The Gin and Elderflower LADY ROSE COCKTAIL

This beautiful, deep pink cocktail is the result of adding a little cocktail magic from butterfly pea flower to gin, fresh lemon and some of my Homemade Raspberry Liqueur. When they all came together I ended up with this incredibly beautiful fuchsia cocktail.
The gin will be blue once you add the Wild Hibiscus B'Lure Butterfly Pea Flower drops, but as it mixes with the acid in the lemon juice it will turn purple. Adding the Raspberry Liqueur will bring it to the deep pink color. The deeper the red color in your homemade raspberry liqueur, the pinker your cocktail will be.
Adding the Elderflower liqueur completed the floral theme and I was happily sipping a little bit of an English flower garden at happy hour. 
The LADY ROSE COCKTAIL
INGREDIENTS  2 Oz. Butterfly Pea Flower Infused Gin 1 Oz. Raspberry Liqueur 1 Tbsp. Elderflower Liqueur 1 Oz. Fresh Lemon Juice 1/2 Oz. Blackberry Honey Syrup 1 Oz. Egg White (or Aquafaba as a vegan substitute)
Garnish: Zested Lemon Peel
Tools: Cocktail Shaker, Metal Strainer, Zester
Glass: Coupe
DIRECTIONS Chill the glass in the freezer. Mix 1 tablespoon of Honey Ridge Farms Blackberry Creme Honey with 1 tablespoon of hot water for the blackberry honey syrup, strain to remove the seeds then add to the cocktail shaker. Add several drops of Wild Hibiscus B'Lure Butterfly Pea Flower to two ounces of  London gin. Add this to the cocktail shaker with the remaining ingredients and dry shake for a few minutes to emulsify the egg white (or aquafaba) and build the foam. Add ice to the cocktail shaker and shake again to chill.* Strain into the chilled coupe, garnish with a bit of lemon zest and serve.
If you happen to have edible flowers on hand they make a really festive garnish addition.
* To dry shake my cocktails I usually cheat because I have a bad shoulder so I put the ingredients in a blender then blend on high for 2 or 3 minutes to emulsify, then I transfer this to a cocktail shaker filled with ice and shake to chill.
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Fresh CHERRY BOOZESICLES, Alcoholic Cherry Popsicles

Cherries and popsicles, two of my favorite things from childhood. I've grown up, however and these days I like my cherry frozen ice pops with a little kick thrown in. And by kick I mean booze, of course.
If you don't want to go to the trouble of pitting two pounds of fresh cherries, you can simply buy a bag of frozen cherries which are already pitted. They taste nearly as good and they're a lot less work, but I happened to have a gift of two pounds of fresh cherries from a friend I needed to use. I now have cherry stained fingers - but with all the paint stains from my art you can't really tell.
Yes, you can make these non-alcoholic. Simply remove the rum and replace the sparkling wine with sparkling water or juice. Go ahead, ruin my day.
FRESH CHERRY BOOZESICLES Adults only! Makes four 6 ounce boozesicles.
INGREDIENTS 2 C. Fresh, Pitted Cherries 1/4 C. Dark Rum 1/2 C. Sparkling Wine 3 Tbsp. Lime Juice 4 Tbsp. Orgeat Syrup 2 Dashes Chocolate Bitters
Tools: Blender, Popsicle Molds
DIRECTIONS Puree the cherries, rum, lime juice and sugar in the blender until smooth. Add the sparkling wine, blend again briefly and let sit a few minutes to settle the carbonation. Pour into popsicle molds and freeze until firm.
OR YOU CAN DO IT UNFROZEN AS ACHERRY POPSICLE MARTINI:
National Cherry Popsicle Day is August 26th.
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The New York Sour Cocktail Recipe

