Seasonal recipes and a dash of science.
This prickly pear ginger cocktail is a low alcohol punch perfect for serving in large pitcher at parties. The fresh prickly pear fruit is balanced with herbaceous tequila (of course) and a homemade ginger liqueur (recipe included!), all topped with effervescent soda water to be light and refreshing.
A sweet and sour, herbaceous apricot lavender sage shrub plus a bright apricot shrub gin spritz to make from it.
A tangy blueberry shrub with garden basil and balsamic for an exciting summer beverage that can be served with (or without) alcohol.
A tasty red wine and rhubarb syrup for pouring on ice cream or waffles or to use in drinks. And some crystallized rhubarb for good measure.
Early spring and the last of winter flavors meld in this mandarin, fennel, and ginger non-alcoholic cocktail. Very refreshing and there’s no reason not to have two!
A subtly spiced pomegranate liqueur that is delicious added to some soda water or in a bright cocktail – like this Dr. Blossom recipe! Alright, the last of the promised winter syrups and liqueurs (for now): pomegranate spice liqueur. For those just joining us, you can read the rest of this saga in Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3. Part 1 has most of science notes about making liqueurs. There’s not a lot to say about this recipe, besides that it was born out of an “I have pomegranate arils in the fridge that need to be used up”…Continue Reading
A bright and herbaceous syrup with a hint of cardamom and a vivid non-alcoholic cocktail aptly dubbed the Painted Lady to refresh yourself in a well balanced way. For those just joining us in this series, you can find the continued saga of my December syrup and liqueur making in Part 1 and Part 2. Welcome to Part 3: Mandarin Thyme Syrup. Another non-alcoholic entry that works brilliantly mixed with some soda water (perhaps add a squeeze of fresh lime or a thyme sprig garnish?) or in a cocktail. To include the non-alcohol imbibers, I’ve got a “mocktail” recipe to…Continue Reading
A rich coffee flavored syrup with hints of cinnamon, pepper, and other spices. Plus a Citrine Coffee cocktail highlighting the amazing coexistence of coffee and citrus. I was having difficultly writing a good article for this syrup and then I got distracted by improving my photography. I took the plunge and asked for some advice from other food bloggers and I have gone a little overboard implementing the suggestions. Better backgrounds, more interesting props and dishes and most of all, better light. I even created a DIY light box that is working very well. I now have a huge backlog…Continue Reading
A more aromatic limoncello variant, incorporating black tea and peppercorns for a winter sipper that’s perfect when the weather is excessively blustery. To make use of the bounty of lemons the tree provided this year – and just because I wanted to – I started making some liqueurs this year. But since it’s me, I couldn’t stick to a simple limoncello or even doing one recipe at a time. So we got a lemon and black tea liqueur and a pomegranate spice liqueur (I had some pomegranate arils that need to be used). But then I realized I hadn’t done…Continue Reading
With California getting incredibly high temperatures this weekend, we definitely need some good cooling beverages. I picked up some lemongrass at the farmer’s market last week which makes a great syrup to add flavor to both cocktails and non-alcoholic refreshers. So I present to you one of each using other fresh vegetal flavors.