Homemade Tonic Water

Mass-produced tonic water typically contains the devil--by devil I mean high-fructose corn syrup, and artisanal tonic waters like Qtonic and Fever Tree cost ~$3.00 for a 4oz. bottle.  I am already hooked on Hendricks gin--delightful but pricey, and had taken to drinking it with sparkling water and  lime but missed the bitter note of tonic.  I stumbled upon Jeffrey Morgenthaler's recipe by chance and decided to give it a go.  The recipe calls for chinchona bark powder which I was able to source at Tenzing Momo.  They also have a wonderful selection of herbs and spices and I received my order in <5 days.

 The recipe calls for a variety of citrus, allspice, chinchona bark powder and citric acid.  Crap! Citric acid?  I didn't read the recipe thoroughly.  All was not lost because I remembered I had this....

First ingredient?  Citric acid.  Booyah!  It also contains dehydrated lime juice and lime oil so I omitted the fresh lime.  The ingredients are simmered in 4 cups of water for 20 minutes.  You end up with this:

 Looks like mud.  Tastes super bitter.  I was a little concerned at this point.  After straining initially through a strainer and then a coffee press the resultant liquid was still opaque but free of large pieces of zest and bark.  At this point you add agave nectar at a ratio of 3/4 cup agave nectar for each cup of the mixture.  After straining I had about two cups mixture and not quite 1.5 cups of agave nectar so I added a cup of cane sugar and simmered til dissolved.  This mixture was still fairly bitter---did I need a spoonful of high fructose corn syrup to help the medicine go down?

No sir!  After mixing using Morgenthaler's proportions: 3/4 oz. syrup, 1.5 oz. gin, 2 oz. sparkling water, I took a sip of the best gin and tonic ever!  Chin-chin!

Friday Night Cocktail: Flying High

In honor of my workplace that decided to update its electronic medical record on July 1st...the day that all the new providers start work...I give you the Aviation!  A classic cocktail, tweaked by me and inspired by the Tipsy Baker.

Antique glassware compliments of my grandmother....Here are my proportions

2 oz. gin

1 oz. lemon juice

1 oz. Luxardo maraschino liqueur

1 tsp. creme de violette

Pour over ice in cocktail shaker; shake and strain into glass.

 I would buy this just for the bottle....got to find something else to make with it. 

Let the holiday weekend begin!

It Won't Prevent Malaria

But this gin-based cocktail will cool you off and make you think of the savannah.  I tend to avoid pre-made mixers--tonic included--due to the crazy amount of sugar they contain.  You can doctor this one up to your personal sweetness.  Speaking of personal sweetness, guess who's home from summer camp?

The first words out of her mouth when I picked her up were, "Can I come back next year?"  She got her money's worth out of her week at Camp Flaming Arrow, falling asleep in the car on the drive home.  She was happy to see her stuff and quickly set up a safari on the tea table.

How inspirational I found this bucolic scene and pictured myself on the veranda ala "Out of Africa" with a gin cocktail....we'll call it the Fever Dream...

1 large cucumber, peeled and sliced into thick rounds, blend with 2 cups water

Lavender simple syrup: mix one cup sugar/one cup water in saucepan and heat until sugar dissolves, add 3 TBS dried lavender flowers and steep at least one hour, strain flowers out prior to use

Blend and strain cucumber juice through fine seive, it makes about 2 cups.  To this add 1 cup freshly squeezed lime juice and 1/2 to one cup lavender simple syrup depending on your taste.  Stir well and mix in a 3:1 ratio with gin in a cocktail shaker. Pour over ice and top with sparkling water.

Don't Be Bitter

Another busy day at work...is it the full moon?  Barely time for lunch, cookies on the run, traffic, 105F with the heat index....Hendricks take me away....

Here's your perfect post-work or pau hana (as we say in the islands) cocktail. 

We'll call it the Don't Be Bitter...

Fill high ball glass with ice

Add juice of one key lime

1/2 oz. blood orange bitters

1 oz. Hendricks gin

Top with sparkling water.

Traffic? Was there traffic?

Cucumber Lavender Gin Cooler

 

Lavender (calming) + Cucumber (cooling) + Gin (relaxing).  The perfect spring cocktail.  I have always loved the smell of lavender, and who doesn't love Hendrick's Gin?  Although, according to their website, "it's not for everyone".  I was lucky to find a great source for organic culinary lavender at the Pearl Farmer's market--Imagine Lavender farms.  A little goes a long way so $9.50 for the jar has been money well spent.

Lavender-Cucumber simple syrup

1 cup sugar

1 cup water

1 teaspoon lavender

1 cucumber, peeled and sliced

In a small saucepan dissolve sugar in water over low heat.  Add lavender and sliced cucumber and bring to simmer, then remove from heat and allow to steep for 30 min.  Strain and cool.

Cooler

1 oz. Hendricks gin

1 oz. cucumber/lavender simple syrup

1/2 oz. blood orange bitters

Squeeze of lime

Mix gin, simple syrup, bitters and lime in cocktail shaker.  Pour over ice into tall glass and top with sparkling water.  Stir gently.

This syrup is also delicious without the gin, just add a little more lime juice.