Cocktail Snow Cones

So I went a little bonkers. Perhaps I should have passed on the midnight iced coffee. But given the fact that lately the temperature of my bedroom has me sleeping on the hardwood floor with Grizzly, something had to be done. And then it hit me, like an oversized dodgeball to the face . . . snow cones!! And not just any snow cones, but cocktail snow cones (come on, you know me). My last snow cone was likely consumed at the circus some time in the early ’90s, so I knew I had some work to do. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve given them a chance – a taste here and a slurp there. After all, I am married to a sugarholic. It’s just that they’re just always so sweet – and it’s that fake-syrupy sweet! It’s almost as if there’s some obscure law that states that all snow cones must be doused in rainwbow cough syrup. Not in my house, and certainly not in my bedroom! So I got fresh with it. Fresh strawberries, blackberries, limes, mango, and everyone’s favorite . . . pineapple. And of course they had to be spiked. However, feel free to keep them unleaded if you prefer. Ice, sugar, fruit and booze – what’s not to love? In your face, summer!

A note about ice: if you have a snow cone or shaved-ice machine, use it. There are actually some pretty affordable options out there, and if you plan on making these for a Fourth of July get together, it might be worth it. A good machine will give you a finely shaved ice that is perfect for snow cones. If you don’t use a snow cone machine, you can use a food processor or blender with ice-crushing capabilities to crush your ice as fine as possible.

Strawberry Pisco:

Add the sugar and the water to a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir until the sugar dissolves and remove from heat to let cool. In a separate bowl, soak the halved strawberries with the syrup. Make sure the syrup is completely cool before doing so, as this will help preserve that fresh strawberry flavor.

Next, use a potato masher to crush the berries to a pulp, then strain through a fine mesh strainer. Add the lime juice and the pisco, and set in the refrigerator to chill. Once chilled, drizzle over a cone packed full of crushed ice. Garnish with a few strawberry slices and serve with a straw.

Bramble:

Add the sugar and the water to a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir until the sugar dissolves and remove from heat to let cool. In a separate bowl, soak the blackberries with the syrup. Make sure the syrup is completely cool before doing so, as this will help preserve that fresh blackberry flavor.

Next, use a potato masher to crush the berries to a pulp, then strain through a fine mesh strainer. Add the lemon juice and the gin, and set in the refrigerator to chill. Once chilled, drizzle over a cone packed full of crushed ice. Garnish with a few blackberries and serve with a straw.

Gimlet:

Add the lime juice and the baker’s sugar to a mixing bowl or measuring cup and stir thoroughly until the sugar has dissolved. I used baker’s sugar because it is very fine and will easily dissolve, even without heat.

Stir in the vodka and place in the refrigerator to chill. Once chilled, drizzle over a cone packed full of crushed ice. Garnish with a few wheels of key lime and serve with a straw.

Mango Tequila:

Chop your mango. I used Manila mangoes, but I’m sure other types of mangos would work just as well.

In your blender combine the chopped mango, lime juice, simple syrup and tequila, and puree until smooth. Strain through a fine mesh strainer, then place in the refrigerator to chill. Once chilled, drizzle over a cone packed full of crushed ice. Garnish with a dusting of chile powder and serve with a straw.

Piña Colada:

Cut up a ripe juicy pineapple.

In your blender combine the chopped pineapple, simple syrup and rum, and puree until smooth. Strain through a fine mesh strainer.

Next, stir in the coconut milk, then place in the refrigerator to chill. Once chilled, drizzle over a cone packed full of crushed ice. Garnish with a pineapple wedge and serve with a straw.

Drizzling the syrups over the ice is easiest (and least messy) if you use a bottle with a pour-top. However, in the end simply find a way to cover the ice with the syrup. No need to overcomplicate things.

If you want perfect snowball-looking cones, fill the cone with crushed ice and use an ice cream scoop to make a round ball to sit atop the cone. I went with a more unrefined approach and crafted my snow cones by hand.

Since you won’t be using more than a couple ounces of syrup per snow cone, these aren’t made to be strong cocktails – just enough to get the party started. As I always like to say, feel free to adjust the proportions to suit your taste. For example, if you prefer a stronger cocktail, add a bit more alcohol. Just remember that the more liquid you add, the thinner your syrup will become.

Adding fresh garnishes to your snow cones gives them a little extra pop.

Serving size will vary depending upon the size of your cone, the amount of ice you use, and how slushy you like your snow cone. I used 6-ounce cones and got about 6 servings from each recipe below.

I hope this helps you keep cool this summer!!

Strawberry Pisco

Ingredients:

• 1 cup halved strawberries
• 1 1/2 oz lime juice
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup water
• 3 oz pisco
• strawberry slices for garnish

Directions:

• Add the sugar and the water to small saucepan over medium heat.
•  Stir until the sugar dissolves and remove from heat to let cool.
• Once the syrup has cooled, add the halved strawberries.
• Mash the berries to a pulp, then strain through a fine mesh strainer.
• Add the lime juice and the pisco, and set in the refrigerator to chill.
• Once chilled, drizzle over a cone packed full of crushed ice.
• Garnish with a few strawberry slices and serve with a straw.

Bramble

Ingredients:

• 1 cup blackberries
• 1 1/2 oz lemon juice
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup water
• 3 oz gin
• blackberries for garnish

Directions:

• Add the sugar and the water to small saucepan over medium heat.
•  Stir until the sugar dissolves and remove from heat to let cool.
• Once the syrup has cooled, add the blackberries.
• Mash the berries to a pulp, then strain through a fine mesh strainer.
• Add the lemon juice and the gin, and set in the refrigerator to chill.
• Once chilled, drizzle over a cone packed full of crushed ice.
• Garnish with a few blackberries and serve with a straw.

Gimlet

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup lime juice
• 1/4 cup baker’s sugar
• 3 oz vodka
• key lime wheels for garnish

Directions:

• Add the lime juice and the baker’s sugar to a mixing bowl or measuring cup and stir thoroughly until the sugar has dissolved.
• Stir in the vodka and place in the refrigerator to chill.
• Once chilled, drizzle over a cone packed full of crushed ice.
• Garnish with a few wheels of key lime and serve with a straw.

Tequila Mango

Ingredients:

• 1 cup chopped Manila mango
• 1 oz lime juice
• 1/2 cup simple syrup (equal parts water and sugar)
• 3 oz tequila
• chile powder for garnish

Directions:

• In your blender combine the chopped mango, lime juice, simple syrup and tequila, and puree until smooth.
• Strain through a fine mesh strainer, then place in the refrigerator to chill.
• Once chilled, drizzle over a cone packed full of crushed ice.
• Garnish with a dusting of chile powder and serve with a straw.

Piña Colada

Ingredients:

• 1 cup chopped pineapple
• 1 oz coconut milk
• 1/2 cup simple syrup (equal parts sugar and water)
• 3 oz white rum
• pineapple wedges for garnish

Directions:

• In your blender combine the chopped pineapple, simple syrup and rum, and puree until smooth.
• Strain through a fine mesh strainer.
• Stir in the coconut milk, then place in the refrigerator to chill.
• Once chilled, drizzle over a cone packed full of crushed ice.
• Garnish with a pineapple wedge and serve with a straw.

(images by HonestlyYUM)