Mount Gay Eclipse is almost always one of the selections in our rum cabinet. If not, it’s because we’ve just enjoyed the last of it and haven’t had a chance to get more. As a matter of fact, that’s how we found the following recipe, it was attached to a brand new bottle of Mount Gay Eclipse that we picked up this week.
The recipe is called Bajan Cooler. We put it together last night and I must say it was cool and refreshing – just perfect as the days get longer and warmer.
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One of our favorite tropical drinks is the frosty Piña Colada. The taste simply transports us back to the islands. So, when I ran across a recipe for Piña Colada Cupcakes I thought, why not! Mind you, with only 1/4 c. rum, these don’t pack quite as much punch as the actual cocktail, but that means you can probably enjoy them anytime!
Piña Colada Cupcake
Piña Colada Cupcakes (makes 24 cupcakes)
1/4 c. coconut rum (we used Cruzan Coconut) 1/2 c. cream of coconut 1 tsp vanilla 1 3/4 c. flour 2 1/2 tsp baking powder 1/4 tsp salt 1/2 c. unsalted butter 1 c. sugar 3 eggs 1 (8 oz) can crushed pineapple
Preheat the oven to 350`F. In a small mixing bowl, mix together the rum, coconut cream, pineapple with its juice, and vanilla.
In another small mix together the flour, baking powder and salt.
In a medium mixing bowl beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, then add the eggs one at a time, beating as you go.
While you’re mixing slowly add the rum mixture to the butter and sugar mixture.
Then add the flour mixture slowly until all the ingredients are well incorporated.
Fill cupcake wrappers 3/4 full and bake for 18 to 20 minutes, or until tops are starting to turn lightly golden brown.
Freshly Baked Piña Colada Cupcake
Let the cupcakes cool then ice them with the Coconut Cream Frosting below.
Coconut Cream Frosting
16 oz cream cheese 1/2 c. butter 4 c. powdered sugar 4 tbs cream of coconut (optional) shredded coconut for garnish, pineapple chunks, cherries
In a medium mixing bowl, cream together the butter, cream cheese, and coconut cream with a mixer.
Slowly add the powdered sugar and mix on low speed until it is completely incorporated.
Ice cooled cupcakes and garnish with shredded coconut, pineapple chunks and cherries, if desired.
Finished Piña Colada Cupcake
Next step – unwrap one of those puppies and ENJOY! Cheers!
For an island with only a few hundred full time inhabitants and nicknamed The Barefoot Island for it’s laid back attitude, Jost Van Dyke has some of the best beach bars in the Caribbean and it would be a shame to miss any of them. While staying on Jost for a week last fall, we attempted to visit them all – some of them more than once! Here’s a listing of the ones we found. We’ve listed them starting at the west end of White Bay and working our way across the island.
One Love Bar and Grill – try the Lobster Quesadilla’s and a Bushwacker. Check out Seddy’s magic tricks.
One Love Bar and Grill
Jewel’s Snack Shack – stop by Jewel’s for a tasty hamburger, fries and rum punch before heading down the beach!
Gertrude’s – gotta try a BBC (Bailey’s Banana Colada). It’s rumored to be the best BBC on the island.
A BBC at Gertrude’s
Soggy Dollar Bar – if you haven’t heard of the Soggy Dollar Bar yet, well…really??? Jump off of your boat and swim in, using your soggy dollars to buy their signature drink “The Painkiller”. Can be a huge party in the afternoon with scores of thirsty partiers coming over on day trips from neighboring islands. Try your luck at the Ring on the Hook game. If staying on island, be sure to stop by the Soggy early in the morning or later in the evening to swing in the hammocks and enjoy a quiet tropical paradise. Call for reservations for dinner – beautiful setting and very good food.
Painkillers at Soggy Dollar Bar
Hendo’s Hideout – during our last visit to JVD we noticed a new building going up next to Soggy Dollar. This has since opened to good reviews as a new bar called Hendo’s Hideout. We haven’t had a chance to visit yet, but hope to soon.