Is this a vegan New York Sour? Well, I'm not sure about the other ingredients, but what I used as my egg white substitute is certainly vegan!   I enjoy a good New York Sour but when I'm out of fresh eggs I'm usually out of luck. That was until I found out that my dusty can of garbanzo beans (chickpeas) in the cupboard contains an excellent substitute for egg white. That's right, the liquid those chickpeas are canned in is called aquafaba and it works just like eggs in recipes.   In 2014 French Chef Joël Roessel discovered that the liquid from canned beans can be used to make foams much like egg whites does*. In 2015  Goose Wohlt found that this liquid could be substituted for eggs for in vegan recipes. Good on ya, boys, I tip my eggless happy hour hat to you!   The aquafaba is a perfectly respectable vegan substitution for egg white in a cocktail and it creates a beautiful foam as well. However, I did notice that as the ice melted in my drink the silky mouthfeel of a typical egg white cocktail became somewhat dissipated in the aquafaba version and the foam went a bit flat as well. But the drink was still delicious and I was pleased with the overall results. Do I prefer it over egg white? No, but I'll make darn sure I always have a can of garbanzo beans in my cupboard just in case I'm ever out of egg whites again at happy hour.   Just a note; when you open your can of garbanzo beans and strain out the liquid, you might notice a slight odor. I just left my aquafaba out for a few hours and that odor did not transfer to the finished cocktail. Even when using egg whites you must often tap on bitters or a dusting of spice over the top of your drink two mask the smell of the raw egg.   By the way, 2 tablespoons of aquafaba is equal to one egg white, 2 tablespoons is 1 ounce. Perfect.   

 
The Not Quite Classic NEW YORK SOUR   INGREDIENTS 2 Oz. Bourbon (or Rye) 1 Oz. Fresh Lemon Juice 3/4 Oz. Blood Orange Honey Simple Syrup* 1 Oz. Aquafaba 1 Oz. Dry Red Wine**   Garnish: None necessary but I wanted to show off my new cocktail pick so I slid on a lemon slice.   Tools: Blender, Cocktail Shaker, Hawthorne Strainer, Bar Spoon   Glass: Old Fashioned   DIRECTIONS * To make the blood orange honey simple syrup, mix 2 tablespoons of Honey Ridge Blood Orange Creme Honey with 1 tablespoon of hot water. Add the bourbon, blood orange honey simple syrup, lemon juice and aquafaba to the cocktail shaker then dry shake (shake without ice) for several minutes to emulsify the aquafaba. Add ice and shake again to chill the cocktail. (I cheat and put the ingredients in a blender then blend on high for 2 or 3 minutes to emulsify, both methods also create the classic foam top. Then I transfer this to a cocktail shaker filled with ice and shake until well chilled.) Strain into a chilled glass, then pour the wine slowly over the back of a bar spoon to float on top.   ** I prefer a Malbec or a nice Rioja in my New York Sours, last night's version got a float of my leftover Campo Viejo Rioja, Reservation 2011.  

   And for those sad, neglected little chickpeas I yanked out of my aquafaba? I roasted them and served them as a snack along with my New York Sour. Instead of spices, after roasting I just dusted mine with Parmesan and truffle salt.    TRY MY OTHER NEW YORK SOUR VARIATIONS The Rains of Castamere Sour Drunk Skeletons in the Closet
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SOLAR ECLIPSE MARGARITA

First, let me admit I stole the black moon ice ball idea from The CocktailCouple (@CocktailCouple), it was too cool an idea not to rip off. But then I also saw the same idea used by Kyle Hagerty, from the Tennessean Hotel's bar, The Drawing Room, so apologies and thanks to both for the genius idea.
Now that I've admitted I'm a total thief and brigand, at least let me mea culpa with the fact that I turned it into a margarita. They say there's nothing new under the sun, evidently there's nothing new under a total eclipse of the sun either.
The whole focal point of this cocktail is the black ice ball moon slowly melting against the sun orange of the margarita, it's truly a stunning happy hour visual. Skip that and you might as well skip making the drink. It also creates kind of an auroral effect at the beginning when the ice starts to melt, as well as adding pineapple and lime juice to the drink experience.
Of course, when that black ice ball really melts you have a very odd green looking margarita on your hands, but by that time maybe your guests will be too blitzed to know that and, besides, it's going to be dark outside because you are viewing the last total solar eclipse until April 8th, 2024. So, prepare and serve the drink inside to show off, then drag your guests outside to the viewing area as quickly as possible.
One little thing, to make really black ice you're going to need a ton of food coloring. I have professional food coloring in black and used quite a bit of that per cube, but I wanted seriously black ice balls. Most people, however, don't keep black food coloring in their house so I tested making black ice with the standard four color box of food coloring. To make two drinks I used up almost an entire box of the basic food colors. Less of the color and you'll end up with a grayish ice ball instead, so commit to that box of food coloring or don't bother. Instructions for making the black moon ice balls is below.
To make the ice ball melt slower, chill all of your ingredients and your cocktail shaker beforehand.
(Sorry this was so late but better late than never. I've been on various medications off and on since May and haven't been able to have too many cocktails. Yesterday I finally got to quit taking all of them!)

