strawberry – Exploren with Lauren

Strawberry and rhubarb is probably one of the best early-summer duos we can imagine. In honor of World Gin Day (June 13), we created this delicious Strawberry Rhubarb Gin Fizz that will have you tasting summer no matter what time of year it is.

Unless you already have some rhubarb gin in your bar collection, this will take some time (potentially several weeks for the infusion), but if you stock up on rhubarb while it’s in season and infuse a big batch, you’ll be able to enjoy this tasty and refreshing beverage all year round.

You will need:

3 1/2 cups of washed & chopped rhubarb stalks
1 cup sugar
500 mL gin (about 2 cups) (we used Spring44 Distilling Gin)

Cut rhubarb stalks into small (about 1 cm) pieces.
Place into large jar and add sugar.
Seal the jar and shake to combine. Leave overnight to allow time for the sugar to pull the juice out of the rhubarb.
After 24 hours, add the gin and shake again.

We infused our gin for about 3 weeks, but depending on your preference you may want to let it infuse for a longer or shorter duration. Give the jar an occasional shake throughout the process and taste often! When it has reached your desired level of flavor, it’s done! We’ve heard of infusing as long as 4 weeks, and as short as 12 hours.

When you decide your gin is ready, it’s time mix up a delicious Strawberry Rhubarb Gin Fizz!

Here’s what you’ll need to make it:

2-3 fresh (or frozen) strawberries
1 oz fresh lemon juice
1.5 oz rhubarb-infused gin
Klarbrunn Strawberry Guava sparkling water
Strawberries and/or lemon for garnish

Muddle 2-3 strawberries with lemon juice in the bottom of a mason jar. If using frozen strawberries you may need to wait a few minutes for thawing. The lemon juice should help speed up the process.
Add in rhubarb gin and stir.
Fill the rest of the jar with ice and top with Strawberry Guava sparkling water.
Garnish with fruit and enjoy!

We’d love to know if you try our infusion or cocktail recipe! Let us know how it goes in the comments! Cheers!

Both Lauren’s and my favorite food is chocolate covered strawberries. So naturally this is our go-to recipe to help celebrate Valentine’s Day this year. The secret to amazing strawberries? Add a liqueur into the chocolate for better consistency and added flavor. In the past I’ve used Disaronno which is an amaretto-tasting liqueur and works wonderfully, but for this recipe I’m using Sukkah Hill Spirit‘s Besamim – an aromatic spice liqueur. It creates a much more complex flavor profile and makes for absolutely delicious berries!

What you’ll need:

baking sheet lined with wax or parchment paper
1 pint of strawberries
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips
1/2 cup white chocolate chips
3 TBSP Besamim liqueur

The first thing you’ll want to do is wash and dry the strawberries, and I cannot emphasize this enough – make sure they are dry before dipping them in chocolate or it will not stick!

Next, you will melt the chocolate. There’s a handful of ways to do this – in the microwave, or in a double boiler – but I don’t have a double boiler and I like to keep an eye on it, so I usually do it on the stove top. If you overheat the chocolate, it will become hard and crusty and you will need to start over. A good tip to remember: heat the chocolate low and slow. On a low temp, and stirring continuously.

For added control, I like to melt it a half cup at a time. When the first 1/2 cup is nearly completely melted, add 1 TBSP Besamim and stir in as the chocolate finishes melting. Turn off the heat and immediately dip 1/3 of the strawberries in the chocolate and place on a baking sheet lined with wax paper or parchment paper. Then melt more chocolate, add liqueur, and dip the berries until they are all coated.

Then place the tray in the freezer for about 5 minutes to help the chocolate harden.

Once the chocolate is cool and hardened, melt the white chocolate chips. Use a fork to drizzle the white chocolate onto the strawberries. Feel free to use any combination of chips to create a variety of strawberries! Store berries in the fridge until ready to enjoy.

Serve with Besamim over ice or a glass of your favorite rosé! Happy Valentine’s Day!

– Julia

Tag: strawberry

Strawberry Rhubarb Gin Fizz with Rhubarb-Infused Gin

Valentine’s Day Chocolate Covered Strawberries