As a child, every special occasion called for a Shirley Temple. As a grown-up, that same hurt-your-teeth, sweet drink should be replaced with the Dirty Shirley, a grown-up version of the Shirley Temple cocktail. I think you’re going to love its refreshing and delicious vibe.

The 1930’s were packed with parties for the child star actress, Shirley Temple Black. It’s rumored she often complained about being surrounded by adults who were enjoying cocktails that she herself could not enjoy. A quick-thinking bartender from the famous Chasen’s Bar in Beverly Hills whipped up the famous namesake Shirley Temple drink in her honor.

Later in life, Temple admitted she did not like the drink because it was so sweet. I have to admit as a kid, the reason I loved the drink was because it was so sweet! As grown-up the Dirty Shirley is definitely where it’s at. As far as I’m concerned the Dirty Shirley ranks right up there with my lemon drop martini and cosmopolitan cocktail recipe. Try them all and decide for yourself.

Looking For More Cocktail Recipes? 

• Hemingway Daiquiri ~ perfect for book club
• Icy Hibiscus Margarita
• The Best Bloody Mary Ever

What Does Dirty Shirley Mean

The dirty Shirley is a cocktail version of the famed Shirley Temple mocktail we all enjoyed as kids. So many people ask if there is a male version of the Shirley Temple. Yes there is! It’s the Roy Rogers. A Roy Roger’s drink is also non-alcoholic made with coke and grenadine syrup. I don’t think I’ve ever had one. Have you? It also sounds sickeningly sweet!

When you add alcohol to a previously known non-alcoholic drink, it makes it “dirty”.

What Flavor Is Grenadine

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It is not cherry! I thought grenadine was this neon-cherry flavored syrup. Nope! Grenadine is actually a sweet-tart syrup made with pomegranate juice and loads of sugar. It is also non-alcoholic.

All grenadine is not created equal. Now, if you’re making a kid’s Shirley Temple, use Rose’s brand or this one that we can all find at the grocery store. Your kid’s will not like the high-quality grenadine used in cocktails. Trust me, they want the yucky sweet stuff.

Here are some grenadine brands I recommend for a grown-up cocktail. They do cost a little more and can be a little harder to find. But it’s worth the effort. B.G. Reynolds’ Hibiscus Grenadine and Small Hands Food Grenadine are two of my favorites.

Ingredients

• Top shelf vodka
• fresh lime juice
• grenadine syrup
• ginger beer
• maraschino cherries or brandy soaked cherries

Don’t be the bartender who garnishes their drinks with only one cherry. As a kid it was always such a bummer to get my Shirley Temple and the stingy bartender had only added  one cherry . Be generous!

How To Make One

• Add all listed ingredients in a cocktail shaker, except the ginger beer.
• Add large ice and shake vigorously. Add ginger beer and stir or roll the cocktail shaker. You do not want to shake the ginger beer since it is carbonated. At this point I like to taste the cocktail for balance.
• If it’s too sweet I add more lime to taste. Strain the drink over ice and garnish with lime wedges and lots of cherries.

MORE MARASCHINO CHERRY RECIPES

• Maraschino Cherry Ice Cream
• Soft Baked Maraschino Cherry-Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Cherry Tassies

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Dirty Shirley: Adult Shirley Temple

The Dirty Shirley is a grown-up version of the famous Shirley Temple cocktail. This Dirty Shirley cocktail pays homage to the child star known to complain that her namesake drink was too sweet. 

Course Drinks

Cuisine American

Keyword Adult Shirley Temple, Dirty Shirley, Dirty Shirley Drink, Dirty Shirley Temple, What's a Shirley Temple

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 5 minutes minutes

Total Time 10 minutes minutes

Servings 1 glass

Calories 226kcal

Author Cathy Pollak

Ingredients

Dirty Shirley:

• 2.5 oz top shelf vodka such as Tito's
• 1 oz fresh lime juice
• 0.25 oz grenadine syrup
• 3 oz ginger beer
• Garnish with lime, maraschino cherries or brandy-soaked cherries

Instructions

Dirty Shirley:

• Place all ingredients (except ginger beer) into a cocktail shaker and add large ice. Shake cocktail shaker vigorously. Add ginger beer and roll the cocktail shaker once. Taste for balance, adding more lime if you prefer. 
  2.5 oz top shelf vodka such as Tito's, 1 oz fresh lime juice, 0.25 oz grenadine syrup, 3 oz ginger beer
• Strain over fresh ice. Garnish with, maraschino cherries or brandy-soaked cherries for a more adult taste.
  Garnish with lime, maraschino cherries or brandy-soaked cherries

Notes

Nutrition information is only an estimation and variation will occur based on the ingredients/brands you use. 

