Fun Ways to Dress Up Your GIN & TONIC RECIPES

There's nothing more refreshing and simple than a classic gin and tonic, a simple highball of gin and tonic water over ice with a slice of lime for garnish. The army of the British East India Company took Scottish doctor George Cleghorn's discovery that quinine could prevent and treat malaria to heart and began to drink quinine water to prevent the disease.  Since it was bitter and unpleasant they took to adding a bit of sugar, their daily ration of gin and a squeeze of lime to their medicinal quinine around the early 1900s and the Gin and Tonic was born. Though tonic water today contains much less quinine, the G & T remains a classic British cocktail to this day. They even have a popular lemon garnish version known as the Evans.
Like anyone else, when it's hot and muggy outside I enjoy a good gin and tonic, in fact it doesn't need to be very hot or at all muggy. There is no specific recipe for a gin and tonic, it's a drink that is usually mixed to personal tastes so you can play with the ratios of gin to tonic for a stiffer or lighter alcoholic drink.  I have also found it's very fun to play with the basic recipe by adding some extra flavoring agents.  I particularly like to add cucumber, berries and herbs but I have been known to add teas, fun liqueurs and/or flavored simple syrups.
Fun Variations on the Classic GIN & TONIC
BLACKBERRY & BLACKCURRANT GIN & TONIC BUTTERFLY PEA FLOWER & ELDERFLOWER GIN & TONIC CUCUMBER INFUSED GIN & TONIC  MINT GREEN TEA GIN & TONIC  WILD HIBISCUS GIN & TONIC
  The Gin and Tonic is a very forgiving and versatile cocktail. Try some of your own versions by adding favorite fruits, different sweeteners like favorite liqueurs or flavored honey, even some homemade flavored simple syrups.   International Gin & Tonic Day is October 19th, National Gin & Tonic Day is April 9th, National Gin Day is November 7th and World Gin Day is June 10th.
PLEASE DRINK RESPONSIBLY  

HOMEMADE IRISH CREAM LIQUEUR RECIPE

Irish Cream Liqueur is a standard bar staple because it's used in so many cocktail recipes. It's one of the liqueurs you should always keep stocked at home because of it's versatility. It's one of those liqueurs that you can just splash into a cup of coffee for a little warm up or simply chill and sip.
When most people think Irish Cream Liqueur they think Bailey's but there are many other brands out there as well, including St. Brendan's and Carolans.  Of course, you can also make your own and below is my favorite recipe.
Homemade
IRISH CREAM LIQUEUR RECIPE

INGREDIENTS:
1-2/3 Cup of Irish Whiskey
1 Cup of Heavy Whipping Cream
1 – 14 Oz. Can of Sweetened Condensed Milk
1 Tsp. Instant Coffee Granules
2 Tbsp. Good Quality Chocolate Syrup
1 Tsp. Vanilla
1/2 Tsp. Almond Extract

TOOLS:
Tools: Blender, measuring cups and spoons, decorative bottles for finished liquor, Personalized Labels.

SIMPLE DIRECTIONS
Put all the ingredients in a blender and blend for about a minute.  Pour into your decorative bottles, seal, label and let infuse in the refrigerator for up to a month.

When you’re ready to use remember to shake before you pour.  This should keep in your fridge for several months – if it lasts that long.
    PLEASE DRINK RESPONSIBLY  

DESSERT COCKTAILS

DESSERT COCKTAILS

Why bake when you can shake?

I have a huge sweet tooth plus I'm lazy and don't like to bake much so I have a ton - seriously, a ton - of Dessert Cocktails. Many are directly inspired by famous or popular dessert recipes.  I've been creating original cocktail recipes since 2005 and when you combine that much time with my kind of sweet tooth you end up with a pretty hefty list.

