The Cocktail That Left Rachael Ray Speechless
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Rachael Ray has a gift for gab. The celebrity cook can be quite loquacious, a necessity for a talk show host. And she is good at it — in 2020, she celebrated the 2,500th episode of her show "Rachael Ray," which has been on the air since 2006 (via IMDb). While she has achieved a lot of success in her life, Ray has a sense of down-to-earth humility we admire. When asked by ABC News about her success, Ray said, "I'm a waitress from upstate New York. Anyone that likes chatting, that likes to cook, certainly. Could have happened to anybody." We don't know about that, but it's nice to think so.
We especially love how glib Ray gets when her hubby, John Cusimano, is mixing up a cocktail. Cusimano has proven himself to be quite the bartender. In 2012, he and Ray co-authored a cookbook titled "My Year in Meals and My Year in Cocktails" (via Amazon) and the two have shown off their chemistry during Cusimano's cocktail segments on her show. From her hilarious quip about being a "backseat driver" while Cusimano whipped up his Midnight in the South of France adult beverage to watching the two as he added a 'pickle-icious' twist to a classic Mexican cocktail, Ray never seems to be at a loss for words. However, there is one cocktail Cusimano whipped up that did leave Ray a little speechless.
Just a pause
OK, maybe Rachael Ray wasn't speechless and it was more of a flirty exchange between the two that gave way to a slight pause in the conversation, but for Ray, that's saying something. During an episode of her show "Rachael Ray," John Cusimano shares that he is going to make Ray a "filthy dirty martini" (via Rachael Ray). Ray's response is a hilarious Eartha Kitt purr followed by a pause in the conversation, but she quickly recovers. Getting her chat on, Ray explains "filthy dirty" means your eyes will be swollen shut in the morning because of all the salt in the brine and the amount of alcohol required to make this riff on this classic cocktail.
According to Liquor.com, the dirty martini may have been birthed in New York where the olive was originally said to be "muddled" into the drink before someone changed it up, and instead decided to add the olive brine to the alcohol. Surprisingly, it wasn't an instant sensation, but it did eventually find a fanbase. Even Franklin D. Roosevelt hopped on the dirty martini bandwagon.
During the segment, Cusimano reveals he uses gin, dry vermouth, a dash of orange bitters, and some brine to make this drink. And of course, Ray jokes she would make it so different. Her biggest critique is that it doesn't look "dirty." Cusimano doesn't miss a beat and replies, "It's going to make you feel filthy!" To which Ray responds, "Even better!" We love the banter.