Remember when I promised you I’d have recipes inspired from Lolita’s Blood Orange Margaritas and Barbuzzo’s Vodka Spiked Basil Lemonade soon? You remember; I promised in the Oktoberfest Part I post? Well, I only half-lied. Turns out, blood oranges aren’t even in season yet! So, when I said I’d get you that recipe soon, I really meant in January. You forgive me right?
You should, because I still have a delicious drink recipe for you, inspired by Barbuzzo’s Vodka Spiked Basil Lemonade. I wanted some fruity flavor in addition to the lemon in the vodka basil lemonade, so I picked up a bunch of strawberries, which apparently are technically “in season” until early December. The more you know…
Also, those sliced strawberries in the picture above aren’t just floating by themselves, they’re actually the remnants of a frozen ice ball. I wanted to keep this cocktail chilled without watering it down too much, so I decided to fill Prepara Ice Balls with sliced strawberries and a small amount of lemonade. I took this picture a good while after pouring (I got distracted by my new puppy, Roxxy), so the outer lemonade-ice had melted away and the perfect spherical shape I started with became a little distorted, but the strawberry slices remained frozen together just as I had hoped. The frozen ball of strawberries chilled my lemonade and added flavor to it as they thawed, and the added bonus was that I got to eat them after I finished my drink!
Even though I thoroughly enjoyed the strawberries, the real star of this show is the basil. It’s good. Oh, it’s real good. But don’t just take my word for it; try it yourself!
- 1 cup strawberry basil simple syrup (recipe below)
- 1 cup lemon juice (about 6 lemons)
- 2 cups water
- 1 cup vodka
- Strawberries and basil leaves to garnish
- 1 cup strawberries, chopped
- 5 leaves basil
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 cup water
- Add 2 cups water, 1 cup vodka, and 1 cup lemon juice in a pitcher and refrigerate.
- Add all of the “strawberry basil simple syrup” ingredients to a medium sauce pan and bring the mixture to a boil.
- Reduce heat to a simmer, and let it simmer for about 20 minutes. Stir occasionally with a wooden spoon, making sure to break up the strawberries to release their juice and bruise the basil to release its oils.
- Strain the simple syrup to remove all chunks and pieces of strawberries and basil.
- Add 1 cup strawberry basil simple syrup to the lemonade mixer and chill before serving. Garnish with a fresh strawberry and a basil leaf.
It seems as though cold weather recipes are everywhere already, and I’ll admit that it’s for good reason (at least if you live on the east coast!) but if you’re like me and crave a refreshing, citrusy beverage every so often even regardless of the time of year, this one is definitely worth a try.
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