To make it easier I've combined many of them in standard DESSERT CATEGORIES:
CAKE COCKTAILS CANDY COCKTAILS CARAMEL COCKTAILS CHEESECAKE COCKTAILS CHOCOLATE COCKTAILS COOKIE COCKTAILS CUPCAKE COCKTAILS ICE CREAM COCKTAILS PIE COCKTAILS TRUFFLE COCKTAILS SUNDAE COCKTAILS     If the recipe is not in one of my dessert cocktail categories, or happens to be a favorite of mine, you'll find it listed alphabetically BY DESSERT below: APPLE PIE COCKTAIL ANIMAL CRACKERS IN MY BOOZE BANANAS FOSTER BOOZY SHAKE BLACK FOREST CAKE COCKTAIL BOYSENBERRY RUM FLIP  BRANDY ALEXANDER  BOURBON ALEXANDER BROWN COW BEER FLOAT BROWNIE MARTINI  CAPPUCCINO MARTINI CHERRIES JUBILEE MARTINI CHERRY CLAFOUTIS MARTINI CHOCOLATE FONDUE COCKTAIL  CHOCOLATE PORTER BEER FLOATS CHOCOLATE STRAWBERRY MARTINI COCONUT DAIQUIRI CREME BRULEE COCKTAIL  CREPES SUZETTE COCKTAIL DECADENT DUTCH COCKTAIL FLOAT DERBY PIE COCKTAIL DRUNK ELF ON A SHELF DRUNK RUSSIANS DRUNKEN BABY DOLE PINEAPPLE WHIPS  DRUNKEN OREO TRUFFLE COCKTAIL HOT FUDGE COCKTAIL GOLDEN CADILLAC GRASSHOPPER  PEACH MELBA BEER FLOAT PEACH MELBA MARTINI PEACHES & CREAM MARTINIPEACHES & CREAM SHOOTER PEARS HELENE MARTINI  PECAN PIE MARTINI PINEAPPLE DRUNK SIDE DOWN SMASH PINK SQUIRREL  RASPBERRY TRIFLE MARTINI SALTED CARAMEL APPLE COCKTAIL SAMOA COOKIE BOOZY SHAKE S'MORES COCKTAILS'MORES SHOOTER STICKY BUN MARTINI STRAWBERRY PARFAIT MARTINI STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE MARTINI STRAWBERRY SUNDAY MARTINI STRAWBERRIES & CREAM MARTINI TIRAMISU MARTINI   Many of my EDIBLE COCKTAILS are dessert inspired as well.
National Dessert Day is October 14th.
Updated 9-2018 PLEASE DRINK RESPONSIBLY

The CHOCOLATE FONDUE COCKTAIL

Four kinds of chocolate in this cocktail. And you can dip goodies in it! Seriously, need I say more?

The
CHOCOLATE FONDUE
MARTINI
INGREDIENTS
1 Oz. Chocolate Vodka
1/2 Oz. Dark Creme de Cacao
1/2 Oz. Godiva Chocolate Liqueur
1 Oz. Cream 2 Dashes Chocolate Bitters
Garnish: Mini Marshmallows, Fruit pieces
Tools: Cocktail Shaker
Glass: Cocktail (Martini)
DIRECTIONS
Chill your glass in the freezer.
Add one cup of ice to a cocktail shaker then pour in the chocolate vodka, dark creme de cacao, the Godiva liqueur, cream and chocolate bitters then shake until well chilled.  Strain into your chilled glass then garnish with some fruit pieces and serve with more fruit pieces and a few toasted mini marshmallows to dip into your “fondue” cocktail.
VOICEOVER VIDEO with Ingredients & Directions:

National Chocolate Fondue Day is February 5th.

Updated 2-2022 PLEASE DRINK RESPONSIBLY

CHOCOLATE ROB ROY, A Twist on a Classic Scotch Cocktail

I was in the mood for some Scotch and some chocolate and I thought why not just make a Chocolate Rob Roy? It didn't take much to turn a classic Rob Roy into a chocolate Rob Roy, just change out some chocolate bitters for the Angostura bitters.
Yes, I gave myself some little gold stars as a garnish because I earned them today.

