Rum

For a limited time only, Baltimore-based Berger Cookies is bringing back three iced cookies that they stopped making when Spiro Agnew was vice president. The throwback icings are strawberry, lemon and rum. They're available for order on the Berger Cookie website . Has anybody seen them in stores? I've been told that the TV commercials say that they're only available by order.  

It's not quite warm outside but with the return of spring and summer offerings to our favorite local bar menus, you can certainly try to will (or numb) your body into feeling like it is. So it snowed last week? Inside, I was sipping on a daiquiri, visions of palm trees dancing in the wind, crystal blue waters kissing my feet and … wait, yep, I said a daiquiri. A REAL Daiquiri, in fact (that's the official name for the cocktail, anyway). And it's makers over at Clementine want you to know that it's the right way to drink a daiquiri.

Rebecca Hart of Westminster is seeking "a delicious recipe for chocolate mousse," which she has lost. "I have tried recipes, but none are as good. I would appreciate help." Sheila Konsowski of Glen Burnie responded with a recipe for a rum chocolate mousse that she says her family loves. Recipe requests Judie Quent of Berlin is seeking a recipe for a fudge called Valladies (she thinks that is the way to spell it), which she enjoyed when she went with her parents to Washington, D.C. Quent says, "They always got the fudge from Woodward & Lothrop.

Paladar Latin Kitchen & Rum Bar will celebrate its fifth anniversary on Aug. 23 with parties at its Cleveland and Annapolis locations. There will be free guacamole for everybody -- one serving for every two customers -- half-off mojitos and free branded rum snifters with rum orders, neat and on the rocks, while supplies last. It all started in Cleveland five years ago. In 2010, the second Paladar opened in Annapolis. And Paladars three and four will be opening within the next eight months in Hallandale Beach, Fla. and North Bethesda.

LAUREL -- The two favorites in yesterday's Find Handicap at Laurel Race Course looked so imposing that only two of their five original opponents chose to go against them.Either Baron de Vaux (7-10) or Master Speaker (6-5) was supposed to win the 1 1/8 -mile turf race for Maryland-breds, so trainers of three horses scratched their runners. Only the connections of Rebuff and Rum And Gold chose to stay in the race."I kept thinking I might scratch him, but then I thought I might get lucky," said Rum And Gold's trainer, Art Willson.

Let them eat cake indeed. Rum cake. Rum poundcake with rum sauce and butter. This four-egg cake would send Prohibitionist Carry Nation into a certifiable swoon. It not only has 80-proof rum as an ingredient, it also has a rum-based glaze. Teetotalers who have a problem with downing a slice of cake imbued with demon rum can substitute rum extract and buttermilk for real rum and water. Take that, Marie Antoinette. You too, Carry. Bacardi Rum Cake Serves 16 1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts 1 (18 1/2 -ounce)

Rum may not be as popular these days as in the 18th century, when consumption in the American Colonies was said to average about four gallons per person each year. But this storied brew of sugar cane and water is pleasing an increasing number of palates these days. The Beverage Journal reports that rum was the fastest-growing segment of the spirits category last year, selling some 50,000 gallons more than it had five years before. Some of this popularity is fueled by flavored rums, including products featuring vanilla, coconut, banana, pineapple and other flavors.

WHEN LAST WE left the fat zucchini, they were hanging in a pillowcase from the rafters of the back porch.The saga of the suspended zucchini began last week when I scooped out some wide-bodied zucchini, filled them with sugar, stuffed them in a pillowcase and waited for them to ferment. The idea, pulled from a cookbook, was to make a zucchini rum that would drip from the pillowcase and be collected in a bowl. That process has now been completed and has produced two notable results. First, it has brought forth a liquid.

A rum cake recipe using either walnuts or pecans was the request of Laverne Blake of Lutherville. Her response came from Beth Hunter of Timonium, who notes, "This may just be the rum pecan cake recipe Laverne Blake is seeking. It comes from 'Southern Heritage Company's Coming Cookbook.' "Rum Pecan CakeServes 241 (15-ounce) package raisins, chopped1 cup candied pineapple, finely chopped1 (8-ounce) package candied cherries, finely chopped8 cups chopped pecans4 cups all-purpose flour1 1/2 cups butter or margarine, softened2 cups sugar6 eggs2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder2 teaspoons ground nutmeg1 cup rum1 cup orange marmalade1/2 cup molassesCombine first 4 ingredients; dredge with 1 cup of flour, stirring to coat well.

Trainer Richard Schosberg scored an East Coast double yesterday with a pair of 2-year-olds.Nine minutes after Schosberg won the $500,000 Champagne Stakes at Belmont Park with the colt Maria's Mon, the filly River of Rum, which he trains for Heatherwood Farm, scored a three-quarter-length upset in the $100,000 Selima Stakes at Laurel Park."