Hendo’s Hideout before it opened
Ivan’s Stress Free Bar – take a short hike over a rocky outcropping and make your way over to Ivan’s. Stress Free for sure, enjoy a cold beer, or whatever…anything tastes great here. Check out the barbecue on Thursday nights (seasonal) and live music. Celebs have been known to drop by and jam with owner/musician Ivan Chinnery.
Ivan’s Stress Free Bar
Corsair’s – head on over the hill from Ivan’s (or better yet, call Bunn’s Taxi) and stop at Corsair’s for Wench Juice or a Pirate Punch. Order pizza to be delivered and if you’re brave, try the Pirate Sandwich for breakfast (toast, peanut butter, cheese, onion and fried egg with a shot of flavored rum)
Corsair’s
Ali Baba’s – Great place to hang out in the morning enjoying a cup of coffee. Come back later in the afternoon for a refreshing rum drink and a 2 hole chip and putt golf course on the beach…
Foxy is a fixture in his own bar and can frequently be found serenading and weaving a tale for his patrons. In addition to some very delicious signature rum drinks, Foxy sells bottles of his own rum – Foxy’s Firewater Rum in his gift shop – the Foxhole. We especially enjoyed the “Dread Fox” – made with his own rum and “Foxy’s Punch” which includes a mango float. On Friday and Saturday night, Foxy’s has a BBQ and live music.
Foxy’s Dread Fox
Sydney’s Peace and Love – Make your way up and over the hill to Little Harbour and pull in to Sydney’s Peace and Love. Help yourself to a beer or mixed drink at the honor bar and be sure to sign the wall.
Harris’s Place – stop by Harris’s place and have Cynthia, the owner, make you one of her fabulous Bushwacker’s. Tasty and potent and Cynthia is a a ton of fun to visit. Come back later for a sumptuous Caribbean Lobster Dinner next to the water.
Cynthia with a tasty Bushwhacker
Abe’s by the Sea – good West Indian cuisine and a pig roast on Wednesday’s. Quiet place to sit and enjoy a beverage.
Foxy’s Taboo – To get to the last stop on our Jost Van Dyke Bar Crawl, head over the hill past East End Harbour and pull in to Foxy’s Taboo.
Foxy’s Taboo is also owned by Foxy Callwood and is said to be named after his dog, Taboo. Great covered patio overlooking Diamond Cay. Try the Taboo Burger and an ice cold beer or enjoy a beverage sitting on the dock and watching the fish and stingrays swim by.
Foxy’s Taboo
So now that we’ve made our way across the entire Barefoot Island, pull up a chair, grab a beer here at Foxy’s Taboo and tell us – which bars have you had a chance to enjoy on Jost Van Dyke?
To see more posts on Jost Van Dyke and other islands, check out our Island Blog Directory
There’s just something special about a tropical sunset. Looking at the brilliant hues of orange and pink shimmering off of the ocean makes us sigh and long for more island time.The following are our favorites from the Rum Therapy Tropical Sunset folder and each one brings back memories of warm breezes, soft sand and most likely, a rum drink in hand as the sun sinks below the watery horizon.
We’ve yet to capture the elusive “green flash”, but you never know, if we keep taking sunset pictures, we might get lucky someday! Which one is your favorite?
Playa del Carmen, Mexico
Oahu, Hawaii
Mayreau, The Grenadines
Oahu, Hawaii
Another sunset in Oahu, Hawaii
St. Croix, USVI
Anguilla Sunset
Hanalei Bay, Kauai
Young Island Cut, St. Vincent
At sea near Carriacou
White Bay Overlook, Jost Van Dyke
Isle Pinel, St. Martin
Union Island, The Grenadines
White Bay, Jost Van Dyke in front of Ivan’s
And last, but certainly not least, Anse du Grande Columbier, St. Barths
Have you heard of The Willy T? Accessible only by boat in The Bight at Norman Island in the British Virgin Islands, the infamous Willy T is short for William Thornton and is a bar and restaurant located in an anchored hullof a ship. Depending on the time and day you motor or dinghy up, you could encounter anything from a quiet lunch crowd to an all out party!