I added a little piece of some Godiva Blood Orange Dark Chocolate to enjoy with it and it ended my day with perfection.

The CHOCOLATE ROB ROY
INGREDIENTS 2 Oz. Johnnie Walker Black 1-1/4 Oz. Cinzano Rosso Vermouth 4 Dashes Frape and Sons Chocolate Bitters
Garnish: Orange Twist, Edible Gold Stars
Tools: Mixing Glass, Hawthorne Strainer
Glass: Cocktail
DIRECTIONS Combine ingredients in a mixing glass and fill with ice. Stir well then strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Twist a piece of orange peel over the drink then add as garnish.
PLEASE DRINK RESPONSIBLY

WHISKEY BERRY SMASH COCKTAIL

I had whiskey, I had raspberries, I had lemons, I had honey.
I got 'em smashed.
Me too.
The WHISKEY BERRY SMASH Cocktail
INGREDIENTS 2 Oz. Seagram's 7 1/3 Cup Fresh Raspberries 1 Tbsp Honey Ridge Farms Honey Créme Raspberry 2 Tbsp Fresh Lemon Juice
Garnish: Lemon wedge
Tools: Muddler
Glass: Old Fashioned
DIRECTIONS Muddle the honey, lemon juice and raspberries in a mixing glass. Add Ice, pour in the Seagram's. Stir, garnish, serve.
Cheers, M'dears.
PLEASE DRINK RESPONSIBLY

KENTUCKY ASIAN BERRY BOURBON PORK BACK RIBS

You know those berries and fruits you just infused some booze with? Well, the leftover fruit is not always just trash, it's a wonderful way to amp up your next entree!
A while back I had made a few bottles of Homemade Berry Liqueurs and, after straining the beautiful vodka infused liquids, I had almost 2 cups of boozy berries left over. It's not in my nature to throw things away if I can figure out another use for them so I tossed them in the freezer. I will often make a puree later or use them in a sauce, however this time I decided to toss them in with my pork ribs and go for a sweet, Asian style recipe.

Whenever pork ribs are on sale I always buy several packages. I like ribs and they're easy to toss in a crock pot for a great no fuss meal at the end of a long working day. Most of the time I just use BBQ sauce and some simple aromatics but that gets boring after a while and I need to change up the flavors occasionally. When I remembered those frozen booze berries they got a new home, in my crock pot with a few additional ingredients and a little creativity.

Hell yes, I added more booze! I thought they could use a little kick and some extra sweetness so I added some maple bourbon. Don't worry, it cooks off, so you can still have a cocktail before dinner.

KENTUCKY ASIAN BERRY BOURBON PORK BACK RIBS (Because I could)
INGREDIENTS 1 Rack Pork Back Ribs -1/2 Cups Booze & Sugar Marinated Blackberries Juice and Zest from1 Large Orange 1/4 Cup Soy Sauce 1/4  Cup Molasses 3 Tbsp. Honey Ridge Blackberry Creme Honey 3 Tbsp. Blackberry Jam 1/2 Cup Jim Beam Maple Bourbon 4 Cloves Garlic 1/2 Small Yellow Onion 1/2 Tsp. Chinese Five Spice 1/4 Tsp. Fresh Grated Ginger 3 Tbsp. Cornstarch Slurry**
Special Tools: Zester, Crock Pot
DIRECTIONS Throw everything except the cornstarch slurry in the Crock-Pot and cook on low for 7-3/4 hours.
** Mix one tablespoon of cornstarch with two tablespoons of cold water to form a thickening slurry. Add this to the crock pot and turn up to high for the last 15 minutes of cooking. Not only does this thicken your liquid into a sauce, but it puts on beautiful shiny glaze on your pork.
Serve with cilantro infused Basmati rice. Spoon some of the thickened sauce over each portion of ribs and rice.
If you're wondering about the small amount of vodka from the berries mixing with a bourbon, don't worry. There wasn't enough vodka left in those berries to mess with my bourbon, not the way I strained the liqueurs.
PLEASE DRINK RESPONSIBLY