Arsenic Lace

Summer Cocktails

Hibiscus Margarita

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Hibiscus MargaritaIt was really hard to get back into the swing of things last week. Do you ever feel like you need a vacation after you take a vacation? I decided to keep the vacation vibes going by recreating one of my favorite drinks that I had while in Palm Springs at The Saguaro — a Hibiscus Margarita. If I see the word hibiscus on a cocktail description the drink is as good as sold. I love the floral, sweet, and tart flavor of hibiscus and who can object to the hue it adds to drinks? No one! Also, we’re talking about margaritas here which are very high up on my list of things I love drinking. Who am I kidding? I would have drunk any margarita but the fact that it was pink and delicious is obviously a huge plus.

Hibiscus Margarita

Hibiscus Margarita, serves 1

1 1/2 oz. Blanco Tequila

1/2 oz. Cointreau

3/4 oz. lime juice

3/4 oz. hibiscus syrup*

1/4 oz. agave

salt for rimming glasses

*I used the same recipe for the hibiscus syrup that I made for my hibiscus sour on A Beautiful Mess. Mix 1 cup dried hibiscus flowers, 1 cup water, and 1 cup sugar. Add ingredients to a small/medium size saucepan over medium heat, stirring until sugar has dissolved and it comes to a boil. Remove from heat and let steep for 1 hour. Strain mixture. Syrup should keep for 1-2 weeks in a refrigerator.

Hibiscus Margarita

First, salt your serving vessels. I served these down on the rocks, so I used double rocks glasses. You could also serve them up if you’d prefer that more. When it’s hot go ahead and throw this recipe in a blender. I crushed a few dried hibiscus flowers and mixed it in with the salt. I really like the texture it gives to the rim of the glass but it also adds some flavor too.

Hibiscus Margarita

Add all your ingredients to a cocktail shaker, add ice and shake. Finally, strain into your salted rimmed glasses over ice and garnish with a lime wheel.

Hibiscus Margarita

Hibiscus Margarita

The best part about this cocktail is the color. Oh, my gosh, PINK! It’s sort of healthy too, right? We did use dried flowers in it. This Hibiscus Margarita is what dreams are made of which is why I consumed so many of them poolside. They also go great in the company of tacos and I’m guilty of enjoying quite a few of them in that circumstance too. Hi everyone! My name is Natalie and I love tacos, margs, and hot pink. You already knew that though!

Hibiscus Margarita

Hibiscus Margarita

I tweaked a standard margarita recipe (1 1/2 oz. tequila, 3/4 oz. lime, 1 oz. Cointreau) when developing this Hibiscus Margarita recipe. In addition to the hibiscus syrup, I added agave because I felt like it needed to be a touch sweeter. The hibiscus is more tart than sweet, so if you like very tart you can try it without the agave. Overall this Hibiscus Margarita is tart, perfectly sweet, floral, refreshing, and so delicious. Make them for friends this Summer alongside tacos and guacamole and I promise they will love you forever. Tequila has that effect on people! Happy Margarita Monday everyone! 😉

Hibiscus Margarita

Fig + Vanilla Sidecar

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Bonjour everyone! If you’re reading this, I’m probably touching down in France right about now. To celebrate my trip to France with Pierre Ferrand, I’ve made a delicious variation on one of my favorite Cognac classics and have come up with a Fig + Vanilla Sidecar. Like most classic cocktails, the exact origin of this drink remains slightly unclear. The first recipe appeared in 1922, in Harry MacElhone’s “Harry’s ABC of Mixing Cocktails” and Robert Vermeire’s “Cocktails and How to Mix Them”. In MacElhone’s book, he cites the inventor as Pat MacGarry, a popular bartender at the Buck’s Club in London, but later cites himself. Vermiere states that it was MacGarry as well. I’m putting my money on Pat MacGarry!…

