Having leftover cranberries from Thanksgiving, Jim and I
made two bottles of Cranberry Lime Infused Vodka to become Christmas gifts for
our siblings, along with the bottles of Raspberry Lime Infused Vodka we also
made. Jim asked “what would someone use
Cranberry Lime Infused Vodka for?” – Ummmmm… COSMOS!!!
In my last entry for the Raspberry Lime Infused Vodka I said
I loved martinis. Why do I love
martinis? I blame my old friend
Sherrill. We had worked together for
years, and back in the day, we had a team off-site in Armonk, New York,
where we would get together after a day’s worth of meetings at the bar for some
drinks. I had never had a cosmopolitan
before, until Sherrill suggested I have one.
By the end of the night, I had had three, not to mention having polished
off Sherrill’s last one. So I blame her
for making me love them (I blame her for a lot more, but that’s a whole other
story)! I MISS YOU SHERRILL!
January 2013 Update: So cranberries seem to be out of season now and no one has them, yet I want this for myself! Just made a batch using one whole bag of Dole frozen cranberries that I bought at Wegmans (still hard to find), the rind from 3 limes, and 2 Tbsp. of sugar. I'll be back in two weeks to let you know how it turned out.
- Cranberries
- Shaved rinds of lime, about 1-3 limes
- 1 ½-2 Tbsp. sugar
- Vodka
(I used Three Olives)
DIRECTIONS
- Wash cranberries and strain dry.
- Poke small wholes or make a couple slits with a knife in each cranberry.
(This is time consuming, but it'll help infuse the flavor of the cranberry into the vodka. I used a lobster pick, and despite accidentally pricking my finger a few times, seeing the vodka turn a cranberry color after only a day makes me think this was well worth it)
- Place a layer of cranberries, a couple inches tall, in a
non-reactive container, followed by a thin layer of the shaved rinds of lime.
(I used a clear glass bottle with a stopper that I found at Ikea)
- Using a funnel, add about 1 ½ Tbsp. of sugar.
(The original recipe called for “less than 2 Tbsp. of sugar). Since we won’t get to taste this for 2 weeks
to 2 months, I can’t say just yet if we used the right amount… stay tuned!)
- Repeat cranberries and lime rinds until you reach the neck of
the bottle.
- Using the funnel again, pour enough vodka to reach the neck
of the bottle, ensuring that all of the fruit is covered.
- Close container and shake.
- Store in a cool, dark place until ready to use – 2 weeks to
2 months (the longer you leave it, the sweeter the end result will be).
- Shake every day or two until the sugar is dissolved.
Adapted from Fancy Napkin blog
Martinis are my thing – I love ‘em. I had been thinking of trying to infuse vodka
and went surfing around on Pinterest; at the same time, my friend Lora had
mentioned making a fabulous raspberry martini.
I thought it would be cool to try to make Raspberry Lime Infused Vodka,
kind of along the lines of a Raspberry Lime Rickey, but with vodka. Sounded scrumptious. Jim and I made two bottles to give as gifts
to our siblings for Christmas. I think
in about 1 to 3 months time, we are going to have to go visit whichever brother
or sister gets this and have a drink!
- 1 large container of fresh raspberries
- Shaved rinds of lime, about 1-2 limes
- ½ cup sugar
- Vodka
(I used Three Olives)
DIRECTIONS
- Wash raspberries and pat dry.
- Place a layer of raspberries, a couple inches tall, in a
non-reactive container, followed by a thin layer of the shaved rinds of lime.
(I used a clear glass bottle with a stopper that I found at Ikea)
- Using a funnel, add about ½ cup of sugar.
(The original recipe called for 1 ¾ cups of sugar, which seemed like an extreme
amount of sugar. Since we won’t get to
taste this for 1-3 months, I can’t say just yet if we made the right decision
to cut the amount of sugar)
- Repeat raspberries and lime rinds until you reach the neck of
the bottle.
- Using the funnel again, pour enough vodka to reach the neck
of the bottle, ensuring that all of the fruit is covered.
- Close container and shake.
- Store in a cool, dark place until ready to use – 1-3 months.
- Shake every day until the sugar is dissolved.
Adapted from Martha Stewart’s Weddings website
This is a great idea that I have used as Christmas gifts several times. It's easy to make up a bunch of these at one time, and they are THE MOST decadent, rich, and delicious brownies you will ever have.
Put in 1 mason jar, in order:
- ½ cup flour, plus 2 Tbsp. flour
½ tsp. salt
½ cup cocoa
½ cup flour
2/3 cup brown sugar
2/3 cup white sugar
½ cup chocolate chips
½ cup butterscotch chips
Type up the below with the wet ingredients, baking instructions, and frosting recipe. I used green paper to print out and make the card and cut it into a Christmas tree shape, tying it to the lid with a string of raffia.I got a piece of holiday fabric, cut it with craft scissors, and tied it with the card and the raffia.
When ready to bake add:
- 1 tsp. vanilla
- ½ cup oil
- 3 eggs beaten
- Pour into greased 9x11” pan
- Bake 20 minutes at 350 degrees
- Cool and frost
Chocolate Frosting:
- ¼ cup butter
- 1 cup sugar
- ¼ cup milk
- ½ cup chocolate chips
- 1 bag large marshmallows
Cook butter, sugar, and milk on stove top just until boiling
Add chocolate chips and large marshmallows
Mix until gloss wears off
