…without a sting in the cocktail

The gorgeous re-Vamp-ed Hopsack is as much a pleasure trove as a house of health: our saintly provisions have been flirting with the dark side, creating luscious liquids to reward Santa & Co. for stuffing themselves down the chimney!

Whiskey and carrots are banned, though. We know where they end up.

Instead, we’ve been playing with coconut water, green tea, fruity things, a veg or two, coconut milk, almonds and spices. Yum! And high-quality alcohol to limit the damage post-Bacchanal.

So, you can obey the angel and the devil on your shoulder … in moderation, of course.

**

The Night of the Iguana

Glass: Highball/Collins

Serves 1

  • 60mls golden rum*
  • 60-120mls coconut water, fresh or – much less risky – from The Hopsack (at least we won’t chop your fingers off!)
  • 2-3 ice cubes

Devil: Combine golden rum and coconut water in a highball glass. Add 2-3 ice cubes. Stir. Regale.

Angel: Coconut water is low in calories, rich in potassium and naturally isotonic. It is wonderful for rehydrating the body after exercise and boozing!

* The golden rum should be light-bodied and subtle, so as not to dominate the coconut water’s delicate flavour. Ask your Offie-Meister for advice.

**

The Elder Coco

Glass: Lowball

Serves 1

Devil: In a cocktail shaker, (((shake))) the St Germain, coconut water and ice until Arctic cold. Strain into a lowball filled with ice.

Angel: Hydration, hydration, hydration! Elderflower preparations are also used by herbalists for respiratory complaints and bruising, among other things.

**

Warm Spiced Sake from Clearspring

Vessel: Sake cups

Serves 4

  • 200mls Clearspring Shizengo or Tamaki sake
  • Zest of one orange
  • 5 cloves
  • 1/2 stick cinnamon
  • 1 tablespoon sultanas
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons Clearspring rice malt syrup

Devil: Put the ingredients in a pan and warm until just below simmering point, stirring a little to melt the rice syrup. Cover and leave to infuse for 2-3 minutes. Serve while still warm, making sure that each cup contains a few sexy sake-soaked sultanas.

Angel: Warming and comforting. For the manifold benefits of cinnamon and cloves, see here.

**

Green Tea and Sake Cocktail from Clearspring

Glass: Martini

Serves 4

  • 500mls chilled Sencha green tea
  • 500mls pomegranate juice
  • 4 shots Clearspring Shizengo or Tamaki sake
  • Juice of half a lemon
  • Ice

Devil: Pour the green tea, pomegranate juice and sake into a jug over ice. Stir. Pour into four glasses and add a little lemon juice to each.

Angel: The antioxidants in green tea and pomegranate juice help to offset the free radical damage wrought by alcohol, as does the vitamin C in lemon juice.

**

Mayumi’s Elixir of Life

Glass: Jam jar

  • Freshly picked elderberries
  • Vodka to cover

Angel (no devils here!): Fill a jam jar with fresh elderberries, packing them very tightly. Cover the berries with vodka, then close the lid. Leave to infuse for four weeks, giving the jar a good shake at least once a day (especially if the berries emerge above the vodka). When time is up, strain through a sieve (pressing the fruit to extract as much liquid as possible) and store the tincture in a sterilised brown glass jar. This is your tasty elderberry elixir. Add a dropperful or two to vodka or cocktails for a fruity punch!

Angel: Elderberry elixir is great for general immune support. If you mix some with honey, lemon, cloves and thyme to make a hot tonic, it is also good for the throat.

Arigatou, Mayumi-san 🙂

Kampai!

**

Cherry, Darling!

Glass: Lowball

Serves 1

  • 1 measure vodka
  • 30mls CherryActive Concentrate (liquid)
  • Spring water
  • Agave nectar (optional)
  • Ice

Devil: Pour vodka and CherryActive over ice. According to taste, add more CherryActive for a tart cherry flavour, spring water if it’s too strong, or a few drops of agave nectar if it’s too sour. Stir and swig!

Angel: CherryActive’s antioxidants reduce free radical damage, uric acid levels and joint swelling. CherryActive also contains naturally occurring melatonin to improve sleep.

**

Inspiration

I love cooking intuitively: a sip here, a spoonful there. If you have a juicer and/or a blender, why not experiment with your own creations? Freshly pressed juices (fruit and veg) make wonderful cocktails and mocktails. Fresh herbs and spices, such as basil, mint and ginger, add another dimension. Agave or rice syrup sweeten. Then there are fruit concentrates, flavoured coconut waters, microherbs, coconut cream and other delights to take your potions to the stratosphere! G’wan, give it a go. And when you hit gold, you know where we are…! 😉

**

Matrioshka Eggnog (vegan) from the Post-Punk Kitchen

Serves 4 or more

A few tips to make sure it’s a good egg (nog):

Buy some cheap American cup and spoon measurements to keep quantities accurate.

Ensure your avocado is perfectly ripe but not overripe. A good avo will yield to thumb pressure but still put up a fight; an overripe fruit will be squidgy soft beneath the skin and may be blighted by dark patches, indicating a bad egg. So no softies. And nothing with a black heart.

Keep all your ingredients COLD. This is vital. If your ingredients are warm the texture and flavour will be off, even if you chill the drink later.

Avocado doesn’t keep well, so make this recipe as close to serving time as possible.

  • 1 ripe avocado
  • 1 13oz can coconut milk (equivalent to 384.46mls, just to be awkward)
  • 3 cups almond milk
  • 1/2 cup agave nectar
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
  • 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract (such as Nielsen-Massey)
  • 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg (freshly grated if possible)
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • Tiny pinch ground cloves (less than 1/8th teaspoon)
  • Rum to taste (start with 1/3 cup and go from there…!)
  • Cinnamon sticks to garnish (optional)

Devil: Pour the coconut milk into a container. Place the coconut milk and avocado in the freezer for 45 minutes. They should not be frozen but they should be extremely cold (a little iciness on the coconut milk is OK).

Slice the avocado in half. Remove the pit. Scoop out the flesh with a spoon and put it in a blender. Add the other ingredients. Blend until smooth. Pour into smallish glasses (a little goes a long way!). Sprinkle some extra nutmeg on top and garnish with a cinnamon stick.

Angel: This creamy, comforting drink is full of good fats from avocado, almond and coconut for brain, skin and hormone health. Lemon juice provides immune-boosting vitamin C. See here for more on the health-giving properties of cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves.

Note: You can make this for non-drinkers by replacing the rum with extra almond milk.

**

And finally…

The Morning After aka The Virgin Mary (my brain is too addled to work out why that sounds so wrong)

Glass: Tumbler, chipped mug, sticky Martini glass, or similar

Serves 1 person in need

This is a Bloody Mary sans vodka, made with freshly pressed juices – preferably organic from The Hopsack‘s sooperdooper new produce section, as you probably don’t need any more toxins in your body right now! 😉

2 ripe tomatoes
2 carrots (uh oh!)
1/2 beetroot
1 stalk celery
1 cucumber

Angel: Juice everything, or [insert verb] someone to do it for you. Sip slowly. This babe is an isotonic, energising, antioxidant repair shop for the hungover soul.

Only a few sleeps til Santa now. Don’t forget to mix him a drink. He’ll need one!

And … lalala … “We Wish You A Merry Christmas And A Happy New Year!”

 

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