Nutrition

Serving: 1glass | Calories: 226kcal | Carbohydrates: 37.8g | Protein: 0.2g | Fat: 8.8g | Sodium: 4.2mg | Potassium: 29mg | Fiber: 0.8g | Sugar: 15.4g | Vitamin C: 3.1mg

As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.

The post Dirty Shirley: Adult Shirley Temple Cocktail appeared first on Noble Pig.

Cosmo Recipe

It might seem a little cocky of me to call this the World’s Best Cosmopolitan Cocktail, but you’re going to have to trust me on this one. Or make it yourself to confirm this is the best cosmo recipe. It’s so refreshing, you just might never drink a different cocktail again.

Related: Dirty Shirley ~ The New York Times Drink of Summer!

I have been messing with this cosmopolitan recipe for years. Sure, there are the classic ingredients when it comes to a signature cosmo, but when it comes to making cocktails, it’s all about concentrating on the details. Little things matter.

The only problem with being able to make a great cosmopolitan cocktail at home, is how disappointing they taste when you’re out at a bar; they are too sweet, too little alcohol or too sharp tasting. Obviously the better bars and restaurants have better bartenders, but man do they hold back on that alcohol, even for you eighteen dollar drink.

One of the easiest ways to make your cocktails taste great is by using top shelf alcohol. There is a huge difference between a bottle of five dollar vodka and forty dollar vodka. And the five dollar vodka will leave you not feeling the greatest.

Your vodka for a cosmopolitan must be a citron version, unflavored vodka will not cut it. Also, stop using triple sec in a cosmopolitan recipe, it has such a sharp taste. Upgrade your bar cabinet with Cointreau and you will never use anything else in your drinks. I even use Cointreau in my mojito and my Hemingway Daiquiri because it makes the drink so FABULOUS! Cointreau is smooth and magical, with a lovely orange nuance.

Cosmopolitan Drink

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Fresh limes are a key ingredient in the list of cosmopolitan cocktail ingredients and one thing I cannot live without in my kitchen is my citrus press. It squeezes your lemons and limes to almost dry. It’s not even possible to get as much juice out when you squeeze with your hands. Even the driest lime will yields lots of juice with this press. And this tool lasts for years and years.

Cosmopolitan Drink Garnish

A small drink garnish in your cocktail is a nice detail to any drink. With a cosmopolitan I always add an orange peel. This particular zester makes large peels or thin zest, without going into the fruit’s pith.

The orange also leaves a bit of a scent that is picked up by the nose while drinking. It’s a must!

A cosmopolitan cocktail needs to be icy cold. And while this drink is shaken vigorously in ice, it benefits from an icy finish in the glass and you don’t want to add regular sized ice cubes.

This is where a high performance blender comes in and the reason they are pricey. You can crush ice to snow cone consistency in 10 seconds.

The crushed ice is then added to a Ziploc freezer bag and kept in my freezer to scoop out when making cocktails. The ice will stick together, but it breaks up easily.

The blender is worth it and it’s ice-crushing abilities undoubtedly make a difference in this drink.

In a pinch, you can smash some ice with a meat mallet in a Ziploc bag. It won’t be the same as finely pulverized ice, but you can get by.

How gorgeous is this cocktail? And even though it’s girly pink, the drink itself has a decent amount of alcohol, so even the men love this one.

Normally guys would never order a cosmo in a bar, since it’s often pretty weak, but all the males ask for this one all the time when visiting my home.

However, this refreshing drink still remains a favorite cocktail at my house.

If you’re have a gender reveal party or a baby shower, this drink couldn’t be more perfect.

Serve this cosmopolitan alongside this blue drink if appropriate for the perfect girl-boy combo.

This cosmopolitan is also a welcome beverage at bridal showers, graduation and birthday celebrations.

After you shake the drink vigorously in a shaker, scoop in the tiny ice for the perfect ending touch.

