Edible Gift Recipe: Homemade Cocktail Mixers
What happens when you combine the flavors of roasted cranberries with fragrant cloves and rich brown sugar with clementines? A festive homemade gift to inspire the cocktail lover in your life.
These holiday inspired cocktail mixers are fun, flavorful, a bit unexpected and begging for a chance to toast salud! with loved ones. The technique to make them is simple and can be easily adapted to personal taste by swapping out any of the spices, citrus and fruits. Merely boil together equal parts water and sugar, add your chosen flavorings and steep for at least one hour and up to one day. Pour into pretty glassware and store for up to one month in the fridge.
We love to combine the Roasted Cranberry-Clove Mixer with champagne and a few whole cranberries for a festive toast during the holiday season. On the other hand, the Clementine-Brown Sugar Mixer is practically begging for a splash of bourbon, a low ball glass and a cozy night by the fire. Package these jewel-toned mixers along with a few handwritten cocktail recipes and you have the makings of a splendid holiday gift.
Roasted Cranberry-Clove Mixer
Makes 1 cup
1 cup granulated white sugar
1 cup water
3/4 cup cranberries
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
Sprinkle the cranberries with cloves and roast for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, combine the sugar and water in a saucepan set over medium-high heat until the sugar dissolves completely. Remove from heat.
Combine the clove roasted cranberries with the sugar-water mixture and allow to steep for at least 1 hour.
Strain and pour into canisters.
Clementine-Brown Sugar Mixer
Makes 1 cup
1 cup light brown sugar
1 cup water
1 clementine; peeled and pith removed
Juice of ½ clementine
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Combine the sugar and water in a saucepan set over medium-high heat until the sugar dissolves completely. Remove from heat.
Add the clementine peels and allow to steep for at least 1 hour. Stir in juice and vanilla extract.
Clementine-Brown Sugar Old-Fashioned
Makes one cocktail
1 ounce clementine-brown sugar mixer
Dash of Angostura Bitters
2 ounces bourbon whiskey
Clementine peel; for garnish
Combine Clementine-brown sugar mixer and angostura bitters in a rocks glass. Fill halfway with ice and stir. Pour in bourbon whiskey. Top with more ice and stir to combine. Garnish with a Clementine peel.
Roasted Cranberry-Clove Champagne Cocktail
Makes one cocktail
11/2 ounces cranberry-clove mixer
Champagne or sparking wine
Whole cranberries; frozen
Pour the cranberry-clover mixer into a champagne flute and top with champagne or sparkling wine. Garnish with cranberries.
(Images: Rebekah Peppler)