When we first visited the Willy T in 2006, it was widely known that women could score a free Willy T’s T-shirt by removing their shirt and walking the plank (jumping off the top deck). When we returned in 2010, there was a sign posted on the top deck prohibiting jumping and diving from the ship.
Although T-shirts are no longer awarded to topless women hurtling themselves over the top the jumping continues. We saw numerous people – male and female – jump & some took the plunge totally naked!
We enjoyed several tasty rum punches and downed a round at the Shotski.
The later it got – the rowdier the crowd got and in addition to body shots on the bar, both women and men were getting temporary Willy T tattoos from the bartenders – some in places, well, where the sun don’t shine!
We had a great time – made a lot of new friends that probably didn’t remember us the next day…
and the only problem we had was finding our dinghy after an evening of revelry! Thank goodness for our captain, the designated dinghy driver…
Ready to head on over to Norman Island for a tasty lunch or a Willy T’s tatoo, a drink from the Shotski and maybe take the plunge? Check out their website to find out more: The Willy-T
Have you taken the plunge at Willy T’s? Tell us about it!
Ahhh…Sunset Bar and Grill in St. Maarten. Where else can you enjoy a delicious rum punch on a beautiful beach while a 747 roars over your head?
Doesn’t sound that good to you? Well, when researching places to check out on our recent trip to St. Maarten, a good friend mentioned that we really ought to check this place out. We thought it would be a novelty and that we’d stop by just for a quick beverage, but we ended up having a blast!
The day we got there by mid-afternoon the bar was already hopping! There were plenty of people on the beach enjoying the warm sunshine and we noticed a surfboard acting as a sort of sign with a flight schedule written on it.
We ordered several Rum Punches and Mojitos along with a few appetizers.
Just as our first round was being served, we saw people clamoring towards the beach. Within seconds, a huge US Airways jet blasted right past us, over the fence and landed on the runway just feet from the bar. Wow – talk about close! I grabbed my camera and headed to the sand to see if I could capture the next landing.
In addition to great drinks and the jet entertainment, Sunset Bar and Grill frequently has live music and even crab races. And if you’re short on cash, women can drink free – if you’re willing to go topless.
After all the airplanes have landed for the day, Sunset offers a quiet waterfront dining under the stars. So really – Sunset Bar and Grill should be on your list of beach bars to check out next time you’re in St. Maarten. Just don’t stand in the middle of the beach when a 747 takes off….
To find out more about Sunset Bar and Grill in St. Maarten, check out their website here: http://sunsetsxm.com/
Find Sunset Bar & Grill on our St. Maarten/St. Martin Map
Press the Sunset Bar & Grill bar underneath the map
Other Posts on St. Maarten/St. Martin that you might enjoy:
After an enjoyable time at R. St. Barths, we continued down Rue du General de Gaulle looking for a shop that I had read about in one of our travel books. This shop was supposed to have a wide variety of infused rums in handcrafted bottles. In reading about St. Barts, we learned that many restaurants serve an infused rum after a delicious meal – particularly vanilla. Wanting to know more about this tradition, we sought out a shop called M’Bolo – known for their infused rums or “rhum” as it is spelled here.
A short stroll down Rue du General de Gaulle, we saw the sign for M’Bolo. The shop was tiny and tucked in back of another shop but looked quite inviting. Upon entering, we were immediately greeted by one of the shop owners, Sandy.
We asked about M’Bolo’s infused rhums and Sandy generously allowed us to try many of them, explaining that her husband Christian infused the rhums mainly with ingredients grown in his garden on St. Barts. Each one was better than the next and by the end we wanted to take one of each home!
Sandy said vanilla is a favorite on St. Barts and it was delicious. After sampling many of them, I decided to to purchase the chocolate, but unfortunately she’d run out – must have been another popular one! We instead purchased a bottle of Srub which is a wonderful combination of ingredients including cinnamon. Excellent to sip as an after dinner drink and we hope to at some point drizzle a little over some vanilla Blue Bell ice cream.
