Tag Archives: gin

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Lime-Basil-Gin Ice Pops

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The weather has been perfectly mild here–warm, sunny days and chilly mornings. As I type this, I’m drinking my first cup of hot tea in days…and it is wonderful.

BUT! Summer is not over, folks, and I have a few more ice pop recipes to share before it’s time to welcome autumn en force with all of it’s apple, pumpkin, and spiced bounty. These  pops are a far cry from the comforting warmth of fall–they are tart and herbal with a hint of booze. Icy and fresh, they are a grown-up version of lime-ade. You may have noticed, I’m a bit of a fan of herbal syrups, and this one is no exception. I love the way the basil plays with the juniper-woodsiness of the gin, while the lime brings some brightness to the party, and sweet sugar softens the edge of the other ingredients and makes these pops a real treat.

Lime-Basil-Gin Ice Pops

These pops are quite lime-y, if they are too tart and strong, reduce the lime juice or add more sugar/water to taste. Feel free to leave out to booze–or replace it with fruit juice–to make these pops friendly for everyone.

3 cups water, divided

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup loosely packed basil leaves

1/2 cup fresh squeezed lime juice

tiny pinch of salt

1/3 cup gin

In a small saucepan heat 1/2 cup pf the water with the sugar–heat to dissolve sugar and bring to a boil, stir in torn basil leaves and remove from heat. Let steep 10-15 minutes, strain out basil leaves and set syrup aside to cool.

Stir together remaining water, syrup, lime juice, salt, and gin until well combined. Divide between ice pop molds, freeze for 45 minutes, insert sticks, continue to freeze until solid–at least 12 hours (due to the alcohol).

 

 

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Rose Lemonade Cocktails

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I’m a girlfriends kinda gal. Don’t get me wrong, I love the men in my life, but I cherish the company of other women. I love lady dates, lunching, shopping with a trusted ally, and, probably most of all, chatting the day away. I talk a lot, wonder out loud, take and give advice, muse about whatever, gossip about celebs and the like…etc. I tend to be a shy, awkward, weirdo upon first meeting, but my true nature is talker….not to be confused with walker.

If you give me a cocktail and pair me up a lady friend…before you know it, hours will have gone by and we will have covered a range of topics and bonded over rambling hours of conversation. This is exactly what happens anytime I get together with my pal, Megan. We happen to talk A LOT about blogging, drinks, pretty things, cupcakes, whether Ryan Gosling is hanging out around Detroit, puppy love, and pizza/burgers/tacos/food. It’s just what happens.

A few weekends ago we found ourselves snacking on charcuterie and chatting over cocktails. I was drinking Rose Lemonade with vodka. It was floral, refreshing, slightly boozy, and about the most romantic lemonade I’ve ever had. I told Megan I wanted to recreate it but it needed to be pink. She agreed. We share a lot of things in common and have similar personalities (friendly-awkward with a side of snark), and we both–unashamedly–love pink. So, I knew that if I was going to remake the prettiest tasting cocktail I’d ever had, I needed to make it pink and I wanted it to be a natural pink beauty. This cocktail gets it’s pink hue, naturally, from a few crushed raspberries in the syrup–not enough to impart a berry flavor, just enough to make this drink the rose-toned beauty of my dreams. There’s gin or vodka for a boozy kick, fresh lemon juice for tang, and a touch of rosewater for that floral, romantic something else. These drinks mix up perfectly in a pitcher and would be the best foil for an evening of patio-sitting and girl talk.

Rose Lemonade Cocktails

Makes about 4 large cocktails.

Feel free to leave out the booze and make these drinks friendly for everyone. As for the Rose Water the floral sweetness can quickly become soapy. A little bit goes a long way, so I suggest 2-4 teaspoons–depending on your taste. I found the bottle pictured above at my local Asian market in the Indian foods section. I don’t always love buying a specialty item for a single recipe and though I only used the teeniest bit, the bottle was under $2, so it was worth it. PLUS…I now have a whole bottle of rose water to play with in other recipes. 

For the pink syrup:

1 1/2 cups sugar

3/4 cup water

a handful of raspberries, about 10 (fresh or frozen)–crushed

2-4 teaspoons rose water

In a medium saucepan, combine sugar, water, and raspberries. Heat over medium high to dissolve the sugar and bring to a boil. Boil 1 minute, remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature before straining through a fine mesh sieve. Discard any raspberry seeds and solids. Stir the rose water into the cooled syrup. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use. Makes about 1 1/2 cups syrup.

For the Lemonade:

1 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice (I used about 8 lemons)

3 cups water

1 cup rose water syrup (use more to taste as desired)

Gin or Vodka

In a pitcher mix together lemon juice, water, and rose syrup. Stir well to combine. Best served with 1-2 ounces of gin or vodka (per drink) over ice.

 

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So, this is the New Year…

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Dear 2011,

It’s been fun, strange, and terrifying, but most of all, exciting.

It’s been a year of change and discovery.

Thanks for everything.

Dear 2012,

I’m not big on resolutions, I feel like they’re just a set-up for failure. So, I’m keeping my goals for the year simple:

patience, patience, patience. learn some. 

eat a few new vegetables

be nicer to my body

get back into arts/crafts

learn to temper chocolate

try to remember that comparison kills joy

I’m looking forward to this new year. Let’s get into it.

Dear Friends,

I can’t even begin to get into how much your comments, and the fact that this little blog is even on your radar, mean to me. It’s a big, bad world of blogging and there’s a ton of things to look at, read, and be inspired by. Your support means the world.

I thank you from the deepest reaches of my little, ol’ heart. Truly.

So, to cap of 2011, I say we have a drink. I know many of us will be popping the corks off of some bubbly tonight and toasting to a brand new year with the ones we love the most.

My favorite guy and I will be staying in, after a long and much needed trip back home for the holidays. We’ll be lounging and sipping these cocktails with our pups. Soda water makes it bubbly, rosemary + ginger syrup bring aromatic, herbal sweetness, there’s a little squeeze of lime for some tang, and gin makes it all boozey and right.

Cheers!!

XO Cindy

Rosemary-Ginger Gin Cocktail

makes 1 drink

ice

2 ounces gin

1 tablespoon rosemary-ginger syrup

1 lime wedge

soda water to fill

Fill a rocks glass with ice and pour in the gin, syrup, squeeze the lime over the top, fill the glass with soda water and stir to combine. Toast and drink.

Rosemary-Ginger Syrup

1 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup water

2 inches ginger root, peeled and sliced

2-3 sprigs rosemary

Add sugar and water to a small saucepan and stir to combine. Add ginger and rosemary, heat to dissolve the sugar and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes, then remove from heat. Allow ginger and rosemary to steep in the syrup as it cools to room temperature. Once cooled, remove ginger and rosemary (strain if needed) and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.