happy hour friday at FORAGE: southern Pimm's cup

I only listen to Jack Johnson in the summer, Deathcab when it's raining, exclusively. I binge on Talenti gelato for dinner on those 90 degree evenings in July and stock up on hot chocolate in the cooler months. I can't put peppermint anything in anything unless December 25th is around the corner and the neon sneakers stay on the back shelf of my closet until I can wear them with a sundress. All this to say: I like celebrating a season with things I consider its most essence-y.

Enter the summery Pimm's Cup. I first had this throw-back British invasion drink last May, when I was visiting my girl LT in Portland, ME. It's refreshing, light and decidedly different - it's just as easy to mix up a pitcher of Pimm's as it is sangria but feels a bit more exotic (as anything British feels more exotic than Spanish, right?). I found a recipe for a "southern" version of a Pimm's Cup in InStyle magazine last summer and just tried it out last night. Purists will most assuredly balk at the extra ingredients (while researching, I stumbled upon a comment thread on a PC recipe on a mixology website and things got heated re: the right way to make a PC) but whatevs, this was great!

Ingredients:
(serves 4)
1 1/2 cups Pimm's liquer
1 cup lemonade
1 bottle ginger ale (I used Reeds)
1 small bunch fresh mint
4 strawberries, hulled and quartered
1 lemon, sliced thin
20 thin slices cucumber

Prep your mint, strawberries, lemon and cucumber.

Evenly distribute those ingredients in chilled pint glasses and gently muddle (I use the end of a wooden spoon)

Combine Pimm's, lemonade and ginger ale in a pitcher and stir.

Fill glasses with ice, pour and enjoy! I think you could just as easily combine all the ingredients in the pitcher ahead of time and just cut up extra cucumber, lemon and strawberry to add to the glasses when you're ready to serve. 

I made my friend Jacquie the guinea pig for this particular recipe - we sat outside on my front porch for hours, enjoying the warm evening air until the ice melted in our glasses. We had a third member of our party - my cat Stormy couldn't allow herself to not be privy to the conversations, as evidenced above - that little head got as close to the screen as she could manage.

Happy Memorial Day weekend to all our FORAGEers. We say thanks to all the men and women who have died protecting our country.

Cheers,

Megan