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Tropical Rosé Sangria

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I’m holding on to Summer for dear life over here. I already see people posting fall cocktails, and drinking pumpkin spice lattes. While I love fall and all the delicious flavors it brings, I’m a summer girl, and it’s so hard to say goodbye. Luckily, this year I will be a bi-coastal blogger. When it’s cold and dreary here, I will still be creating warm weather appropriate drinks for Palm Springs Style, another blog that I contribute to. Dreaming of warm weather will be a little easier this Winter and hopefully, I can arrange a jaunt back to my favorite little city sometime in the new year. It’s Labor Day Weekend and I hope you have something fun planned. I’ve whipped up this fruity sangria recipe to make sure we send Summer off in style. Unlike classic sangria made with red wine, orange juice, and orange liqueur, this Tropical Rosé Sangria recipe is lighter, fruitier, with a tropical and sweet finish.


Tropical Rosé Sangria, serves 4-6

1 bottle of rosé

1/2 cup cognac or brandy

1/4 cup Giffard passionfruit liqueur

1 cup fresh pineapple juice

strawberries

kiwis

mango

lime

pineapple

Slice your strawberries, kiwis, mango, lime wheels and pineapple, then place in a bowl or pitcher.

Add pineapple juice, cognac, passionfruit liqueur, and rosé. Stir and then cover, let steep in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours. When ready to serve, add ice and pour into glasses.

I think this is my favorite sangria recipe that I have ever had. Swapping the orange liqueur out for passionfruit liqueur was a last minute decision but a brilliant idea. I’m so happy I did it! If you’re not familiar with Giffard, they make a range of delicious liqueurs for using in cocktails. The Crème de Fruits de la Passion (Passionfruit) was released in the U.S this past Spring. I highly recommend picking up a bottle and trying some of their other varieties of liqueurs that are available. Using fresh pineapple juice instead of the classic orange in this sangria recipe really made the tropical element come to life and complemented the fresh fruit and rosé.

Sangria is so easy to make and that’s why it’s great for large parties or gatherings. This recipe is so good you might not want to share it though. Enjoy your last big weekend of Summer and if you decide to make this recipe, chime in on the comments and let me know how it turns out! Cheers everyone! xo

Frozen Cantaloupe Daiquiri

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With the end of Summer just a month away I had an itch to make a frozen drink. What’s more fun than a frozen drink? Drinking one out of fruit, right? I have drunk many piña coladas out of a pineapple and was trying to brainstorm what other fruits I could possibly turn into a serving vessel. Watermelon has had its fair share of the spotlight this summer with being the perfect addition and vessel for frosé. While I was perusing the produce at my local market last week I spotted a cantaloupe and I knew this fruit was THE ONE. When perfectly ripe it is juicy, sweet and has a floral aroma which sounds perfect to pair with rum. My mind went directly to the daiquiri which is a classic and simple drink but can be completely transformed with the addition of some fresh fruit. So I present to you a Frozen Cantaloupe Daiquiri!


Frozen Cantaloupe Daiquiri, serves 1

1 1/2 oz. rum (I used Plantation Dark)

3/4 oz. rich simple syrup (cane or demerara sugar)

1/2 oz. fresh lime juice

1 cup of fresh cantaloupe

Cut your cantaloupe evenly into two and scoop out the seeds in center. Carefully scoop out the insides of the fruit and reserve the shells as your serving vessels. You can freeze the shells and the fruit beforehand. Using frozen fruit in drinks or smoothie bowls yields a better and more slushy consistency.

Add all your ingredients to your blender pitcher and blend with a cup of ice. Pour into a cantaloupe shell and garnish with a mint spring and a slice of lime.

This Frozen Cantaloupe Daiquiri is super fruity, refreshing, and so simple to make. I used dark rum in this cocktail because I thought the flavors would mesh well with the richness of the demerara simple syrup and floral aromas of the cantaloupe. Frozen recipes sometimes need to be reworked because of how much water content they have. I like to cut the citrus in half and up the sugar to compensate for all the dilution. Using a richer sugar for your simple syrup, like demerara or cane, instead of plain white sugar also helps to combat an over diluted and tasteless frozen drink. I hope these tips help you next time you’re making frozen daiquiris at home. I’m super excited about how this frozen drink in a fruit cup turned out. I hope you try this recipe at home and if you do don’t forget to chime in on the comments below. Cheers everyone! xo

Hibiscus Gin-Gin Mule

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With all the recipe developing for menus and blog posts, my refrigerator becomes a graveyard for fruit, herbs and miscellaneous syrups. I try my best to eat and repurpose most of it for cooking, smoothie bowls, or other recipes throughout the week but sometimes there’s a little waste. I’m implementing a new rule that if I make it, I have to use it! I made syrups for posts on A Beautiful Mess and Palm Springs Style last week and was wondering what my next cocktail would be on my own blog. Fresh ginger and hibiscus, does that work? You bet it does!