Say it with me now: Shisoito. That's She. Sew. Eeto. In other words, what you get when Shiso Tavern, the new Asian-fusion restaurant in Canton, takes the typical Latin-American Mojito recipe and moves it further East - Japanese style. So what makes the Shiso Mojito special enough to have its own whimsical nickname (credit Dana Morris, bar manager and the cocktail's creator, with that one)? It's all in the herb. Shiso, a Japanese basil, is a subtle mint-flavored leaf that general manager Tim Ernst says is often used as a green garnish in sushi dishes.

For a limited time only, Baltimore-based Berger Cookies is bringing back three iced cookies that they stopped making when Spiro Agnew was vice president. The throwback icings are strawberry, lemon and rum. They're available for order on the Berger Cookie website . Has anybody seen them in stores? I've been told that the TV commercials say that they're only available by order.  

The folks behind Iron Bridge Wine Co. have opened a the Mutiny Pirate Bar and Island Grille in the Point Pleasant area of Glen Burnie, on the Marley Creek. Mutiny features Caribbean barbecue and an extensive selection of island rum. The owners are Rob and Steve Weckler from Iron Bridge and Nate Hynson. In addition to Caribbean barbecue, the menu includes fresh fish, beef, chicken and pork dishes; raw and steamed seafood and a signature "Shipwreck Burger. " The chef is Jake Howard, formerly of the Iron Bridge Wine Company.

Since opening in 2005, Joe Squared has been a Baltimore favorite for pizza. With its free live music and a long rum list, the Station North restaurant has won a place in many a hipster's heart. A month ago, Joe Squared opened a second shop at a location that seems almost directly at odds with its underground ethos: the slick, mainstream Power Plant Live. The new Joe Squared , like the old, has an enjoyable outdoor seating area for people-watching. Inside, you'll find a coffee house-meets-sushi-bar vibe, with long counters at the bar and along the art-covered walls.

A shot of vodka, a shot of whiskey, sweet-and-sour mix, a couple of ounces of orange juice, and a cherry and an orange slice to top it off. You must recognize it. The Black-eyed Susan has been the Preakness Stakes' official cocktail since time immemorial; at least since the '50s, estimates Pimlico historian Joe Kelly. The drink has not stayed stale. Its creators have reinvented it several over the years. The recipe above is the current mix: 3/4 oz. 42 Below Vodka, 11/4 -ounce Early Times Kentucky Whiskey, 3-oz.

P arty guests were in a crabby state of mind at the Phillips Foods World Headquarters for Beer, Boats & Ballads, an annual fundraiser for Sail Baltimore. That crabbiness had nothing to do with the guests' moods, and everything to do with the evening's buffet - a variety of dishes with crab as an ingredient. "It's a good crowd, and good stuff. We went over the top this year," said board member Paul Swensen as he watched guests at the various food stations. It wasn't just the food that appealed to fellow board member Ralph Rizzo . "It's the eclectic mix of people, from boaters to bankers.

My husband and I have been on the South Beach Diet for over four months, and so far it is working great. Around the holidays, my husband usually makes eggnog with just a splash of rum, vanilla ice cream, and half a gallon of store-brand eggnog. He also adds whatever he feels might add a different taste, including vanilla, almond or strawberry flavorings. Is there any way to make a low-carb, low-sugar eggnog? All I could think of was to use as many low-carb, low-sugar ingredients as possible, but I'm not sure how that would taste.

A new breed of American small-batch distiller is staking a claim to rum. The burgeoning growth made small-batch rum the focus of the American Distilling Institute's national conference this year. "There's a whole new generation, from the Eastern Seaboard to Hawaii, who are making great rum," said institute president Bill Owens. The 12 active small-batch rum distilleries operating in the United States might seem like pioneers, but rum (aka Nelson's blood, kill-devil, demon water) is part of America's heritage.

Loyola discovered a simple formula for success last night at Towson Catholic - stay disciplined on offense and get the ball into Matt Rum's hands. Rum scored 24 of his game-high 31 points in the second half - including 16 in the fourth quarter - to help the visiting Dons pull out a 61-59 victory over the No. 8 Owls in a Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference and Baltimore Catholic League showdown. Rum, a 6-foot-3 senior guard, will go to William and Mary next year and looked like a college player in the second half.

1 Grizzlies vs. Spiders: Your division has a football playoff and they put the championship game on a Friday (Montana-Richmond, 8 p.m., ESPN2). 2 D-lightful: D-Wade vs. K-obe: Lakers at Heat (8 p.m., ESPN). 3 Quarter flash: Maybe Carmelo Anthony (left) can show LeBron James that neat little 33-point-quarter trick (Cavaliers at Nuggets, 10:30 p.m., ESPN). 4 Call out the guards: Watch the backcourt when Loyola (Matt Rum) and No. 8 Towson Catholic (Devin Spencer) play at 7 p.m. at the Owls' home.