How to Make Strawberry Moonshine Julep

I like the period between spring and summer because I get to throw nice barbeques, invite my friends to see my whiskey still – I never get tired of showing them “my baby” - , but also because I can eat some of my favorite fruits: strawberries.

But, as you already noticed by now, I always try to find a way to both upgrade my ideas for the usage of my whiskey still, as well to use the fruits I like in order to create wonderful, memorable tastes.

Hence, I remembered I was browsing a while ago for various strawberries recipes – strawberry margarita is already known and it’s becoming quite old -, when I came across a recipe entitled, simply, strawberry moonshine julep. OK, this is the one for me! It does not only start with the name of my favorite fruits (strawberries), but it also contains the word moonshine in it.

So, I told myself I have to try this one instantly; which, I did. It was great, trust me! Which is why I decided to share it with all of you moonshine lovers like me.

First, what you will need (no worries, you do not need to do substantial grocery shopping):

•    strawberries (2, if really big, or 3-4, if smaller; and make sure they are ripe)

•    sugar (2 teaspoons should be enough, thou, if you like it less sugary, you can add 1-1 ½)

•    mint (fresh leaves - around 3 - are better than syrup, so just go ahead and get them right before you start making the recipe)

•    the best part: moonshine! (2 oz. is enough)

•    lemon juice (get it natural, squeeze the lemons yourself, as you only need ½ oz.)

•    some mint (separate from the ones you mix in the drink) to garnish the drink, as we all know a proper drink needs to be garnished

•    jars (the presentation should suit the drink and nothing says moonshine better than jars)

Now, once you get all these ingredients you simply have to mix them, something really easy to do. First, clean the strawberries really good for leaves and co., wash them and cut them into ¼-inch parts. Put them together with the sugar and mint leaves in a blender or cocktail shaker. Stir everything and leave it like this to rest until you notice the strawberries are soaked, but no more than 10 minutes. Now, pour the moonshine and lemon juice and some ice (it is a summer drink, after all). Make sure the shaker is full and then agitate the recipient as hard as you can for a couple of minutes. Then just put the drink thus obtained into jars; you can add some more ice if you want to. And do not forget about the mint garnishment.

Now, all you have to do is wait for your friends to come and proudly show them what you did (which is what I am going to do, now that I have tried the recipe and it was a total success). Enjoy your strawberry moonshine drink; and feel free to replace strawberries with other fruits, if you want to (I, for one, I am looking forward to try this recipe with raspberry, too)!

source: www.mademan.com

Posted by Jason Stone on May 09, 2013