Spring Ahead

Daylight saving time began this past weekend here on the west coast (meaning we lost an hour of much-needed sleep during the big house move) and that has me in the mood to discuss spring… Which really just makes me want to talk about summer. Sunshine! Patio weather! Delicious cocktails!

In an effort to force spring/summer to show up a little earlier, we decided to share some new and different cocktail recipes for you to try this weekend – hopefully they’ll bring a little sunshine into your otherwise same-old-same-old late winter’s evening.

Herbed Mojito

1. 2 shots of good quality dark rum (we like Havana Club Anejo Reserva best)
2. 1 tsp of raw organic cane sugar or 1 tblsp simple syrup (see below)
3. 6 leaves of fresh basil, rinsed, plus more for garnish
4. Juice of half a small lime plus wedges for garnish
5. Soda water
6. Ice cubes

Put the rum, sugar, basil and lime juice in a glass and muddle with a wooden muddler until the basil is bruised, breaking up and giving off a delicious herb fragrance.

We bought a wooden muddler a year back at Gourmet Warehouse and it’s great – go for one that feels sturdy, with a rounded handle that will be comfortable to use. The wood should be untreated, without any lacquer or paint that could chip off into your drink. I prefer traditional wood ones rather than the steel, rubber or plastic ones.

Add the ice cubes then fill with soda water. Garnish with an additional basil leaf and lime wedge. Add paper umbrella, lie on your living room floor and daydream that it’s a beach in Mexico. You can easily change the quantities to make this a single rather than a double, but why?

Jasmine Elderflower Gin Fizz

1. 1 shot of good quality gin (I like Bombay Sapphire – Brad hates gin!)
2. 2 tblsps (30ml) very strong brewed Jasmine tea (we like Silk Road Dragon Tears)
3. 1 tblsp (15ml) simple syrup (see below)
4. Elderflower soda (Bottlegreen from the UK is the best, in my opinion)
5. Ice cubes

Mix together the gin, tea and syrup in a tall glass. Add ice and top with Elderflower soda. You may want to adjust the amount of syrup up or down – the Elderflower soda has a slight sweetness to it so we prefer less syrup. The result is a refreshing sparkling hard iced tea. Now grab a magazine, sniff a bottle of Banana Boat and pretend it’s August.

Strawberry Mint Mule

1. 1 shot of good quality vodka (we used Finlandia because we had it around)
2. 1 or 2 fresh ripe strawberries, topped, cored and cut up
3. Juice of 2 lime wedges plus more for garnish
4. 3 or 4 leaves of fresh mint, rinsed, plus more for garnish
5. 1 tblsp (15ml) simple syrup (see below)
6. Ice cubes
7. Ginger ale (the only brand we buy is Western Family from Save-On-Foods as it has a nice strong ginger flavour, much more than Canada Dry or Schweppes)

Place the vodka, lime juice, mint and syrup in a glass and muddle. You can tear up the mint a little bit when you put it in to get it started. Add the strawberries and muddle a little bit more. Add ice and top with ginger ale. Remove the shade from your lamp, sit very close to it in a patio chair wearing sunglasses and sip the winter away.

Simple Syrup

Make a batch of this simple syrup and it will keep for ages in a glass bottle. The name says it all. One part sugar to two parts water. Bring to a boil in a medium saucepan. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring constantly, until sugar is completely dissolved and the syrup is thickened.

Cool and pour into a bottle with a stopper lid (like this one from Ikea). Keeps for about six months on the safe side. We keep ours in the fridge but apparently that’s not necessary. If you go to use it and the sugar has crystallized, simply re-boil (but then discard any unused portion or just make new).