One of the first cocktails that came to mind was one that I learned when I worked behind the bar at Flatiron Lounge, the Gin-Gin Mule. It was created by Audrey Saunders of Pegu Club in 2000 and was a milestone drink of the 21st-century cocktail renaissance. It has inspired countless spin-offs and heavily influenced the use of fresh ginger and homemade ingredients in cocktails. It’s a drink that I still find myself making for people at Dutch Kills when they request a bartenders choice, “I’ll have something with gin that’s refreshing”, I pretty much immediately make a Gin-Gin Mule.

This cocktail is essentially a fusion of two classics, the Mojito (rum, lime, sugar, mint) and a Gin Buck (gin, lime, fresh ginger, soda). I’ve replaced the call for simple syrup in this recipe with hibiscus syrup. You can find out how to make ginger syrup here and my hibiscus syrup here.


Hibiscus Gin-Gin Mule, serves 1

2 oz. Gin

1 oz. Lime Juice

1/2 oz. Hibiscus Syrup

1/2 oz. Ginger Syrup

Mint

Club Soda

Add lime juice, hibiscus syrup, ginger syrup, and mint to your shaker and muddle. Lightly tapping the mint is sufficient. When muddling a good rule to follow in the words of Sasha Petraske is “bruise don’t abuse”. Add gin, ice, and then shake. Strain into a highball glass over ice and top with club soda. Garnish with a mint sprig and ginger candy.

I’ve always loved this cocktail but the hibiscus syrup adds a tart, fruity, and floral element that makes this drink even more perfect for summer (if that’s even possible). The sweet floral element of the hibiscus blends perfectly with the spiciness of the ginger and freshness of the mint. More than 10 years later and this cocktail is so good it still influences how I develop cocktails. Some of the most delicious drinks are so perfect just because they’re simple. Less IS more. What’s your favorite modern classic? Do you ever put your own spin on it? Tell me about it in the comments below.

Cucumber Lemongrass Gin and Tonics

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I’ve been really wanting to do a gin and tonic recipe ever since I came back from Spain and for some reason, I just haven’t gotten around to it. A Spanish-style gin and tonic are usually made with a premium gin and the best quality tonic water, combined with your choice of bitters and various herbs, vegetables and fruits. I had some lemongrass syrup leftover from my national piña colada day post and I thought this would be the perfect time to make one. Gin and tonics are supposed to be crisp, dry, herbal and refreshing which makes them thirst quenchingly perfect for the very hot weather in Spain and the current summer temperature we’re experiencing here in NYC (or wherever you might be). The lemongrass syrup is super easy to make (you can find the recipe here) and when combined with gin, cucumber, Meyer lemon juice, and bitter lemon fever tree tonic water creates an effortless drink that is fragrant and full of flavor.


Cucumber Lemongrass Gin and Tonic

2 oz. Botanist Gin

3/4 oz. Meyer Lemon Juice

3/4 oz. Lemongrass Syrup

4 Cucumber Slices

Bitter Lemon Fever Tree Tonic Water

Cucumber ribbon and lemon wheel for garnish

Add cucumber, lemon juice, and syrup to a tin and lightly muddle. Add gin and then fill with ice and give a quick shake.

Strain into desired glassware, top with tonic water and garnish with cucumber ribbon and lemon wheel.

