‘Summer Sixteen’ strawberry ginger coconut cooler for a hot afternoon

The heat wave has pulled up and parked its car. I’m determined to spend balmy evenings far away from social media news feeds. During the final days of this third quarter, I’ll be patting my brow and imbibing.

This strawberry cocktail is all about freshness. If you can, use homemade coconut milk and the best fruit around. It’s fine to use high-quality tequila to replace the mezcal.

More:How to crack open a coconut and make your own darn milk

Strawberry “Summer Sixteen” cocktail recipe

Prep time: 5 minutes

Ingredients:

• 2 ounces mezcal
• 1 ounce fresh coconut milk
• 1 ounce simple syrup (see recipe below)
• 1 ounce fresh lime juice
• 1 tablespoon fresh grated ginger
• 2 whole fresh strawberries
• Ice

Directions:

1. Place 2 coupe glasses in the freezer to chill.
2. In a Boston shaker, combine the mezcal, milk, syrup and lime juice.
3. Grate a tablespoon of fresh ginger, and add it to the Boston shaker.
4. Cut the greenery off 2 fresh strawberries, and cut the berries in half. Set aside 1 of each half for garnish, and place the others in the Boston shaker.
5. Add a few ice cubes.
6. Happily and vigorously shake.
7. Remove the glasses from the freezer. Using a cocktail strainer, pour into the glasses.

Simple syrup recipe

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 cup water

Directions:

1. To a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, add the sugar and water. The sugar will dissolve in about 5 minutes.
2. Turn off the heat, cover, and let cool.
3. Transfer to an airtight container, and place in the fridge (will last several weeks).

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