
Strawberry Ginger Cocktail
What I probably love most about summer are the summer nights that come with it. Long evenings, when the temperature just begins to feel right again. When walking through the streets feels like being on vacation. I live for those nights, when I finally leave my apartment (and work). That is when I head out to meet friends. We mostly hang out outside or sit on our small balconies, enjoying the light evening breeze.
And then we get creative with cocktails. It mostly involves berries, heaps of them, and some sort of fresh herbs. Everyone just brings something and then we see what we can come up with.
The cocktail (or mocktail, if you please) I am sharing with you today is my current favourite. It is made with ginger infused lemon water, which creates a slightly spicy and fresh base. The fruit comes in the form of a strawberry and mint purée, which softens the spiciness and gives the cocktail a fruity touch.
The cocktail tastes amazing without alcohol, but if you do want to add some, I would suggest gin or vodka.
So let’s enjoy those long and mild summer nights, gathering our dearest and maybe, maybe treat them with a good cocktail.
Strawberry Ginger Cocktail Recipe
- Prep Time: 25 minutes (+2 hours cooling off)
- Servings: 4 drinks
Ingredients
Ginger infused water
1.5 liter water
60g peeled ginger
juice of 2 lemons
5 tbsp maple syrup
Strawberry purée
350g strawberries
15 mint leaves
ice cubes
4x2cl gin or vodka (optional!)
Instructions
1. In a pot, bring water and chopped ginger to a boil and cover it almost completely with the lid, just letting a bit of steam out. Simmer for 10 minutes on medium heat. Add maple syrup and lemon juice and let it simmer for another 10 minutes.
2. Take the ginger water off the stove, strain it into a (glass) container and let it cool for a couple of hours.
3. Shortly before serving, blend strawberries and mint leaves in a blender until smooth.
4. First fill the cocktail glasses with a couple of ice cubes. If you want to make it a “real” cocktail, add a shot of gin or vodka. Then add approx. 2-3 tbsp of the strawberry purée and fill up the glass with ginger water. Decorate with extra mint leaves and strawberry halves.