The Botanist is a highly distinctive, complex, floral gin which mixes perfectly with the fragrance of the lemon grass syrup, and citrusy herbal freshness of the tonic water. The sweet Meyer lemon juice evens out the slight bitterness from the quinine in the tonic as well. This drink was clean, bright, wonderfully balanced and very easy to put together. They’re also very easy to drink, so be careful! After witnessing how serious they take their ‘gintonics’ in Spain, I have a new found love and appreciation for this cocktail. Do you ever experiment with different types of gin and tonics at home? Is there a favorite tonic you like to make them with? Special herbs, fruit, or bitters you like to include? I’d love to hear about it in the comments below.

I’m finally editing the hundreds of photos I took on my trip to Madrid, Jerez, Cadiz, and Seville, Spain. So stay tuned for that blog post very soon. I have so much to say about brandy, sherry, and the wonderful trip I took to the Cardenal Mendoza distillery and winery.

Cheers everyone and happy weekend!

 

Frozen Watermelon Margarita

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The temperature keeps rising and I find myself only wanting to make frozen drinks around here. Central AC is something I dream of one day having but for right now the bedroom is the only room that’s tolerable. So if I’m in the kitchen the drinks have got to be COLD! Plus, frozen drinks are super easy to make. You put all your ingredients in a pitcher and then let the blender do the work for you. No shaking or stirring, which also means less sweating. The result at the end? Mountains of icy-cold slushy goodness. Is your mouth watering? I’ve made a pretty simple variation on a tommy’s margarita (tequila, lime, and agave) and added fresh watermelon for a fruity and more refreshing summer version.


Frozen Watermelon Margarita

2 oz. Blanco Tequila (I used Omeca Altos)

1 oz. Lime Juice

3/4 oz. Agave Nectar

4-5 pieces of fresh watermelon

mint for garnish

Add all your ingredients to your blender pitcher, add ice (about a cup), and blend on smoothie setting. I love margaritas with salt, so don’t forget to salt the rims of your glasses and be generous! Garnish with a sprig of mint for fragrance and for pretties!

Check out my watermelon manicure! Check out my watermelon manicure!

Boom – it’s that easy! Now you can relax and enjoy the frosty, fruity goodness of this cocktail. It’s so good you can eat it with a spoon like sorbet and forget about the straw. Margaritas are such a versatile and simple cocktail you can basically make it with whatever fruit and herbs your heart desires. Depending on what you make it with it can be seasonally appropriate anytime of year. They also go perfectly in the company of tacos, a match made in heaven. I think next to my Avocado Margarita that I did for A Beautiful Mess, this watermelon version is up there on my list of favorites. It cooled me off and is the perfect summer time drink. Hope you’re all enjoying your summer. What have you been drinking at home? 🙂

Lemongrass Pina Colada with Bai

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If you’ve been following my blog over the past year, you know my favorite cocktail is a piña colada. That’s why I’m excited to announce that I’ve teamed up with Bai for National Piña Colada Day to bring you something delicious with their Molokai Coconut flavor. It turns out Bai is just as crazy about coconut as me!

What’s the great part about using their Cocofusion flavors in your drinks? They are super low in calories and sugar (only 5 calories & 1 gram of sugar per serving) and are filled with antioxidant goodness. We’re basically using this to add coconut flavor but taking out the guilt, which is A-OK with me! Any objections? I’ve paired this wonderful fruit juice with homemade lemongrass syrup, pineapple, and rum to bring you a fun and interesting variation on the much loved classic, the piña colada.


Lemongrass Pina Colada

1 1/2 oz. white rum

1 1/2 oz. Bai Molokai Coconut (any of their other cocofusions will work too)

3/4 oz. pineapple juice

3/4 oz. lemongrass syrup

For the lemongrass syrup, first remove the leaves on your lemongrass until you’re left with the white core (about 5 stalks). Chop it up and add it to a pot with 1 cup of sugar and 1 cup of water.

Bring to a slight bubble and then turn the heat down and let it simmer for about 10-15 minutes. Let cool on stove for a few hours and then strain out lemongrass.

Now to make the cocktail! Add all your ingredients to your blender pitcher, add ice, and blend on smoothie setting. It’s that easy! Pour into your serving vessel and garnish with a pineapple wedge, pineapple leaves, and a piece of cooked lemongrass.