The SOLAR ECLIPSE MARGARITA
INGREDIENTS 2 Oz. Tequila 1/2 Oz. Grand Marnier 2 Oz. Fresh Orange Juice 1 Black Moon Ice Ball (Directions below.)
Garnish: Orange slice
Tools: Cocktail shaker, Spherical Ice Mold, Funnel
Glass: Old Fashioned, Chilled
DIRECTIONS Add the tequila, Grand Marnier and orange juice to a cocktail shaker filled with ice, shake until well chilled then strain into the chilled glass. Add the Black Moon Ice Ball, garnish and serve.
BLACK MOON ICE BALLS Makes 2 Black Ice Balls
TOOLS: 2 Spherical Ice Molds, 1 Funnel
INGREDIENTS: 2 C. Pineapple Juice 1/3 C. Lime Juice 30 drops Black Food Coloring or 20 drops each; Red, Blue, Yellow Coloring and 5 drops Green Food Coloring (Test your color by dropping a bit into some water then adjust the color a drop or two at a time. Too blue? Add some 1 red, 3 yellow). Too green? Add 1 blue, 2 red. Too Purple? Add a green, 2 yellow. Technically, colors opposite on the color wheel when mixed will create black.)
DIRECTIONS: Mix your black ice water then, using the funnel, carefully pour into your ice ball molds. Freeze for 3 to 5 hours or overnight.
Happy Total Solar Eclipse viewing, remember not to look directly at it with the naked eye, and don't let your pets do that either! If you don't have solar eclipse eyeglasses, here's how to make your own solar eclipse viewer.
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CHOCOLATE PECAN PIE MARTINI Cocktail Recipe

I made some Candied Pecan Liqueur once, ages ago, and loved it so much I now try to keep it on hand in my bar at all times. It's the main ingredient in many of my Pecan Cocktails.

Once more into the breach, only this time with chocolate pecan pie on my mind.

The

CHOCOLATE PECAN PIE

MARTINI

INGREDIENTS

2 Oz. Homemade Pecan Liqueur

1/2 Oz. Chocolate Vodka

1/2 Oz. Chocolate Liqueur

1/2 Oz. Half & Half

Garnish: Chopped pecans and dark chocolate shavings

Tools: Cocktail shaker

DIRECTIONS

Shake ingredients with ice then strain into a chilled glass.

Garnish and serve.

VOICEOVER VIDEO WITH INGREDIENTS AND DIRECTIONS:

National Chocolate Pecan Pie Day is August 20th. National Pecan Pie Day is July 12th.

If you like this cocktail you might also want to try this Bourbon Derby Cocktail.

Updated 7-2021

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RASPBERRY TRIFLE MARTINI COCKTAIL

The basic traditional English Trifle recipe calls for ladyfingers or stale sponge cake (often soaked in sherry, port or Madeira), fruit or some fruit jam, creamy custard and fresh whipped cream, all layered until they reach the top of the serving dish. It's the modern descendant of a Medieval fruit and custard fool and a close relative of the cream and sherry dessert known as a syllabub (which was a dessert inspired by the frothy 16th century syllabub drink of wine, cream, sugar and lemon juice.)  

With my Raspberry Trifle Martini I've taken the main ingredients and combined
them into a liquid trifle in a glass.

