By Mike Armstrong

Reporter, Carbon County Comet

I am blessed with a memory that can go back to when I was around two years old. No kidding. I am not saying I have tons of memories from three and younger, but it is surprising how much I can recall.

Definitely one of my favorite memories was my mother making me Apple Dumplings for dinner.

Yes, dinner and not dessert.

By Mike Armstrong

Reporter, Carbon County Comet

Since the Spanish Gin and Tonic was mentioned in the Carbon County Travel column this week; it certainly makes sense to feature the recipe in this edition.

A regular gin and tonic known to most Americans is a basic cocktail created in a highball glass. 

Fill the highball glass (usually 12 ounces) with ice.

Put in 2 ounces of gin.

By Mike Armstrong

Reporter, Carbon County Comet

By Mike Armstrong

Reporter, Carbon County Comet

The Gimlet has been mentioned before but I have never really delved into its history, and it does have a cool history.

I used to make this drink for my father as a kid and it was the one drink that my parents drank that I sort of liked.

Because of an early episode of overdrinking at an early age, I never attacked my parents’ liquor cabinet, which was quite vast.

By Mike Armstrong

Reporter, Carbon County Comet

By Mike Armstrong

Reporter, Carbon County Comet

Armagnac is a brandy produced in the Armagnac region in Gascony, southwest France. 

By Mike Armstrong

Reporter, Carbon County Comet

By Mike Armstrong

Reporter, Carbon County Comet

I will always remember the Manhattan.

It was one of the first cocktails I made for my father when I was about seven years old.

I often joke that I was destined to be a bartender because my father had me and my sister make his cocktails on Saturday as he was grilling steaks for dinner.

By Mike Armstrong

Reporter, Carbon Count Comet

Ham entrees were some of my best selling dishes when I had my restaurant in Laramie. Lost and Found had a concept of offering a very limited selection of entrees when customers came to eat there. We would have a choice of three dishes that would be available until they sold out and then a new dish would be offered.

By Mike Armstrong

Reporter, Carbon County Comet

I didn’t really know a lot about scotch when I first started bartending. I did know it was one of the brown liquors that I had mixed together at my step-brother’s bachelor party when I was 15. 

By Mike Armstrong    

Reporter, Carbon County Comet

I used to be fine with an instant hot chocolate although a couple of brands were a bit sweet for my taste. Then I started reading the ingredients that were in some of these mixes and it became apparent, if I wanted to drink hot chocolate, I better make it from scratch.

By Dana Davis

Reporter, Carbon Count Comet

As the weather turns cooler and fall sets in, there’s nothing quite as comforting as homemade baked goods to warm up the home. Cooler days make the oven’s heat welcome again, filling the kitchen with the scent of freshly baked treats and a sense of cozy nostalgia.

By Mike Armstrong

Reporter, Carbon County Comet

There was a time when I went into bars that specialized in whisky and almost 75 percent was single malt scotch.

This was in Asia.

American whiskey, whether bourbon, rye, or Tennessee whiskey (Jack Daniels), was not a favorite of the Chinese.

Scotch was dominant.

Single malt is the most sought-after, although Jonny Walker blends were popular.

Compiled by Dick Perue

GATT Correspondent

Several folks have been gathering at the piano to sing hymns following a delicious free meal served on the first Monday evening of each month at the Saratoga Presbyterian Church.

By Mike Armstrong

Reporter, Carbon Count Comet

I am not a huge fan of eggplant. As a kid, we had eggplant Parmesan a couple of times and although I really enjoy Italian dishes, it was not a favorite of mine. Now I have to admit my stepmother was a wonderful person who I loved dearly, but she was really not a good cook.

So my aversion to eggplant might be partly attributed to it not ever being cooked well.