Say it isn’t so! Just because it’s almost September summer doesn’t need to end, right? Besides, the fig tree is just coming into its fruit in late August/early September. What a better excuse do we need to lengthen our summer than sip a delicious cocktail on the back porch. Kick-off your shoes and enjoy. Dinner can wait another 20 minutes.
I love a cocktail with the word “smash” in it (not just because I am great at breaking things), but also because it usually is a cue that the cocktail is a “chef-style” cocktail: one that makes use of fresh ingredients in the kitchen as well as booze from the liquor cabinet. It is going to be a fresh (and refreshing!) cocktail, and our Fig smash does just that, even though we’re not technically smashing anything (our kitchen blender does the work for us.)
First, we make a simple syrup with brown sugar and rosemary (because I’ve never met a fig who hasn’t loved either one of those things.) I love infusing flavors into simple syrups…just sugar and water seems so, well simple, and I prefer to infuse a little flavor: be it a kick from chili pepper, florals from lavender flowers or in this case, fresh rosemary sprigs.
Add this to the blender with 4 fresh figs, and you’ve got the base of this cocktail. Then, the booze choice is up to you, really โ rum plays nicely, as does bourbon, and who doesn’t love gin?
Having a nice cocktail shaker is crucial since you want to shake, shake, shake the drink with plenty of ice so that it’s super cold. A strainer is important for this cocktail, too. And of course, we love to use a big “king cube” in each drink, so that the ice melts slowly.
Cheers to you, and to summer!
Make the "not-so-simple" syrup by heating the sugar, water and rosemary until the sugar has dissolved and the rosemary is fragrant. Strain, and add to the blender with the figs. Blend with a few pulses. Use a Boston shaker to add the cocktail ingredients, taste, and adjust as necessary. Shake vigorously with plenty of ice and strain into 2 cocktail glasses. Garnish with fig slices or half of a small fig.
Ingredients
For the "smash":
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup water
1 few sprigs of rosemary
4 figs, sliced in half, plus 1 more for garnishing the drinksFor the Cocktails:
6 ounces booze of your choice (rum, bourbon, gin, tequila all work, so pick your fave!)
juice of 1 lemon
2 - 4 ounces of the "smash", depending on your tastebudsInstructions
2 comments
Wow! This cocktail is brilliant! What a perfect send off to summer.
You gonna make it? They’ll love you at the hollywood bowl! (I make a batch in a Mason Jar and throw in a little cinnamon. Don’t tell anybody!)