COCKTAIL SHAKING TIPS

TIPS FOR SHAKING YOUR COCKTAILS

1. Chill the Shaker First - you can do this by sticking it in the fridge/freezer or filling it with ice cubes. If you choose the method of using ice cubes be sure to empty out the melted ice and start with fresh cubes for each drink.

2. When you shaker is nicely chilled add your ice for the drink - I fill the shaker about half full to allow room for the drink ingredients.

3. Shake vigorously with some rhythm - sing, hum or have some good music on in the background, it helps establish a rhythm and it gets you in the mood for cocktail hour too! Remember, some drinks - like a classic gin martini - should be stirred not shaken so keep that in mind. Shaking is fun and part of the ritual of making a martini but stirring can be fun and it's retro - remember those old Thin Man movies and the classic glass cocktail pitcher with a glass stir stick?

4. If your drink is a blended drink like a daiquiri or a colada you're not going to shake at all you're going to use a blender and crushed ice and blend to the consistency of a slushy - think the consistency of that Cherry Icee you loved as a kid. (BTW, blended drinks can cause "brain freeze" so remember to be careful with those first sips!)

5. Unless you're muddling some ingredients, muddle before adding ice and shaking.  I know this sounds like advice you don't need, but you'd be surprised the number of people who try to muddle with all the ingredients present. If there's too much liquid, you won't get the result you're looking for.

6. If you are muddling remember to make use of a cocktail strainer to keep those chunkier elements out of the drink. Remember it's a drink not dinner. Anything that needs to be chewed should be skewered on a martini pick or added to the rim as garnish.

One last reminder, your cocktail will stay colder if you chill your ingredients as well as your martini shaker. Warm ingredients melt the ice quicker and water down the cocktail. Now go forth and shake, shake, shake yourself happy and enjoy!

 Updated 8-2016
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COCKTAIL & MARTINI ART & GIFTS

Looking for some fun cocktail art and gifts? Look no further than MartiniDivaBoutique.com!

You'll find posters, cards, stationery, clothing, home decor and even some entertainment gifts.

Click on over and check The Martini Diva Boutique out!

FUN GRAPHIC, ART INSPIRED BLANK RECIPE CARDS

I've been so busy with my businesses this summer than I haven't posted a lot of new recipes - you'll have noticed I've been doing "re-runs" - like television does in summer, lol. Of course, there are already over 100+ designer martini recipes here so it's not like you don't have a nice variety of martini recipe choices, right?

What have I been doing? I've been creating new art for several purposes and some of them were so cute I thought they'd make great blank recipe cards for my faithful martini loving visitors to download and print out for their recipe filing! You can also save them up, print out a bunch of them for great gifts too.

TO DOWNLOAD THE FULL 5"X3" IMAGE CLICK THE IMAGE THEN RIGHT CLICK THE RECIPE CARD TO SAVE AS

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Updated 8-2016

Cool Contemporary Martini Holders for your yard, the beach, camping!

I often get contacted by companies with products that relate to martinis asking if I'll mention their product here on The Martini Diva. I rarely do this - the fact is I'm not in the business of promoting martini products (other than my own, lol!) BUT, if I really like a product I'll mention it and put a link to it here on The Martini Diva.

However, when someone has a truly great idea I have no problem plugging their product - and I do it for free in a post like this to share it with my readers. When I was contacted by Scott over at DrinkDeco.com asking if I would simply put a link to his site here I took a look at his drink holders and loved the concept and asked if he would send me a sample to try out myself. Scott kindly agreed and shipped me out some samples.

I have to tell you I love these drink holders! They are the coolest martini accessory I've come across in a long time - very contemporary looking and decorative and THEY WORK! You simply push them into the ground in your yard, the sand at the beach or the ground wherever you're camping and you have a perfect drink holder at the right height for a standard chair.

DrinkDeco.com has these holders in designs that will hold martinis (of course!), cans, bottles and even cans in koozies! So even if you're not a martini fan (heaven forbid, lol) you can still enjoy a beverage outside without fear of tip-overs and lost liquids! There's nothing sadder than losing a full martini, beer or can of soda and having to schlep over for another.

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They're priced at $24.99 (shipping included!) for a set of two and you can pay via Pay Pal with any credit or debit card.

