This post was originally published on March 31, 2016.
Have you ever gone on a weekend camping trip and wished you could bring your favorite homemade Bloody Mary mix along but didn’t want to use the time or space in the car to do so? Do you remember the last time you went to a resort, spending too much on the $12 Bloodies poolside, when you would have been even happier with your own recipe waiting in the hotel room? Maybe you have brought your homemade mix along in big gallon jugs– after spending an hour on preparation, rationing the ingredients just right. Well folks, look no longer. You can now bring your own recipe along on far journeys across the country, to music festivals or the beach by making your own On the Run Bloody Mary Kit.
This idea is present in a few commercial products, notably Demitri’s Bloody Mary Seasoning, but sometimes you just “wanna do you”– meaning you want your signature flavors, your favorite spices, and your choice sauces. The idea to craft my own seasoning mix arose from wanting to bring homemade Bloody Mary mix on a camping trip to Utah. Short on time and car space, I decided to throw together a mixture of all of the sauces and seasoning I like to put in my Bloodies and buy the rest of the necessary goods (tomato juice, vodka, lemon, ice) later. What a great idea this was! Not only was it fast, but it only took up a few inches of room in the car and tasted delicious after sitting and fusing together for a day.
Short story short, M and I headed out West to Utah for a weekend full of outdoorsy glory and canyon magic for my 24th birthday. For our first night’s rest, we stopped outside of Thompson Springs, an almost-ghost town roughly 40 miles north of Moab. It was a bit eerie because all of the businesses had closed at least 20-30 years ago after the main railway stopped servicing the area and the construction of Interstate 70 rid of travelers’ needs to take the Old Cisco Highway through town. The only business in the town still open for service is a gas station/7-11 joint. We pulled into some BLM land near a Sego Canyon and set up our mattress in the back of my Trailblazer. Feeling a bit spooked and potentially illegally camping, we woke up early the next morning and headed out, finding Native American pictographs on our way.
Our next stop was the one and only Bryce Canyon National Park in south central Utah. Bryce is truly a must-see destination and is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been in my lifetime. From the geologically-astounding hoodoos to the starlit night sky, Bryce Canyon is a wonder of the world and the feelings you experience there are pure magic. Bryce was where M and I decided to make our Bloodies with the On the Run Bloody Mary Kit and additional supplies we bought in a town on our way to Bryce. Nothing is better than having your favorite Bloody Mary recipe on a canyon rim! We hiked throughout the canyon until sunset and headed back to our campsite for a fire and dinner, went on a thrilling night hike with the fear of mountain lions approaching us, and fell asleep around 11 PM when the firewood ran out and we got tired.
Sunday was my birthday. We woke up, had more Bloodies (the amount of seasonings used in the On the Run Bloody Mary Kit I made was enough to mix 4 Bloodies!), and got on the road again. Our next stop was at a site with some abandoned train cars we saw on the way to Bryce. The train cars looked like they were in the process of being turned into homes, when someone decided to pick up and leave. Nonetheless, such a cool place to stumble upon.
Next was Mystic Hot Springs in the middle-of-nowhere aka Monroe, Utah. Mystic Hot Springs is an old Native American soaking spot where nomadic tribes would stop to camp, soak, and cover themselves in red mud. It was homesteaded in the late 1800s and finally bought by a man coined “Mystic Mike” in 1996. Funny thing is, Mystic Mike stumbled upon this spot in ’95 when traveling back to Denver from seeing the Grateful Dead in Las Vegas. Anyone who knows me knows I am a big Deadhead, so I was super stoked to find out our host for a few hours was too! The hot springs are awesome– the magical water fills two large pools and some odd number of porcelain bathtubs. You are gazing over a valley within the mountains of Utah while soaking in any of the tubs. Mystic Mike also has a bunch of old school buses (some adorned with all things Dead) and pioneer cabins lining the property. A must see if you are in the area!
Our last adventure of the Utah road trip was to the outdoorsman’s haven of Moab not too far from our home of Colorado. We stayed at the Gonzo Inn because I am a big fan of Hunter S. Thompson and his style of “gonzo journalism.” For my birthday dinner, we had sushi and many drinks. It was a wonderful evening spent with my lover in beautiful Utah!!! Thanks for the 24th birthday memories 🙂
We couldn’t go to Utah without checking out a sandstone arch! Since we had M’s dog with us, we went to a trail on BLM land to reach Corona and Bowtie arches. The trail was stunning and went throughout a canyon, across desert railroad tracks, and finally up to the gorgeous geological arches. I highly recommend checking out this trail if you’re in the Moab area.
I hope you all enjoy this easy recipe for my On the Run Bloody Mary Kit that can be made quickly for your next trip! And, hey, if you’re looking for road trip ideas… Utah is a pretty neat place to go .
INGREDIENTS
For the On the Run Bloody Mary Kit
- 1 tbs cayenne pepper
- 1 tbs granulated garlic or garlic powder
- 1/2 tbs salt
- 1 tbs black pepper
- 1-1.5 tbs pickle brine (depending on how pickley you like things)
- Dashes of 2-3 of hot sauces (suggestion: regular, habanero, and Sriracha)
- 1 tbs Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tbs crushed red pepper
- 1 tbs celery Seed
- Minced and dried cilantro, rosemary, or thyme
- Any additional spices or sauces you may want to add for unique flavor
To Buy Upon Arrival at your Destination
- Vodka (1.5-2 oz per cocktail)
- Ice
- 32 oz. containter of tomato juice (because you will need at least 5 oz. per Bloody)
- 1 Lemon
- Garnishes
- Plastic cups (if you don’t have reusable cups already packed)
DIRECTIONS
Making On the Run Bloody Mary
- Find a sealable container that will be easy to travel with and can be simply packed away if necessary.
- Add all liquid ingredients to container (Worcestershire sauce, hot sauces, pickle brine, and any others). Mix well.
- Toss in all of the spices (black, cayenne, and red crushed pepper, salt, granulated garlic or garlic powder, celery seed, tiny pieces of cilantro, rosemary, or thyme, and additional spices if you so choose!).
- Seal the container and hit the road.
Mixing the Bloodies
- Fill a cup with ice.
- Pour 1.5-2 oz of vodka into the cup.
- Fill the rest of the glass with tomato juice, leaving a bit of room at the top to add the On the Run Bloody Mary Kit ingredients.
- Pour roughly a tablespoon-size of the On the Run Bloody Mary Kit into the cup. I just eyed out the amount because, in my opinion, you can never go wrong with too much spice and flavor in a Bloody ;).
- Squeeze juice from a lemon wedge into the cup (if it’s a small/medium lemon, use about a ¼ size wedge or ⅛ of the lemon wedge if it’s a large lemon)
- Grab another cup and transfer the Bloody Mary mixture from cup to cup aka “rolling” to mix all of the ingredients together thoroughly. If you don’t have another cup, use a utensil to stir the mixture fully.
- Garnish with your choice of ingredients.
- Enjoy your Bloody Mary on the rim of a canyon, beside the fire, or high on a mountaintop.