The Lemon Ginger Crush

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Another Friday, another crush. The sun has gone into hiding again, and it’s been raining all day. And I have a child with chicken pox (wtf, right?). And we still haven’t been out on the boat yet. Needless to say, I wasn’t feeling a sunny and fruity drink on this #CrushFridayVA. So, I kind of stepped out of the box for this week’s cocktail.

A simple syrup is infused with heady kick of fresh ginger flavor after a short steeping period. Which is then combined with freshly squeezed lemon juice, vodka, a splash of triple sec, and a bit of bubbly in the form of some ginger ale to round out the flavor.

It’s something different for this rainy evening we’re having here on the island. Little league games are already cancelled tomorrow, so I’m looking forward to a lazy morning with my guys. Hope everyone has a great weekend!

The Lemon Ginger Crush

For the ginger simple syrup:
1 cup water
1 cup sugar
1 medium fresh ginger root, sliced

For the crush:
3 lemons, juiced
2/3 cup vodka
1/2 cup ginger simple syrup
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup ginger ale
ice
lemon slices, for garnish

For the simple syrup bring water, sugar, and ginger slices to a boil over medium heat. Stir until sugar has dissolved. Turn off heat, cover, and let 30 minutes.

To make the cocktail, combine lemon juice, vodka, simple syrup, water, and ginger ale into a pitcher. Stir to combine.

Serve in highball glasses over ice with a lemon slice as garnish.

The Watermelon Crush

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Happy Friday, guys! Everyone had a good week? It’s still been super busy around here with baseball, and cub scouts, and everything else we have going on. But in all the rushing around the past few days, I did manage to squeak out a few minutes to come up with this week’s #CrushFridayVA recipe!

My youngest talked me into buying a watermelon at last week’s grocery store trip. So I went with that for this week!  It was okay, but not like the melons you’ll find locally in another couple of months. We only are about half of it, and I figured the other half would be perfect for a cocktail. I’ll tell you, this whole crush thing has been great for using up the rest of the fruit that’s still hanging out by the weekend!

This recipe couldn’t be easier, and one batch makes quite a few cocktails. Fruity and fresh, it really hits the spot on the porch at happy hour – especially now that it’s warming up. Speaking of happy hours on the porch, I’m hosting a cocktail crafting class at the Chincoteague Cultural Alliance next Friday. If you’re local (or in-town for the weekend!) and want to join us, you can sign up on their site. It’s going to be tons of fun.

The Watermelon Crush

2 cups seedless watermelon, cubed
1/4 cup sugar
2 limes, juiced
1 cup vodka
1/2 cup triple sec
1 cup sparkling water or lemon-lime soda
sliced watermelon, for garnish

Place watermelon and sugar in blender or food processor and blend, until watermelon is completely pureed and liquified.

Pour mixture into the bottom of a medium pitcher. Add in the lime juice, vodka, triple sec, and sparking water. Stir to combine.

Fill glasses with ice and pour cocktail over. Garnish glasses with a slices of watermelon.

Makes about 6 servings

The Canteloupe Crush

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It’s Friday, y’all! And, that means a new fruit crush cocktail here on Tide & Thyme. I’m lame and dropped the ball last week. Little league obligations + field trips + allergies ended up crushing my ass last week…so with all that, I was in no mood to crush a cocktail. Ya feel me?

But the sun has been shining this week, I’ve been cleaning and baking with the windows open. All my favorite spots are opening up their doors for the season here on the island. And *fingers crossed*, we’re hoping to get the boat wet this weekend! The flounders are biting, and I’m ready to start restocking the freezer.

Alas. summer isn’t quite in full bloom for another month or so. And, fruit isn’t available from any of my favorite local farms just yet. Luckily, a halfway decent canteloupe is available pretty much all year at the grocery store. So, I decided to throw that under the bus for the crush this week!

The orange color is just lovely, and the melon flavor and sweetness is on point. So, what are you waiting for? It’s 5 o’clock somewhere! Get out there and crush the weekend, guys.

The Canteloupe Crush

2 cups canteloupe, diced
3 Tbsp sugar
1 orange, juiced
1/2 cup vodka
1/3 cup triple sec
1/2 cup sparkling water or lemon-lime soda
sliced canteloupe, for garnish

Blend canteloupe and sugar in a food processor or blender until completely pureed. We’re talking liquified.

Pour mixture into the bottom of a quart mason jar. Add in the orange juice, vodka, triple sec, and sparking water. Shake to combine.

Fill glasses with ice and pour cocktail over. Garnish glass with a slice of canteloupe.

Makes about 3-4 servings.

The Strawberry Crush

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It’s the time of year when I start to look forward to local strawberries popping up. Or at the very least, some big beautiful berries that hail from Florida or California. I figured they were the perfect candidate for our second installment of the #CrushFridayVA series here on the blog!

Fresh sliced strawberries are macerated in sugar, and then given a quick pass through the blender to break apart – you’re aiming to keep some chunkage going on in the strawberry still. I love to see that in a cocktail, it let’s you know that it’s the real deal!

That puree is then mixed with vodka, fresh OJ, triple sec, and a splash of sparkling water – the standard crush ingredients. I happened to have some strawberry flavored sparking water, so I went with that, and it was a nice addition.

It’s light and refreshing and bubbly. And you can’t beat that gorgeous berry red hue with a stick. It has me yearning for the warm days of summer that are knocking on our door. Happy Friday, y’all!

The Strawberry Crush

1 1/2 cups fresh strawberries, sliced
1/4 cup sugar
2 oranges, juiced
2/3 cup vodka
1/3 cup triple sec
1/2 cup sparkling water or lemon-lime soda
sliced strawberries, for garnish

Toss strawberries and sugar and let sit 10 minutes. Place strawberries and syrup in blender or food processor and give a couple of pulses, until strawberries are pureed – but a few chunks still remain.

Pour mixture into the bottom of a quart mason jar. Add in the orange juice, vodka, triple sec, and sparking water. Shake to combine.

Fill glasses with ice and pour cocktail over. Garnish glasses with a sliced strawberry.

Makes about 3-4 servings