When I received the revised and expanded second edition of the book ‘Market Fresh Mixology‘ by Bridget Albert and Mary Barranco from the publisher, I was totally enthused with finding something to make and share with you. I love using fresh, seasonal ingredients in my cocktails and this book seemed right in line with that philosophy. It’s another book that separates cocktails into the seasons of the year and I like that; expecting that fresh and hopefully even local ingredients will be available during each season at the market there are cocktails specific to that bounty. When it was time to discover a cocktail that spoke to me, it was too easy; I saw the word Daiquiri and it was all over. It might have said Strawberry Daiquiri but I’ve been know to punt and this was no exception. Raspberries in the fridge said so.
The original Daiquiri consists of white rum, lime juice, and simple syrup, shaken and strained into a chilled cocktail glass and garnished with a lime wedge. The drink was created by Jennings Cox, an American engineer who managed the Cuban properties for two American companies (credit as co-creator is also often given to a Cuban engineer named Pagliuchi). Gin was the preferred spirit at the time but finding himself with none on hand and guests on the way, Cox reached for local rum. He assumed (and probably correctly) that his guests might not find the local product particularly palatable so he added sugar and lime juice to the mix and a classic was born. It should come as no surprise that a rum drink in Cuba should have a connection with the author Ernest Hemingway and the one cocktail deviation considered appropriate by purists is the Hemingway Daiquiri; a cocktail with both grapefruit and maraschino cherry juices that lends itself to a drink with a pinkish hue.
One can only wonder if this is why so many bars have ruined the quintessential daiquiri with too much neon pink something or another. Daiquiris were one of the first cocktails that I ordered after coming of age to drink (legally!) but I long ago gave up on sampling most daiquiris and blame those sugary sweet concoctions made available at most bars. Seeing this derivation inspired me to try again and I’m glad I did! The authors have revised the original recipe to include strawberries and a bit of orange liqueur which I liked. The addition of a tart fruit worked with a bit of sweetness. As it turns out, my bounty meant switching out strawberries for raspberries and I had to add a bit more sugar than specified. Not so much to make it syrupy sweet but just to cut the puckery tartness of the raspberry and lime combination. I tried it without sugar and think my lips are permanently formed for whistling!
I really loved this book; near and dear to my heart beyond the cocktails are the infusions they’ve included. I can’t wait to try Strawberry-Rosemary this spring and the Pirate Berry Infusion this summer where blueberries, blackberries and raspberries are combined with dark rum and cinnamon syrup. Their suggestion to make a cocktail with that infusion and lemonade is on my list to share as soon as the first warm day of summer is upon us.
Share one of the authors toasts of spring while serving this to your guests; this one made me chuckle!
May we be happy and our enemies know it!
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Yield: One cocktail
Ingredients
- For the Rim:
- Sugar
- Lime Wedge For the cocktail:
- 6 raspberries
- 1/2 oz orange liqueur
- 1 1/2 oz white rum
- 2 bar spoons (2 tsp) superfine sugar (put granulated sugar into your blender for a minute to make it fine)
- Juice of 1/2 lime
- Whole Raspberries and lime wheel for garnish
Preparation
- To Rim the Glass:
- Spread the sugar evening on a small plate; rim the edge of the glass with the lime wedge and dip it into the sugar. Set aside. To make the cocktail:
- In a cocktail shaker or mixing glass; muddle the raspberries and orange liqueur.
- Add the rum, sugar and lime juice and fill the shaker with ice.
- Shake well; strain into the sugar rimmed glass.
- Garnish with raspberries and lime wheel.
Notes
To Make the Strawberry Version; substitute the raspberries with 2 sliced strawberries when muddling.
Use 1 bar spoon (1 tsp) of sugar in recipe. Garnish with a strawberry.
2.4http://www.creative-culinary.com/raspberry-daiquiri-a-classic-revisited/This recipe brought to you by Creative Culinary | A Food and Cocktail Blog | Website: www.creative-culinary.com
