Cranberry Pie... Cocktail?
Life is short. Treat yourself to a graham cracker crust rim.
The ingredients:
The cocktail
2 ounces of gin
1 ounce lemon juice
1 ounce cranberry rosemary simple syrup (see below)
1 egg white
1 graham cracker, crushed
The simple syrup
4 ounces cranberries
2 sprigs of rosemary
1/2 c sugar
1/2 c water
The process:
For the syrup, combine all ingredients in a saucepan over high heat until the cranberries begin to pop. Once the mixture is at a boil and the cranberries have started popping, take off of heat and mash the cranberries and leave for 20 minutes. Strain through sieve and keep the syrup, which can be kept in the refrigerator for two to three weeks.
For the cocktail, combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker. To help emulsify the egg white, do not add ice. Shake vigorously (and keep an eye on your shaker, as the process can pop the top off). Once well incorporated, shake with large cube of ice. Wet rim of glass and roll the edge, generously, in crushed graham crackers. Pour cocktail into glass and garnish with a piece of rosemary.
The story:
I love Christmas. I love drinks with a bit of flare. I love cranberries. So I got to work.
Fun fact: I had never come across a bona fide, real life cranberry until college. I’m honestly not sure how this happened, either. My first exposure to cranberries was via the semi-annual inclusion of cranberry sauce at Thanksgiving and Christmas. We had a tradition where my dad would open up one side of the can (I’m a can truther, I don’t care) with a can opener, and then on the other unopened end, he’d wedge a hole in with his pocket knife. It was then my job to blow the jelly out the open end via the small hole on the bottom. I’ve come to realize this is not standard protocol for most people. I’ve also come to realize that moments like this are why I’m in therapy, but hey—tradition.
When I got older and started cooking, I was enamored by how much you can do with a cranberry. The sharpness and tartness and the potential for pairing so well with sugar is like a goldmine for recipe ideas. Like the rest of the world, I’ve become obsessed with that cranberry curd tart from the New York Times, which is where this week’s recipe idea came from. Why not turn a cranberry curd tart into a cocktail?
I don’t normally dabble with egg whites in my cocktails, but when I was thinking about how to bring all the best parts of that tart to life in a drink (the cranberry flavor, the color, the creaminess of the curd), then the egg white was a clear necessity. And listen—I don’t think that you’ll be drinking these all night because (1) they take a minute to make, and (2) it’s like a beautiful sugar treat, but I think it’s the perfect drink to capture that maximalist goodness of the holiday season.
Oh, and by the way, let this be your PSA: make simple syrups at home. Get weird. It’s so easy. The recipe is always one to one (just as much sugar as you have water), and then you introduce whatever guest stars you want. Be the captain of your cocktail experience.