also be delicious. Or, if you’re using a more neutral whiskey, I might add a dash or two of bitters to give it complexity. This beverage is easily customized based on the drinker’s preferences.

Here’s the recipe for the drink, as I like it. Mix one up for yourself, the way you like it. You’re the boss (especially with one of these in your hand).

The Godfather

Yield: 1 drink

Time: 5 minutes

Ingredients:

2oz (60mL) scotch

1/2oz (15mL) amaretto

1 lemon

1. Place one large ice cube in a rocks glass.
2. Cut one wide piece of lemon zest with a vegetable peeler.
3. Squeeze lemon zest, to release its oil, over the ice cube in the glass. Then rub the piece of zest lightly around the rim of the glass. Reserve.
4. Pour scotch and amaretto into a cocktail shaker. Top with ice.
5. Stir scotch and amaretto and then strain over the ice cube in the rocks glass.**
6. Garnish with reserved lemon zest.
7. Kick back and enjoy. Like a boss.

*I promise I am not sponsored by Oola Distillery – I am not a big enough deal for that (yet)! We just really like their stuff.

**I like to stir and then strain my beverage over one large piece of ice because it keeps the drink from getting too diluted for my taste. This step is wholly unnecessary though, and the drink can be built entirely in the glass by simply filling the glass with ice, pouring the liquor over it, and stirring. This is, in fact, the method used in the original recipe.