The
RASPBERRY TRIFLE
MARTINI

INGREDIENTS
2 Oz. Pinnacle Cake Vodka
1/2 Oz. White Creme de Cacao
1/4 Oz. Sweet Sherry
2 Oz. Raspberry Puree
Juice of 1/4 Lemon

Garnish: 2 Cubes of Sponge Cake (or Ladyfingers), Chocolate Syrup, Whipped Cream

Tools: Blender, Metal Strainer, Cocktail Shaker

Glass: Cocktail or Coupe

DIRECTIONS
Chill your glass in the freezer.
To make the raspberry puree blend 1 cup of fresh or frozen raspberries, 1/2 tablespoon of lemon juice and 2 tablespoons of sugar then strain out the seeds. Add 2 ounces to the cocktail shaker per drink. (The remainder of the puree can be used in other dishes, like over ice cream, cake or even spooned over pork chops.)
Add the remaining cocktail ingredients to a cocktail shaker filled with ice and shake until well blended and chilled.
Pour into the chilled glass, top off with the whipped cream, drizzle on some chocolate syrup and garnish with the cubes of sponge cake.

If you like you can replace the cubes of sponge cake with the more traditional lady fingers, as long as you get that cake bite in their you're golden.   PLEASE DRINK RESPONSIBLY  

RUM INFUSED GUMMY WORMS - Booze Infused Gummy Candy Recipe

     I got some free gummy worms so I thought I'd give them a soak in some booze. Vodka soaked Teddy Bears are floating all over the web as the newest big thing so, what the heck, I'll toss the free worms in some booze too. It's not like I haven't made candy booze over the years. Since the gummy worms I got were tropical flavored, I decided I would use rum instead of vodka. So, into my little bowl went the package of gummy worms and then some light rum.     It took about 18 hours for the gummy candy to soak up most of the rum. I could have let them soak longer, however they were already so drunk they were falling apart! Maybe gummy teddy bears are more stable, but I didn't get any of those for free.  

  Here's a video of the end result so you'll see how truly drunk and falling apart my poor gummy worms were. They tasted wonderful, but there was no way they could be served in this state.       RUMMY GUMMY WORM LIQUEUR Add the gummy candy to a covered jar or bottle then completely cover the worms with a decent light rum. Allow this to infuse until all the worms have completely dissolved, shaking well at least twice a day. Mine took a couple of days. Once the worms have dissolved, strain through a metal strainer. Then strain again through cheesecloth or coffee filters to remove the finer gummy sludge. (If using coffee filters you will have to change them several times and allow more time for the filtering process.) Below is the gelatin and other gunk you'll be straining out:  

  Bottle or use immediately in Rummy Gummy shots!   PLEASE DRINK RESPONSIBLY  

CANTALOUPE MARTINI

It's the time of year that decent, fresh cantaloupe starts showing up in the market and there's nothing better than a fresh cantaloupe cocktail in the heat of summer to cool you off. If your cantaloupe is ripe and sweet there's nothing more refreshing.  If your cantaloupe has almost gone overripe it's even better for the cocktail as you get more juice and much more sweetness.

The CANTALOUPE MARTINI   INGREDIENTS 1 Oz. Melon Vodka 3 Oz. Fresh Cantaloupe Puree Juice of Half a Lime 1/2 Tbsp. Warm Water 1 Tbsp. Honey
Garnish: Cantaloupe Melon Balls
Tools:  Melon Baller, Cocktail Shaker, Bar Spoon
Glass: 5 Oz. Martini Cocktail Glass
DIRECTIONS Using the melon baller, scoop out several cantaloupe balls for the garnish and set aside. Chill your glass in the freezer. Add the warm water, honey and lime to your cocktail shaker and stir to blend the honey into a syrup. Fill the cocktail shaker with ice, add the remainder of the ingredients and shake until chilled. Pour into the chilled glass, garnish and serve.
If you prefer, you may strain your cocktail through a metal strainer for less pulp from the puree.
If you like cantaloupe in your cocktails you might also like my Cantaloupe Daiquiri.
More MELON COCKTAILS
You can purchase the Cantaloupe Martini on Recipe Cards HERE.

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