Being a person who likes to use things for multi-purposes I have also taken the samples Scott sent me and I've put a candle in a pretty glass and stuck that in my holder and I put some of those battery operated votive candles in a cute plastic martini glass and made a mood light with the holder that way! So, they're not only great drink holders they're really cute lighting accessories (sorry, Scott, but - seriously - they're just as cute for that purpose, lol!) I also noticed that there's a new product coming - a Tapas Deco Basket and I'm looking forward to seeing those to serve some of my appetizers from The Diva of Tiny Foods!

Here's what Scott has to say about how these great drink holders came to be:

I am an engineer by trade. I have been working in the auto industry since 1988, mainly in the Detroit area. Things have been rough there lately, as I’m sure you know. My job had been eliminated twice in the last several years, so things had been less than stable.

I have always been in to “inventing” and art. I have been working with steel for the past several years fabricating everything from fireplace grates to wine racks to crucifixes. I’ve done some steel back splashes in a couple kitchens and some menu holders for a restaurant in Michigan.

Recently I have been attempting to supplement my income with the hope of one day being self sufficient. I’m dabbling in some small stuff, like the drink holders, learning how to set up a website, etc. I’m training myself for bigger and bigger businesses.

Anyway, I started with simple designs in aluminum for two reasons: It’s lightweight so shipping isn’t terribly expensive, though it’s not cheap!, and it doesn’t need painted or treated. I need to modify my welder to weld aluminum so I haven’t attempted that yet.

I really like martini’s and like the outdoors so I started thinking….aluminum…..artistic…..martini holder…..and there you have it. I’ve recently expanded to include bottles, cans, koozie holders. The koozie holders were a direct response to customer feedback. It was something I hadn’t considered.

I scoured the internet and couldn’t find anything like it, so thought I would put it out there and see what happens. So far the response has been good. People really like them. Getting the word out is the biggest challenge, which is where you come in!

Stop by DrinkDeco.com and check out these really cool drink holders.


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The ORANGE JULIUS COCKTAIL

This Orange Julius Cocktail is right up there as one of my personal favorites. It really does taste like the Orange Julius drinks I used to get at the mall back in the old days.

I mix mine up in a blender and get that Orange Julius froth, but you can simply use a shaker for a single drink. It's refreshing and perfect for these end of summer evenings on the patio.

The
ORANGE JULIUS
MARTINI

INGREDIENTS
2 Oz. Citrus Vodka
3 Oz. Sunny Delight Original
1 Oz. Grand Mariner
2 Tablespoons Powdered Sugar
1 Oz. Half & Half
1/2 Cup Ice

Garnish: Orange Twist, Fun Biodegradable Paper Straw

Tools: Blender

Glass: Large Cocktail (Martini) or Coupe

DIRECTIONS
Chill glass in the freezer.
Add the ingredients to your blender and pulse until the ice is completely blended and the drink is frothy.
Pour into the chilled glass, garnish and serve.

VOICEOVER VIDEO WITH INGREDIENTS AND DIRECTIONS:

If you really want something icy cold, freeze it then hit it in the blender again for a slushy version.

Updated 7-2021 PLEASE DRINK RESPONSIBLY

Bow Wow Martini - A Martini for Dogs

This rerun is the Bow Wow Martini. Yes, it's a martini for your dog - and no there is no alcohol in it because we are not into hurting doggies here at The Martini Diva!

This martini was developed especially for my sweet little Pixel (who is the star of the recipe card there). She loves martini hour and why shouldn't she? It's filled with friends, food and fabulous martinis - all the things she loves. Since I didn't want Pixel to ingest alcohol and since she loves to share anything I do I decided to create a martini especially for her so she wouldn't feel left out.

Remember if your dog has any dietary issues check with your vet before trying this out.

Check out my fun POP ART PET T-SHIRTS
at The PopArtDiva Gift Gallery!

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JACKASS, THE MARTINI - Summer Rerun of Funny

I'm in a good mood today and decided it would be fun to post JACKASS, THE MARTINI - a joke recipe inspired by what I consider one of the stupidest movies of all time (except maybe Borat), that's right it's JACKASS, The Movie. I finally got talked into watching it and could only make it through about 15 minutes of the sophomoric antics. But it did give me the idea for this funny martini recipe!

BTW, you can actually make and drink this martini (minus the jock strap ingredient) if you're truly a big enough Jackass to try! Warning, this recipe is a joke - it is only a joke - do not blame me if you try it and choke!

Updated 8-2016

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