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Thank goodness for cocktails! Having a cocktail can be like a little vacation or perhaps a way to relax after a hard day of work. This time of year, it’s a way to say goodbye to winter and hello to spring as we look forward to all the snow melting, flowers starting to bloom, and warmer days. I’ve been working on some fun cocktails and hope you will continue reading to join me on this experience 😊
I chose to garnish each cocktail with an edible flower. I won’t talk about the process for me to obtain the edible flowers but know it was not easy during the winter when I was working on the recipes, and I am forever grateful for the Festival Foods employees that came to my rescue. If you do happen to luck out and find edible flowers at your local grocery store, I highly recommend purchasing some. They don’t taste like much but make a beautiful garnish and can be used to decorate desserts or perhaps a charcuterie board.
Here are the recipes I want to share with you today:
Spring Fever Gin Cocktail is a twist on a classic gin and tonic. It’s much more citrus-y than a traditional gin & tonic and has wonderful, layered look. The color comes from Empress Gin, which is gin that is blue colored. How pretty is this drink?
The recipe can be found here.
Start by filling a lowball glass with ice. Add the pomegranate juice, then top with grapefruit seltzer. One thing I want to point out, if you use fresh pomegranate juice, the cocktail will have more of a pink color, whereas bottled pomegranate juice will give it the red color. So, you might end up with more of a pink and purple cocktail versus red and blue, depending on the ingredients used. You can also substitute tonic or club soda for seltzer water or add fresh citrus juice if you can’t find grapefruit seltzer.
Next, SLOWLY add the gin so it sits on top of the seltzer. The ingredients should be layer after this step and the cocktail will look two-toned.
Add a slice of lime or a lime wedge and garnish with an edible flower. Enjoy!
The recipe can be found here and is for ONE cocktail.
I suggest giving the cocktail a stir before enjoying or it will be very gin-heavy at the end! And don’t forget to carefully pour the ingredients for the layered look, for presentation purposes.
Limoncello Gin Spritz is also a twist on a classic gin and tonic. It’s very lemon-y and zesty with a bit of booze 😊 I think this is my favorite of the cocktails I’m sharing with you today (but I’m a sucker for anything lemon). It’s a beautiful drink, very vibrant yellow, and can be jazzed up with fresh mint or a thyme sprig as a garnish if you want to add a fresh or earthy flavor.
The recipe can be found here.
Start by filling a lowball glass with ice. Add the gin, limoncello, lime juice, and simple syrup. It doesn’t matter what order you add the ingredients because this cocktail isn’t layered.
Top with sparkling water until the glass is almost full. Give it a stir to combine all ingredients.
Add a slice of lemon or lemon wedge and garnish with an edible flower. Enjoy!
The recipe can be found here and is for ONE cocktail.
It’s super yummy and refreshing. I never know what to do with limoncello, and quite honestly, I think it’s a bit strong, so I love that I can combine it with other ingredients to make a festive cocktail.
Blue Cucumber Martini is a STRONG cocktail but oh so delicious 😊 It has a strong cucumber taste mixed with earthy and spiced gin. The greenish blue color comes from cucumber juice and the Empress Gin, which is blue colored. It’s a very vibrant cocktail and is perfect for spring!
The recipe can be found here.
Start by grating ½ of a cucumber. Squeeze and strain the juice into a bowl. Alternately (any my personal preference) is to use a juicer to extract the juice from the cucumber. You will yield more juice than hand squeezing. Grate the fresh ginger as well.
Fill a cocktail shaker with ice. Add the gin, simple syrup, ginger, and cucumber juice. Shake vigorously, then strain into a coup glass and garnish with an edible flower. Enjoy!
The recipe can be found here and is for ONE cocktail.
Again, this cocktail is strong, but you won’t be disappointed. The cucumber makes this cocktail so refreshing.
Cherry Midori Sour is a pretty orange cocktail that is fairly sweet with hints of cherry and melon. Midori liqueur is used and if you aren’t familiar, it’s a vibrant green color and tastes like melon. It’s a versatile liqueur with a refreshing taste. I should also disclose that this recipe doesn’t include any sour mix. For a cocktail to be considered a “sour” it must have a base liquor, lemon or lime juice, and a sweetener such as simple syrup. For this recipe, gin is the base liquor, lime juice is used, and maraschino syrup is the sweetener.
The recipe can be found here.
Start by filling a cocktail shaker with ice. Add the gin, maraschino syrup, Midori, and lime juice. Shake vigorously, then strain into a coup glass and garnish with an edible flower. Enjoy!
The recipe can be found here and is for ONE cocktail.
I think this was Andrew’s favorite recipe. I thought it was a bit too sweet for my taste but still enjoyed playing around with the flavors. If you aren’t familiar with maraschino syrup, it’s made from maraschino cherries, if that gives you an idea to its taste. It’s primarily used in mixing cocktails and can be added to Cola to create a Cherry Cola. It’s different from grenadine too, so don’t get the 2 confused. It’s also different from maraschino liqueur, which is more tart than the syrup. Can you imagine all the fun I have researching substitutes and alternatives when crafting cocktails and finding items in stock to use? I won’t complain. I tend to learn a lot and appreciate being able to share the information with others.
Happy Spring and Happy Cocktailing!
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