Sweeping generalisation but most girls love cocktails; now I know there are many men who can sup even the pinkest drink adorned with the biggest umbrella and I applaud them wholeheartedly; however most of my attempts to make homemade cocktails have been with my girl friends. (Occasionally D and I will make noises about making them at home but we rarely get beyond gin and tonic or bourbon and coke). Anyway, this post is to sing praises of spending time with your friends, male and female. It’s so easy to neglect yourself and not spend quality time with your friends when your free time is limited. Your friends are the ones who are there through the highs and lows, the breakups, the weddings and that time you had one too many on your Christmas night out and threw up on your shoes.

Anyway, my friend KL the great organiser has kindly provided me with the cocktail recipes we used when we attended a cocktail night at her flat. I must admit now I was horrendously lazy with my efforts, but I feel I made up for that in enthusiasm.

First up was DC’s efforts; the milky way martini (serves 4-5)

 

240ml vanilla vodka

240ml ounces chocolate liqueur

120ml ounces Irish Cream

Curly wurly chocolate (to garnish)

Grated chocolate (to garnish)

Ice

Ice your cocktail shaker until cool. Remove the ice and then combine the liquid ingredients in the shaker and shake. Split this between the martini glasses, then garnish with the chocolatey treatsas desired. (Don’t forget these are pretty strong so don’t drink them too quickly).

 

Next was KL’s winning efforts, the Bellini

To make as many as you fancy you will need

Peach puree

Prosecco

Raspberry (to garnish)

Pour a small amount of peach puree into the bottom of a fluted glass. Then top with prosecco (pour it over a spoon to get a layered look. Garnish with a raspberry.

Miss S made her version of a daiquiri, since she mostly winged it this recipe is purely from Google, but you get the idea (I scaled this BBC Good Food one up to serve 4)

16 fresh strawberries plus ½ strawberry per serving to garnish

8 tsp white sugar

140ml white rum

4 tbsp strawberry liqueur

100ml lime juice

Place the strawberries, sugar, rum, strawberry liqueur and lime juice into the base of a cocktail shaker and mash (muddle) with the end of a clean rolling pin.

Place the lid onto the cocktail shaker and shake well.

Strain the mixture into a Martini glass and garnish with half a strawberry.

 

Mini (my younger namesake) made mojitos

Serves

4 limes, cut into wedges

fresh mint leaves

6 tsp sugar

Crushed ice

260ml white rum

soda water (add to taste)

Split the limes, mint and sugar between 4 sturdy glasses and mash with the end of something blunt, to bruise the mint and release the lime juice.

Add the ice and pour over the rum.

Add soda water to taste and stir well. Garnish with a mint sprig and serve.

 

And finally my offering “the Prosecco sloth” for the lazy cocktail connoisseur

Makes as many of these as you have ice lollies.

You will need

Prosecco

Skinny ice lollies (eg. ice pops)

Place the ice lollies into fluted glasses. Pour over the prosecco and allow the ice lollies to cool the drinks.

 

After all that Friday night boozing we had to take a silly selfie (Miss S is the queen of this at this, but at least we all got our faces in!)