Hey friends! I’m so delighted to share this mid-week sippable Summer celebration with you all! Two of my best food blogger buds, Sherrie and Renee, have organized the most awesome virtual boozy bash of the season! Over 35(!) bloggers are sharing refreshingly original sips, swigs and slurps! This basically means that from now until Fall you can raise your glass every night and toast to Summer with a delicious drink in your hand. I’ll be cheersing you from my front porch with this negroni! I must say though that fancy cocktails like this were never really my thing. I prefer wine and it was beer before that, and ok… maybe a couple redheaded sluts in college. But the classic negroni is in a category all by itself. It’s a simple but exquisite drink formula that perfectly blends the bitter, sweet and botanical in a 1:1:1 ratio of campari, sweet vermouth and gin. I tweaked the original version a bit by subbing prosecco for the gin for a lighter, more bubbly experience and added muddled strawberries and basil syrup because we’re celebrating summer here! Make sure to follow along on social media with #drinkthesummer for tons of refreshing drink recipes and inspiration! Cheers!
Ingredients for the Negroni (serves 2)
3 ounces (2 shot glasses) of sweet vermouth
3 ounces (2 shot glasses) of campari
4 strawberries, muddled
1/2 teaspoon pink pepper corn, crushed
2 tablespoons basil syrup (recipe below)
top off drinks with chilled prosecco
Directions
Crush the peppercorns and place them into a tall glass. Add the strawberries and muddle them. Next add all the ingredients except the prosecco and muddle, stir, mix it all up. Pour the mixture into two glasses using a fine mesh strainer. Add an ice cube. Top with prosecco and garnish with a strawberry.
Ingredients for the Basil Syrup
1/2 cup of water
1/2 cup of sugar
5 sprigs of basil
Directions
Bring the ingredients above to a boil, let simmer for 5 minutes, then cool completely.
Notes
Recipe inspired by these strawberry, basil and pink peppercorn muffins I made a while back.
If you would like to learn more about the history of the negroni, plus discover 60 recipe variations, check-out the book: The Negroni: Drinking to La Dolce Vita, with Recipes & Lore I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
P.S. Shout out to Mark for carving me a muddler from a stick he found in the backyard. I love him.
#drinkthesummer | recipes + links:
Will Frolic for Food | The Sugar Hollow: Watermelon Gin Cocktail with Cardamom and Lime
With Food + Love | Fresh Heirloom Bloody Marys with Old Bay + Spicy Pickles
Kale & Caramel | Sweet Coconut, Hibiscus & Lime Slushie
Hummingbird High | Thyme Lemonade
Brooklyn Supper | Bloody Maria Cocktails
Cake Over Steak | Blackberry Bourbon Cocktail
Loves Food, Loves to Eat | Coconut Nectarine White Wine Spritzers
Dunk & Crumble | Ginger Peach Whiskey Smash
Tasty Yummies | When Figs Fly // Spiced Rum Fig Kombucha Cocktail
Feed Me Phoebe | Pimm’s Cup Cocktail with Fresh Ginger, Lime and Tarragon
Ginger & Toasted Sesame | Blackberry Peach Margarita with Spicy Salt
O&O Eats | The Long Hope: a Honeydew Cucumber Gin Cocktail
my name is yeh | nutella egg cream
Faring Well | Sparkling Melon Coolers w/ Muddled Raspberries + Mint
Beard and Bonnet | Pineapple and Cilantro Moscow Mule
The Pancake Princess | Strawberry Balsamic Shrubs
Edible Perspective | Rosé Slushies
Vegetarian ‘Ventures | Sparkling Peppered Plum Blush
The Broken Bread | Blackberry, Cucumber & Mint Gin Spritzer
Tending the Table | Plum Spritzer with Ginger and Kafir Lime
Appeasing a Food Geek | Sugar Plum Margarita
She Eats | Fizzy Lime & Blackberry Shrub
Vigor and Sage | Peachy Tomato Basil Gin + Tonic
The Pig & Quill | Rasberry Basil Gingerade Fizz
Hungry Girl por Vida | Peanut Butter & Berry Smoothie
A Brown Table | Fig and Bourbon Summer Smash
The Clever Carrot | 5 Minute White Peach Margaritas
Cookie and Kate | Watermelon White Sangria
le jus d’orange | Peach Yogurt Soju + Ginger Plum Kombucha Cocktail
Chocolate + Marrow | Raspberry Thyme Smash
The Bojon Gourmet | Basil Pluot Pimm’s Cup
Snixy Kitchen | Sparkling Asian Pear and Mint Iced Tea
what’s cooking good looking | Watermelon Basil Colada
Fix Feast Flair | Berry Peachy Kentucky Mules
I Am a Food Blog | Thyme Gin and Tonics
holly & flora | pimm’s cup with blackberry + lemon zest shrub
Salt & Wind | Watermelon Aperol Spritzes
Oh wow, I would NEVER have thought of including pink peppercorn with strawberry + basil, and in a cocktail too! But it sounds AMAZING. A bit of bite into a sweet drink – yum, it sounds really intriguing. Gorgeous photos (and the gif!)
This is seriously gorgeous!
OMG – the redheaded sluts… Boy does that bring back memories (haha). Totally intrigued by the flavors in this gorgeous drink you have for us here, Grace! Peppercorn?! Love it. Also love how you mentioned being able to count down the rest of the days of summer with how many different drink recipes we have today! That is so rad! Cheers girl – xo
What a fun twist on the classic!
Ooh ooh ooh these colors! Totally drooling just looking at the photos. Yes please re: all.
Negronis are my all-time favorite cocktail, but I think you’re giving the classic a run for it’s money with this one! Peppercorn and strawberries and basil, PLUS Campari? You must be reading my diary or something. Also, these photos are almost too gorgeous– and that gif is on point. I’m so excited to make one of these! xo
These DO sound so light and bubbly and summery, Grace! And that color — hai berries, you so prettay. One day I’m confident we’ll clink glasses in real life, but until then: virtual cheers to dranks every night until Fall! <3
What a winning combination! Beautiful photos and one helluva drink xoxo
Oh yes. Oh oh oh oh oh yes. There’s something sinfully delicious about strawberries and prosecco. Or negroni. Or gin. Or anything else you put strawbs with. So good.
PS. I think I should come over to hang out on your front porch – you bring your cocktail, I’ll bring my blackberry shrub – and we can reminisce about those redheaded sluts we had in college 😉
Happy #DrinkTheSummer day!
Love love love basil, strawberry, and pink peppercorns together in a drink! Especially a negroni! And it’s so pretty 🙂 Happy #drinkthesummer !
So pretty! I love the addition of strawberry and basil.
Oh this sounds so good! Happy #drinkthesummer party – what a fun roundup we’ve created here! Soooo many tasty beverages. 😀
LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE this Grace! This post, these flavors, pure gold! Thanks for hanging with us sweet girl, xx.