Here’s a drink recipe that I came up with a while ago. I’m sure it’s been done before, but I thought I’d share it anyway seeing how it’s become a Summer staple in our house.
Ingredients:
Vodka
Fresh mint (see below)
Fresh raspberries (or blackberries)
Tonic water (soda water might be a better choice here, but I haven’t tried it. We usually have tonic on hand for V&Ts so that’s what I used).
Ice
Method:
Fill a mason jar (or any other glass jar) about 1/4 of the way up with berries. Fill until the jar is about about 3/4 full with fresh mint leaves. Fill with vodka, seal the jar and let it sit for a few hours (the longer the better). Infusing the vodka with the mint and berries not only combines the flavors, but doing so also gives the vodka a light, minty fragrance adding another layer of subtlety to the finished drink. This process also changes the color, too making the finished drink look nice, too.
After the vodka concoction has sat long enough, strain some vodka into a glass. You can use any kind of strainer as long as it can catch the berry seeds. Strain out about 1.5 to 2 ounces of vodka into a shot glass or jigger. Fill a glass with ice and pour the vodka in. Fill with tonic and garnish with a fresh sprig of mint and enjoy!
NOTE ABOUT FRESH INGREDIENTS:
I highly recommend picking some fresh mint leaves from a nearby mint plant. If you don’t happen to have one handy, you can use dried mint. My partner Kate and I had to pilfer some mint from her mom’s garden. So you know- do whatever works. You can also buy a fresh mint plant at your local grocery store for a few bucks, too. The awesome thing about growing mint is that it’s resilient and will grow profusely and with abandon, giving you an unending supply. One recommendation I have about planting and keeping mint is to plant it in a bucket! That’ll keep it from spreading throughout your entire garden and make it easier to bring inside so you can enjoy spiked mint hot chocolate throughout the cold months.
But I digress, this isn’t a gardening blog after all. Gardening is Kate’s thing and she’s far better at it than I. Another thing you’ll also need are some fresh raspberries or blackberries. We’re all about buying from the local farms around here, so that’s where we get ours. I haven’t tried this recipe with frozen berries, I’m sure they’ll work just fine, too.
Until next time!
Nev
Tags: berries, drink recipe friday, Drink Recipes, mint, vodka
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