It’s little things, like the addition of crushed ice, that make this cocktail one of the best.

How many of you started drinking cosmopolitan’s after watching that famous New York based drama with Carrie Bradshaw?

I miss that show, but at least we have the drinks.

The perfect girl’s night is reruns of the show and big batch of these cosmopolitans’.

I feel a girl’s night coming on?

Cheers everyone…let me know when you make this.

So many cocktails, so little time. This Blue Hawaii Cocktail has me dreaming of the islands. And who doesn’t need a Peach Margarita right about now? However, this Blueberry Margarita has me craving spring and blueberry season. And give this perfect Negroni recipe a try soon, it’s my favorite, as well as this lemon drop martini.

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World's Best Cosmopolitan Cocktail

Why would you want to drink anything other than the World’s Best Cosmopolitan Cocktail? The only thing girly about this drink is its color.

Course Drinks

Cuisine American

Keyword Best Cosmopolitan Recipe, Cosmo Recipe, Cosmopolitan Cocktail Ingredients, Cosmopolitan Drink, Cosmopolitan Recipe, World's Best Cosmopolitan Cocktail

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Total Time 5 minutes minutes

Servings 1 cocktail

Calories 281kcal

Author Cathy Pollak

Equipment

• Cocktail Shaker
• Citrus Juicer

Ingredients

Cosmo Recipe:

• 2.5 oz citron vodka (do not substitute plain vodka)
• 1.0 oz Cointreau
• 1.0 oz cranberry juice cocktail
• 0.5 oz fresh lime juice
• finely crushed ice
• orange peel for garnish

Instructions

Cosmo Recipe:

• Add vodka, Cointreau, cranberry juice and fresh lime juice to a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake vigorously until very cold. Strain into a cold martini glass and finish of with a scoop of very finely, crushed ice. Garnish with an orange peel.
  2.5 oz citron vodka (do not substitute plain vodka), 1.0 oz Cointreau, 1.0 oz cranberry juice cocktail, 0.5 oz fresh lime juice, finely crushed ice, orange peel for garnish

Notes

Nutrition information is only an estimation and variation will occur based on the ingredients/brands you use. 

Nutrition

Serving: 1cocktail | Calories: 281kcal | Carbohydrates: 12.5g | Protein: 0.1g | Sodium: 2.8mg | Potassium: 43.2mg | Fiber: 0.4g | Sugar: 11.2g | Vitamin C: 11.9mg

As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.

The post World’s Best Cosmopolitan Cocktail appeared first on Noble Pig.

The leprechaun traps are set.  My kids spent hours setting up a menagerie of pranks hoping to catch a trickster of their very own. 

They dug in their piggy banks for a length of time, searching desperately for golden dollar coins.  Apparently these shiny objects will possibly lure the leprechauns into their lair of box traps.

It was hilarious listening to their banter while the trap building was taking place.  “Those leprechauns are tricky but they’ll never get out of this.”  “They behave so bad and they’re messy”.  “They have weird, tricky eyes.”  It cracked me up.

After they fell asleep, I of course single-handedly destroyed all their handy-hard-work.  I flipped the traps over…spread lucky charms everywhere, confiscated the golden ransom, flipped the dining room chairs on their sides, two tables are turned completely over and dumped a whole bucket of toys onto the floor.

I also pulled out all of the PlayStation game controllers and made it look like the little green bandits were playing Lego Star Wars all night long.

Let’s not forget all the toilet bowl water has also been dyed green.

After essentially destroying the downstairs it dawned on me I would be the one cleaning it all up.  Bummer.

It’s a good thing I have a pitcher of these Glowing Geckos in the fridge to lighten things up.  Their color is perfect for any St. Paddy’s celebration.  They really do glow.

Let’s make these to celebrate…

Here’s what you will need: Midori melon liqueur, vodka, rum, Rose’s Sweetened Lime Juice, sweet-and-sour mix and ice.

Combine 1 ounce Midori melon liqueur, 1/2 ounce vodka, 1/2 ounce rum, 1/2 ounce Rose’s Lime Juice and 1 ounce sweet-and-sour mix in a cocktail shaker with ice.  Shake and strain into a martini glass over ice.

I still had some Key Limes hanging around so used them as garnish.

I left out the ice for picture taking purposes but these are good when cold.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

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