HAITIAN RUM RECIPES

Steps:

• Heat overn to 325.
• Beat butter at medium speed with an electric mixer about 2 minutes or until creamy. Gradually add sugars, beating 5 to 7 minutes.
• Add eggs, one at a time, beating just until yellow disappears.
• Combine milk, rum and vanilla extract.
• Combine flour, baking powder, and salt; add to butter mixture alternately with milk mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture.
• Beat at low speed just until blended after each addition.
• Fold in pecans. Next, pour batter into a greased and floured 13 cup Bundt pan and bake for one hour and 20 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center of cake comes out clean.
• Cool in pan on a wire rack 10 to 15 minutes; remove cake from pan and let cool completely on wire rack. May drizzle with over lightly with a confectioner's sugar icing, if desired.

Steps:

• One day ahead, make the sirop d’épices. Mix the sugar and water together in a small saucepan and heat over medium-low flame. As it warms up, stir occasionally to dissolve the sugar.
• When the sugar is dissolved and the liquid is simmering, stir in the raisins, ginger, vanilla bean, star anise and cinnamon stick. Reduce heat to low and let everything simmer, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes.
• Let cool in the pan, then transfer to a bowl or glass measuring cup and refrigerate covered for about 24 hours. Strain into a lidded jar. You can add the star anise, cinnamon stick and vanilla bean to the jar for the visual effect (or not), but discard the ginger and raisins.
• The sirop d’épices will keep for a couple of weeks in the fridge.
• Make the cocktail. Combine the rum, egg white, lime juice and sirop d’épices in a cocktail shaker. Shake for about 10 seconds to froth the egg white.
• Fill the shaker with ice and shake until very cold, about 20 seconds.
• Strain through a fine-mesh strainer into a chilled coupe. (You can also serve the drink over ice in a rocks glass.) Garnish with fruit, if you like. Serve.