The bottles are handmade and great to bring home as a gift or to add to your own collection. As we gathered our purchases to leave, we asked Sandy if she drank rhum every day. Her response was “No, I don’t drink rhum every day, unless I can!” Gotta love that.
M’Bolo is well worth a visit when in St. Barts. Taste their wonderful infused rhums and enjoy visiting with Sandy!
Find the location of M’Bolo on our St. Barths Map under Attractions
To see more posts on St. Barths and other islands, check out our Island Blog Directory
Shopping in Gustavia, St. Barts is quite the adventure. Boutiques, high end shops, bars and restaurants line the streets around the beautiful harbor and the town is quaint and clean. You won’t find a lot of t-shirt and souvenir shops but you will find plenty of places to buy expensive watches, perfumes and other high end ticket items.
Although we brought our credit cards, we intended more to explore and experience Gustavia but found two shops that really caught our attention.
Several streets back from the harbor on Rue du General de Gaulle, we stumbled across R. St. Barths. It looked like a rum shop , but we had not heard of R. St. Barths before. Very intrigued, we walked in.
Walking into this shop was a visual pleasure. Rows of the R. St. Barth Blanc, R. St. Barth Ambré and R. St. Barth Hors d’Age lined one full wall.
Frederic was there to greet us and told us a little about R. St. Barth. We asked if we could first like to sample their infused rums that were on display. They were delicious – especially the vanilla…
We then moved to the chic tasting room with leather chairs and rum barrels and sampled the R. St. Barth Ambré.
The rhum is an authentic rhum agricole and the creation of French International footballer, Mikael Silvestre and his wife, Severine and they opened this store in March 2011.
From what we could find out, R. St. Barths is actually made and bottled in Guadeloupe, then shipped to St. Barths. Each beautiful bottle is finished with a hand-made wax seal.
We still don’t know a lot about this rum, but we certainly enjoyed the experience – be sure to stop in for a sample when you get to St. Barts!
Find the R. St. Barts Tasting Room on our St. Barths Map under Attractions
To see more posts on St. Barths and other islands, check out our Island Blog Directory
Not a big fan of green beer? Could you use a recipe for a green rum drink for St. Patrick’s Day this year? We’ve assembled three great tasting rum recipes sure to add a little touch O’ the green to your celebration. Click the link for recipes.
Ever been to a beach bar that’s a bus? A beach bar bus? As we were planning our recent trip to St. Maarten, a friend mentioned a beach bar on beautiful Simpson Bay Beach that we needed to visit.We asked the name of it and set out to find it one sunny afternoon.
We were staying on the other side of theDutch Bridge fromthis bar so we took a hike down Front Street past the Dutch Bridge and turned back in to Simpson Bay Beach. The beach has gorgeous soft sand and turquoise blue water.
We stopped for a quick beverage at Mary’s Boon Resort and Spa and then wandered a short way over looking for a bar called Karakter.
Karakter Beach Bar Bus
Sure enough! The main part of the bar IS actually a bus and the drinks are mixed inside the bus. There are covered picnic tables, beach chairs and umbrellas in the ultra soft sand and it was a fantastic place to lime away the afternoon.
The bar is in close proximity to the airport, but the beach ambiance, beautiful sand and great drinks far outweighed the occasional roar of an airplane taking off or landing.
This table was reserved for some Rum Therapy!
Beach in front of Karakter
The Rum Punch is highly recommended – strong and fruity just like we like it.
Want to find out more? Check out their website here: Karakter Beach Bar
Mount Gay Eclipse is almost always one of the selections in our rum cabinet. If not, it’s because we’ve just enjoyed the last of it and haven’t had a chance to get more. As a matter of fact, that’s how we found the following recipe, it was attached to a brand new bottle of Mount Gay Eclipse that we picked up this week.