I love how all the flavors compliment each other perfectly. The replacement of coconut cream for the Bai Molokai Coconut, makes the drink less creamy but doesn’t sacrifice flavor. The lemongrass is sweet and fragrant and blends together with the coconut to make a very crisp and refreshing drink. We couldn’t celebrate National Piña Colada Day without a giveaway, so head over to my Instagram for a chance to win 2 cases of Bai. All you have to do in order to be entered to win is make sure you’re following me @arseniclace, @drinkbai, and tag a friend in the comments you want to share a piña colada with! I will reach out to the winner on Instagram on 7/15. Cheers, good luck and thank you for reading this sponsored post here on Arsenic Lace.

Cherry Whiskey Sour

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Watching the produce change at my local farmers market is probably my favorite part of every season. I was super excited to see a variety of cherries available this past week and really wanted to make a pie. Instead, I’ve brought you cherry pie in a glass with this fun and easy twist on the classic whiskey sour. I’m not sure what’s better, the pie or the drink? I’d still like to get around to making a pie and maybe some homemade brandied cherries too before summer ends.  The depth and color the cherries bring to this classic cocktail is wonderful, and it wouldn’t be a traditional sour without egg whites, so let’s get cracking!


Cherry Whiskey Sour

2 oz. bourbon

3/4 oz. lemon juice

3/4 oz. simple syrup (1:1)

1 egg white

5 cherries

Peychaud’s bitters for garnish

In the larger side of your tin, crack your egg and separate, only using the egg white and discarding the yoke. In the small side of your tin add the lemon juice, simple syrup, cherries, and muddle. Add the bourbon and dry shake your cocktail to aerate and incorporate all ingredients. Add ice and shake again. Strain into a coupe and dash your Peychaud’s bitters on top. I drag a straw through my dashes to create a little design.

I love the way this cocktail came out. It’s super lush from the cherries and creamy from the egg white. It’s a really nice cocktail to serve after dinner, and like most egg cocktails, also a great brunch drink. But let’s be real – it’s any ANYTIME drink! I hope you can whip a few of these up over the long weekend. If you do, enjoy them and let me know how they turn out.

Is there a certain egg white cocktail you love to make at home? I’d love to hear about it in the comments below. Cheers everyone!

Boozy Blackberry and Mango Lassi

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Well hello there Summer! There’s nothing I love more than a fruity and creamy drink to cool me down on a hot day. I whipped up my version of a mango lassi, my favorite beverage when indulging in Indian cuisine, except I added some rum. Because rum goes with just about everything. Right?

Right!

Okay.

Now that we’re aggreeing on that, let’s talk about using yogurt in cocktails. I have always wanted to try to play around with it but admitedly have only ever used it in smoothies. Shame on me because I have been missing out. I took fresh mango, lemon juice, greek yogurt, and a little bit of salt and served it in a rumble (bramble with rum) style with muddled blackberries over crushed ice. The results are magnificent.


Blackberry Mango Lassi

1 1/2 oz. white rum

3/4 oz. lemon juice

3/4 oz. honey syrup

2 tbsp. greek yogurt

pinch of salt

freshly diced mango

5 blackberries

Chop up your mango and then add your rum, lemon, honey, yogurt, salt, and mango into a blender pitcher. Flash blend for about 10 seconds just to incorporate the ingredients and puree the mango. In your glass add the blackberries and give them a light muddle. Add crushed ice to the glass ontop of the blackberries and then pour your drink ontop. Garnish with a blackberry and a few pieces of mango.

This drink is everything I need for breakfast, brunch, dinner or dessert. It’s boozy, fruity, creamy, sweet, savory, but most of all refreshing in a bright and delightful way. I love the addition of salt just like a traditional lassi. For a more savory version I would love to add some spices next time like cumin or cayenne pepper. This can also be a frozen cocktail if you wish but I really loved the idea of serving it on crushed to get that layered effect. Have you ever experimented with yogurt in cocktails? If you haven’t you should try this one and let me know what you think in the comments below.