TOM COLLINS RECIPES DILL PICKLE MARTINI

WITH WINE, BEER AND SPIRIT PAIRINGS BY THE LCBO’S CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT GROUP.

Inside Scoop from page 19

The popularity of this beloved highball goes back almost 200 years. The name, in fact, stems from John Collins, the headwaiter at Limmer’s Old House in London, England, where gin punch, the original soda-free Collins, was popularized in the early 19th century. It has spawned a whole family tree of variations, a few of which we’ve provided below.

2 oz London dry gin

1 oz strained fresh lemon juice

3/4 oz Simple Syrup (recipe follows)

3 oz club soda, chilled

Half orange wheel and brandied cherry

on a cocktail pin to garnish

1. Pour gin, lemon juice and simple syrup into a cocktail shaker. Add 3 ice cubes. Shake for 5 seconds. Strain into a chilled highball glass filled with ice. Top with club soda. Lightly stir. Garnish with orange wheel and cherry.

Makes 1 drink

SIMPLE SYRUP

Bring 1 cup (250 mL) water to a boil and stir in 1 cup (250 mL) sugar until dissolved. Pour into jar and let cool. If storing, cover and refrigerate for up to 1 month.

Makes 1 1/2 cups (375 mL)

VARIATIONS

BOBBY COLLINS

Substitute a blended Scotch for gin, and Honey Syrup (recipe follows) for Simple Syrup. Garnish with a lemon wheel.

JUAN COLLINS

Substitute blanco tequila for gin, lime juice for lemon, and 1/2 oz agave syrup for the Simple Syrup. Garnish with a lime wheel.

PINKIE COLLINS

Substitute white rum for gin, lime juice for lemon, and Grenadine (recipe follows) for Simple Syrup. Garnish with a mint sprig.

HONEY SYRUP

Diluting honey with water makes it much easier to mix into drinks. It’s a great sweetener for Old Fashioneds made with Scotch or Irish whiskey, and it’s excellent in iced tea. Note: Don’t use buckwheat honey; its flavour is too robust for cocktail syrup.

1/2 cup (125 mL) wildflower honey 1/4 cup (60 mL) warm water

1. In a small mixing bowl, whisk honey and water until combined. Transfer to a glass jar with a lid. Refrigerate up to 1 month.

Makes 3/4 cup (175 mL)

GRENADINE

Grenadine can also be used to sweeten herbal iced tea and lemonade, or mix it with sparkling water and a splash of lime juice for homemade pomegranate soda.

1/2 cup (125 mL) pomegranate juice 1/2 cup (125 mL) sugar

1. Combine pomegranate juice and sugar in a small saucepan. Place over medium heat. Whisk gently until sugar dissolves. (Do not let it come to a boil.) Remove from heat and cool completely.

2. Transfer to a glass jar with a lid. Refrigerate up to 1 month.

Makes 3/4 cup (175 mL)

The Dirty Martini reaches new heights with a splash of pickle brine instead of olive. It still delivers the bracingly cold Martini experience, but with a hint of dill and a savoury finish. We like President’s Choice brand pickles for this drink; just avoid fermented kosher-style pickles, as the brine is too strong.

2 oz vodka

3/4 oz dry vermouth

1/4 oz strained no-garlic baby dill pickle brine Thin slice baby dill pickle on a cocktail pin

to garnish

1. Place vodka, vermouth and brine in a mixing glass or cocktail shaker. Fill halfway with ice. Stir until ice cold, about 25 seconds. Strain into a chilled martini or cocktail glass. Garnish with pickle.

Makes 1 drink

EDIBLE FLOWER ICE CUBES

To make this gorgeous ice, you just need edible flowers and distilled water. Edible flowers include dandelions, lilacs, mums, nasturtiums, violets, pansies and orchids. Most gourmet shops will carry them, though it’s far more economical to grow them yourself. You could also use small herb sprigs or leaves. Distilled water, which you can find at Shoppers Drug Mart and Loblaws under the PC brand, will make clearer ice than tap water, which has minerals and impurities that cloud ice.

First, bring distilled water to a boil and let it cool to room temperature. Trim any stems from the flowers and gently wash them. Lay out ice cube trays of various sizes, if you have them. Silicone trays are preferable—the cubes are far less likely to break when you pop them out. Fill as many moulds as you need just a hair more than halfway with the prepared water. Place the flowers in, bloom side up, and poke down with a skewer. (It’s fine if they float back up.) Place trays in the freezer so they lay perfectly flat. Freeze until solid, which can take anywhere from 4 to 12 hours. Top up the cubes with more of the prepared water until almost full and return to freezer. When solid, carefully pop them out and transfer to freezer bags. Cubes will keep in the freezer up to 1 month.