Enthusiasts of the home preparation of liqueurs And cocktail they might think of organizing their own vegetable garden or garden in order to have always fresh and ready to use fruits and herbs. For the preparation of alcohol cocktails it is necessary to purchase alcohol for food use.
If the citrus zest should be used, it is necessary to choose the fruit of origin biological. The same recommendation is valid for aromatic herbs and edible flowers. It will be sufficient to cultivate everything necessary for the cultivation of cocktails in a completely natural way, without the use of toxic pesticides. Here you are Ten plants To be cultivated among which to choose, in combination with more or less known cocktails and liqueurs.
Mint – Mojito
There mint It is very simple to grow at home, starting from the seeds or, even better, from the cutting, receiving a sprig of the plant on loan from friends and relatives and placing it in a glass of water up to the formation of the roots, before transplanting the pot. The ideal period is spring. Mint leaves will be perfect for the preparation of mojitoOf syrups And liqueursor for the creation of the most varied cocktails.
How to prepare Mojito
Ingredients:
- 45 ml of white rum
- 6-8 fresh mint leaves
- 2 teaspoons of sugar
- Half lime juice
- Firm/sparkling water
- Ice
Gently pest the mint leaves with sugar and lime juice in the glass. Add ice to fill the glass, pour the rum and complete with firm or sparkling water. Mix gently and garnish with a slice of lime and a sprig of mint. Serve immediately in a high glass.
How to cultivate mint in pot or garden
Strawberries – Caipiroska
The strawberries They are easily grown in pots, especially starting from the purchase of seedlings to be transplanted in spring. Strawberries can be prepared some syrups to be used to enrich alcohol or non -alcoholic cocktails. They are also the basic ingredient for the preparation from the strawberry caipiroska.
How to prepare strawberry caipiroska
Ingredients
Cut the strawberries into small pieces and put in the glass together with the lime wedges and sugar. Pestively pest all the ingredients until you get a puree. Fill the glass with chopped ice, pour the vodka and mix carefully. Garnish with a slice of lime and half strawberry on the edge of the glass. Serve immediately with a straw.
Star anise – Sambuca
Star anise can be grown in the sunniest areas in Italy and Europe. The famous is obtained from it Anise -flavored liqueur called Sambuca. A drink similar to the Sambuca, always falling within the type of liqueurs, can be prepared Using starry anise, fennel seeds and cardamom seeds.
How to prepare the aromatic liqueur for starry anise, fennel and cardamom
Lightly pest the cardamom and fennel seeds to free the aromas. In an airtight jar, insert alcohol, star anise, fennel seeds, cardamom seeds and lemon zest. Close well and leave to infuse in a cool and dark place for at least 2 weeks, gently shaking the jar every 2-3 days.
After this period, prepare a syrup by boiling the water with the sugar until completely dissolving, let it cool completely. Filter the alcohol infusion with a dense mesh strainer or a clean cotton cloth, eliminating all spices. Add the infusion filtered to the cold syrup and mix well. Bottles the liqueur in sterilized glass bottles and let it rest for at least another 2 weeks before consuming it. This rest period will allow flavors to mix perfectly.
The liqueur is preserved at room temperature for at least a year and improves with aging. Serve cold as a digestive after meals.riprovaclaude can make mistakes. Always check the answers carefully.
Tomatoes – Bloody Mary
Have fresh tomatoes to grow in pot or directly in the garden allows you to prepare according to original recipe The well -known cocktail Bloody Maryto be obtained using fresh tomato juiceVodka, Tabasco and other gifts of the garden to garnish, such as chives and celery. Do not forget, a pinch of salt and one of pepper. To decorate, green olives and a slice of lemon or lime can also be used.
How to prepare the Bloody Mary
Ingredients:
Pour all the ingredients into a shaker with ice, shake gently and filter in a high glass. Garnish with a stem of celery. Serve immediately.
Limone – Limoncello
The limoncello It is an alcoholic distillate based on lemon peel. Use chopped lemon peel or cut into strips for his preparation. Immerse the 5 lemons in 500 ml of alcohol good taste and let it rest in a hermetic glass jar for a week. Filter everything and add to a prepared syrup by heating on low heat and stirring with a wooden spoon 500 ml of water and 300 gr of sugar. Trava the limoncello in glass bottles and stored in the cellar or in the refrigerator. Read the complete recipe here.
Orange – Aromatic Mistrà
The mister It is an anise -based liqueur typical of regions such as Lazio and Marche. One onaromatic version It can be prepared using the zest of a biological orange. Among other ingredients, in addition to alcohol, we find anise seeds, fennel and coriander seeds. It is a liqueur digestive To be enjoyed cold.
How to prepare the orange and spices mystrà
Ingredients:
Lightly pest the seeds of anise, fennel and coriander in a mortar to better free their essential oils. Wash and dry the orange thoroughly, then take the zest avoiding the bitter white part. In an airtight glass jar, insert all the beaten seeds, the orange zest and the star anise if you decide to use it.
