Smith Family Weblog

I know there are those that believe the only thing that belongs in a martini glass is gin and maybe an olive, but humor me for a moment, please.

We have an overabundance of basil (already!) this summer, and I decided to try it in a cocktail. Food and Wine had recipe for strawberry basil martinis, and I made a few tweaks to arrive at this:

3 basil leaves

3 strawberries

2 oz vodka

1/2 oz simple syrup

1/2 oz lemon juice

Muddle the basil, strawberries and simple syrup in a cocktail shaker. Top with ice, add vodka and lemon juice. Shake and strain into a glass.

This one is quite pink—not because of the strawberries, but because I am completely out of sugar and I had to use pink sanding sugar to make the simple syrup. (I have been out of sugar for two weeks now, but twice in a row, I’ve accidentally bought flour instead. So, I have 15 pounds of flour, and still, no sugar. Perhaps I need to taper back on cocktail hour…)