With the party season just around the corner, it's time to mix it up with this very handy selection of cocktail recipes.
Mango & passionfruit Champagne
Ingredients (serves 12)
- 3 large mangoes (about 1.2kg)
- 375ml (1 1/2 cups) passionfruit pulp (about 18 passionfruit)
- 7 750ml bottles good-quality Champagne, chilled
Method
Cut the cheeks from the mangoes close to the stone. Use a large metal spoon to scoop out the flesh, place in the bowl of a food processor and process until smooth. Combine mango puree and passionfruit pulp in a bowl and stir until well combined. Pour into 4 ice cube trays and freeze for 6 hours or overnight until set. To serve, place an ice cube in each serving glass and stand at room temperature for 5 minutes or until ice cube begins to melt. Pour over chilled Champagne. Serve immediately.
Raspberry crush
Ingredients (serves 4)
- 1 x 120g punnet raspberries (or 1 cup of thawed frozen raspberries)
- 1 tsp caster sugar
- 80ml (1/3 cup) Frangelico
- 500ml (2 cups) chilled sparkling wine
Method
Combine the raspberries and sugar in the bowl of a food processor and process until smooth. Push the raspberry mixture through a sieve into a jug. Discard the seeds. Divide the raspberry mixture between four serving glasses. Pour the Frangelico evenly among the prepared glasses. Top each glass with sparkling wine and serve immediately.
Pimm's
Ingredients (serves 4)
- 4 cups ice cubes
- 1 lemon, cut into thin slices
- 160ml Pimm's No. 1
- 125ml lemonade, chilled
- 125ml ginger ale, chilled
- 1/2 Lebanese cucumber, cut into thin strips
Method
Place 1/2 the ice into a 1-litre capacity jug. Add lemon slices. Pour in Pimm's, followed by lemonade and ginger ale. Stir with a swizzle stick to combine. Divide remaining ice among four tall glasses. Place a piece of cucumber in each glass then fill with cocktail. Serve.
Cosmopolitan
Ingredients (serves 1)
- 3 scoops ice cubes
- 60mls (1/4 cup) vodka
- 15mls (3 tsp) cranberry juice
- 1/2 lime, juiced
- 2 thin strips lime rind, to garnish
Method
Place the ice, vodka, cranberry juice and lime juice in a cocktail shaker and shake well. Pour into cocktail glasses and serve, each garnished with a lime rind strip.
Apple Martini
Ingredients
- 1 part Vodka
- 1 part Sour Apple schnapps (Pucker)
- 1 part Apple juice
Method
Poor all ingredients into a shaker. Shake well and strain into a Martini glass. Garnish it with a thin slice of green apple.
