Anyone who’s seen Preacher, Loving, or even Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. knows Ruth Negga is a real-deal talent. But what they might not know, given her skill at accents, is that she’s actually Irish. So in honor of St. Patrick’s Day, Vanity Fair asked Negga to show off her Irish roots by making an Irish coffee. And though she admits she’s never actually made the coffee-and-whiskey cocktail before, she valiantly gives it her best shot anyway.
Though her recipe could arguably use some work (while showing off the final product she admits, “Now, it shouldn’t look like that”), Negga’s delightful persona is the real highlight of the video. She calls attention to the strangeness of making a cocktail on set in a pink dress, eschews the provided shot glass to eyeball a healthy helping of whiskey, and then surprises herself that what she made is an actual alcoholic cocktail, not a fake approximation. And when her recipe doesn’t exactly turn out as planned, she gamely pulls out the old home-cook chestnut, “But I’m sure it tastes fine.”
For those actual foodies out there, the secret to getting the cream to sit on top of the coffee, rather than mix in as Negga’s does, is to slowly pour a thick, lightly whipped heavy cream over the back of a spoon held just above the surface of the coffee. Or you can just use a full-on whipped cream for a slightly less traditional but easier-to-make version. Just be sure not to skimp on the sugar in the coffee, as that actually helps the cream float on top.