Cooking with Books: Lemon Drop Cocktail

Vodka is probably the most versatile liquor I know. (And I've known a lot of them. Thanks...I'll be here all week.) You can infuse it yourself, or buy one of the seemingly hundreds of flavored version that the industry seems to be producing. I find them hit and miss. Yes, Absolut Peppar is delicious in a Bloody Mary. But Skyy Berry is one of the nastiest, over-flavored things I've ever had.

All that said, here's a nice little cocktail recipe book that concentrates on vodka. Viva Vodka. Lots of traditional recipes like the Moscow Mule, Cosmopolitan and Screwdriver. But also some featuring flavored vodkas that look interesting. Like the Metropolitan with black currant vodka and Cointreau. And The Italian Job with grapefruit vodka, Cointreau and Campari. And it will even teach you how to make your own flavored vodkas, like clove, ginger or cucumber.

The recipe I feature here, though, is a classic. I like this version. The addition of orange juice and Cointreau make it tarter and less cloying. Quite refreshing.

Lemon Drop
Makes one cocktail.

1 lemon wedge
Superfine sugar
1 1/2 ounces citron vodka
1 ounce Grand Marnier of Cointreau
1 1/2 ounces fresh lemon juice
1/2 ounce fresh orange juice

Rub the rim of a chilled cocktail glass with the lemon peel and rim with sugar. In a cocktail shaker, shake the liquid ingredients vigorously with ice. Strain carefully into the prepared glass. Garnish with a spiral of lemon peel.