Cocktail Creations & Party Food

Happy bank holiday weekend everyone!

This latest post is somewhat inspired by my good friend Miss Penn’s recent birthday bash, where some very creative cocktails where enjoyed at The London Cocktail Club’s Goodge Street venue. Before I get on to that though I did promise to reference how good the pre-party food was. I am a firm believer that if you’re going to throw a party, there must be a good food offering too – crisps in a bowl doesn’t cut it! It’s just good manners and basic biology if you ask me. If alcohol is to be consumed over a long period of time, there must be sufficient food first. So to show you how it’s done here’s a picture of the spread at Miss Penn’s recent joint birthday soiree.

 

So with stomachs suitably filled with food, it was on to the cocktail portion of the evening. I sadly only stayed for one delicious drink (needed to be back down south again), but here’s a selection of the fabulous drinks we enjoyed.

Feeling inspired and with my sister’s birthday just around the corner, I got out my cocktail shaker and got to work on some cocktail creations of my own. The party was Mexican food themed and it was a hot summer’s evening so it called something fruit filled and zesty. In the end I settled on a long drink, which had took its base recipe from a good old fashion Cosmo, with a few added extras. I’m calling it a ‘Summer Cosmo’

It was delicious and enjoyed by all! I was frequently back and forth with the cocktail shaker whipping up fresh batches. If you’d like to try my Summer Cosmo too, the ingredients are as follows…

• Absolut Citron Vodka (if you’ve only got normal vodka, just add lots of fresh squeezed lemon juice to the mix)
• Juice of x2 limes
• Cranberry & Raspberry Juice
• Sanguinello (blood orange) Juice
• Fresh squeezed orange juice
• Crushed ice and chopped orange, lime, lemon and strawberries for the finishing touches

The ratio can be varied depending on the strength, I went for the Sanguinello and Cranberry as the strongest juice elements to give a red summery colour.

Enjoy – happy bank holiday drinking!