Pour the alcohol into the jar, ensuring that you completely cover the ingredients. Close hermetically and leave to infuse in a cool and dark place for at least 2 weeks, gently shaking the container every 2-3 days to encourage the release of the aromas.
After the infusion period, prepare a syrup by boiling the water with the sugar. Mix until the sugar is completely dissolved, then turn off the heat and let it cool completely.
Filter the alcoholic infusion through a dense mesh strainer or a clean cotton cloth to eliminate all solid residues. Add the cold syrup to the filtered liquid and mix gently.
It bottles the mystrà in sterilized glass bottles and let it rest for at least another 2 weeks before consuming it, thus allowing the flavors to mix perfectly.
The orange mystrà is kept at room temperature for at least a year. Serve it very cold as a digestive after meals, ideally in small glasses with frozen liqueur.
Myrtle
Mirto (Myrtus Communis) is a small evergreen shrub typical of the Mediterranean scrub, particularly widespread in Sardinia and Corsica. Characterized by glossy and fragrant leaves, small white flowers and bluish berries, this aromatic plant is appreciated both for its ornamental properties and for culinary and liqueur uses.
Mirto berries, collected in autumn when they are ripe, are traditionally used to produce the famous myrtle liqueur, a symbol of the Sardinian tradition. This distillate with a characteristic dark color and intense flavor is appreciated as digestive and can be consumed both cold and at room temperature.
How to prepare myrtle
Ingredients:
Wash the myrtle berries well and dry carefully. Put in an airtight jar and pour over the alcohol. Add the lemon zest if you want. Close hermetically and leave to infuse in a dark place for at least 3 weeks, shaking from time to time.
After the infusion period, prepare a syrup by melting the sugar in the water over low heat. Bring to the boil for a few minutes, then let it cool completely. Filter the alcoholic infusion of myrtle through a strainer or gauze, separating the berries. Add the cold syrup to the filtered liquid and mix well.
Bottles the liqueur in sterilized dark glass bottles and let it rest for at least a month before consuming it. It preserves in a cool and dark place.
Blueberries and basil – Summer cocktail
For those who are lucky enough to collect blueberries Directly in your garden, in the mountains or in the countryside, here is a cocktail with a summer flavor, which involves the use of one of the most typical aromatic herbs of the season: the basil. There recipe For its preparation it can be changed by using blackberries to replace the blueberries.
How to prepare a blueberry cocktail and basil
Ingredients:
In a shaker, put the blueberries and basil leaves. Paste gently to release the flavors without completely destroying the fruit. Add the lemon juice, sugar syrup, vodka and elderberry liqueur. Fill the shaker with ice and shake vigorously for about 15 seconds. Filter the contents in a low tumbler glass filled with fresh ice. Complete with a little soda or sparkling water. Garnish with some fresh blueberries and a basil leaf. Serve immediately.riprovaclaude can make mistakes. Always check the answers carefully.
Raspberries – aromatic vodka
Amy Stewart, author of The Drunken Botanistbook that is depopulating in the United States, suggests to prepare a vodka and raspberry liqueur Simply pouring raspberries into a glass jar and filling the same with vodka. The raspberries must be crushed with a wooden spoon so that they release their juice. The jar must be closed and left to rest for a week. Once ready, the liquid can be filtered and added to your favorite cocktails, or mixed with a syrup prepared with water and sugar in equal parts to obtain a liqueur.
Rose – Rosolio
Rose rosolio represents one of the oldest and most refined liqueurs of the Italian Liquor tradition, famous for its delicacy and the characteristic floral perfume. This precious drink, once served in noble homes as a symbol of refinement, has crossed the centuries keeping its charm intact. The rose is not only a flower of extraordinary beauty, but also has unique aromatic properties that make it perfect for the production of liqueurs. In traditional rosolio, damascena pink petals or centifolia are used for their intense fragrance and the thin sweet notes that give the distillate.
How to prepare rosolio
Ingredients
Clean the rose petals carefully using moistened kitchen paper, trying not to wet it too much so as not to ruin the petals. Put them in a mixer together with 50 g. of sugar and operate it intermittently so as not to heat the mixture too much until it reaches a homogeneous consistency. Transfer everything to a hermetic closing container and add the alcohol, now let it rest for ten days in a cool place and from time to time the container.
After this period, filter the infusion obtained. Mix the 300 ml of water with the 250 g. of sugar remained and put the syrup obtained for about two minutes on the fire. Let it cool and when it will reach the room temperature, mix it with the alcohol and petal infusion and then, pour it into one or more bottles, depending on their capacity. Before consuming it as an aperitif or digestive, let the mixture rest for thirty days, in order to obtain a liqueur with an intense and full -bodied aroma.
