Sacramento Digs Gardening logo
Sacramento Digs Gardening Article
Your resource for Sacramento-area gardening news, tips and events

Articles Recipe Index Keyword Index Calendar Twitter Facebook Instagram About Us Contact Us

Quarantinis help you chill

Recipe: This variation of a Lemon Drop features homegrown citrus

""
Cocktails for two! Meyer lemon flavors these Quarantinis. (Photos: Debbie Arrington)

Cocktail hour is making a comeback; as they say, it's always 5 o'clock somewhere when you're locked down.

Of course, now our cocktail chitchat is via Zoom and not in person. But the drinks still have the same buzz.

Cocktails take a little extra time for preparation -- extra time is one ingredient we have handy.

But what else is on hand as we self-quarantine? Many cocktail recipes call for unusual ingredients and a well-stocked liquor cabinet (or trip to the store). For a Quarantini, use what you've got and keep it simple.

This variation on a Lemon Drop martini relies on fresh citrus for its pop, honey syrup for its sweet smoothness.
""
For Quarantini, sweet-tart Meyer lemons, fresh and juicy.

I've got Meyer lemons in my backyard, and this drink shows off their juicy flavor. But this drink would also work with Eureka or other lemons as well as limes, oranges, tangerines or grapefruit.

Honey syrup is easy to make; it's a step that requires a little pre-planning (but not much). Orange blossom honey (which is not that sweet) adds another citrus note.

Pre-chilling the glasses and using a cocktail shaker add some flair to the process and improve the final outcome But in a pinch, a quart jar with a lid will do as a substitute shaker. If using gin, be gentler and stir instead of shake. Either way, the results will help you chill.

Quarantinis
Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:

Juice of one lemon, preferably Meyer (about 1/4 cup juice)
1/4 cup honey syrup
3/4 cup (6 ounces) vodka or gin
Ice
""
A lemon peel garnish finishes off the
Quarantini cocktail.
Lemon peel (for garnish)

Instructions:

Ice 4 martini glasses. Put them in the refrigerator (preferably the freezer) until ready for use.
With a sharp paring knife, cut off a few strips of lemon peel before cutting lemon in half.

Pack a martini shaker with ice. (If no shaker, use a 1-quart jar with lid.)

Squeeze lemon juice over ice. Add honey syrup and vodka or gin. Put top on shaker (or jar) and shake 12 times.

Strain drink into glasses. (Store extra drink on ice in the shaker/jar in the refrigerator until using.)

Serve well chilled, with twist of lemon peel.

To make honey syrup: In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine 1/4 cup sugar, 1/4 cup water and 2 tablespoons orange blossom or similar honey. Bring to a boil. Let boil 1 minute while stirring. Remove from heat and cool. Store covered in refrigerator.

Comments

0 comments have been posted.

Newsletter Subscription

Sacramento Digs Gardening to your inbox.

Flowers in My Back Yard Series

Sept. 15: Plant seeds soon for fragrant spring blooms (sweet peas) 

Sept. 8: A must for fall gardens, asters are little powerhouses

Sept. 1: Yarrow an easy-care, sturdy flowering plant

Aug. 25: Crape myrtles, Sacramento's unofficial tree of summer

Aug. 18: Pollinators adore scabiosa, aka pincushion flower

Aug. 11: Hardy hibiscus adds big tropical impact

Aug. 4: Dianthus a deceptively hardy flower

July 28: Naked Ladies put on summer show

July 21: Thank Luther Burbank for these long-lasting beauties (Shasta daisies)

July 14: How to keep hydrangeas happy

July 7: Grow these bright cosmos for bees and butterflies

June 30: Agapanthus adds blue fireworks to the garden

June 23: Easy-care gazanias fill those hot corners

June 16: Daylilies are perfect for water-wise gardens (and a lot more)

June 9: Grow coneflowers for pollinators -- and yourself

June 2: Sunflowers capture Sacramento's summer attitude

May 29: Are your roses going 'blind'?

May 26: Zinnias are the summer flowers every garden needs

May 19: Plant dahlias now for late-summer flower power

May 12: Know your coreopsis from your bidens

May 5: Mums the word on Mother's Day weekend

April 28: Majestic Matilija poppy is worth a look

April 21: Celebrate roses, America's favorite flower

April 14: Small flowers with outsized impact

April 7: Calendulas do double duty

April 3: Make Easter lilies last for years to come

March 31: In praise of a pollinator magnet (small-leaf salvias)

March 24: Azaleas brighten shady spots

March 17: The perfect flower for beginners? Try zonal geraniums

March 10: Keep camellias happy for years to come

March 3: Fruit tree blossoms are a fleeting joy

Feb. 27: Are your roses looking rusty?

Feb. 24: Treasure spring daffodils now and for years to come

Feb. 17: How and why to grow wildflowers

Feb. 10: Let's talk Valentine's Day roses

Feb. 3: Why grow flowers?

Local News

Ad for California Local

Taste Summer! E-cookbook

square-tomatoes-plate.jpg

Find our summer recipes here!

Garden checklist for week of Sept. 13

Now is the time to plant for fall. The warm soil will get these veggies off to a fast start.

* Keep harvesting tomatoes, peppers, squash, melons and eggplant.

* Compost annuals and vegetable crops that have finished producing.

* Cultivate and add compost to the soil to replenish its nutrients for fall and winter vegetables and flowers.

* Fertilize deciduous fruit trees. Make sure to deep water before and after feeding.

* Plant onions, lettuce, peas, radishes, turnips, beets, carrots, bok choy, spinach and potatoes directly into the vegetable beds.

* Transplant cabbage, broccoli, kale, Brussels sprouts and cauliflower as well as lettuce seedlings.

* Sow seeds of California poppies, clarkia and African daisies.

* Transplant cool-weather annuals such as pansies, violas, fairy primroses, calendulas, stocks and snapdragons.

* Divide and replant bulbs, rhizomes and perennials.

* Dig up and divide daylilies as they complete their bloom cycle.

* Divide and transplant peonies that have become overcrowded. Replant with “eyes” about an inch below the soil surface.

 .

Contact Us

Send us a gardening question, a post suggestion or information about an upcoming event.  sacdigsgardening@gmail.com

Taste Spring! E-cookbook

Strawberries

Find our spring recipes here!

Taste Fall! E-cookbook

Muffins and pumpkin

Find our fall recipes here!

Taste Winter! E-cookbook

Lemon coconut pancakes

Find our winter recipes here!

Food in My Back Yard (FIMBY) Series

Lessons learned during a year of edible gardening

WINTER

Is edible gardening possible indoors?

Hints for choosing tomato seeds

Starting in seed starting

Why winter is the perfect time to plant fruit trees

When to plant? Consider staggering your transplants

How to squeeze more food into less space

Potatoes from the garden

Plant a fruit tree now -- for later

Win the weed war by tackling them in winter

Tips for planting bare-root trees, shrubs and vegetables

Time to give vegetable seedlings some more space

Ways to win the fight against weeds

FALL

Add asparagus to your edible garden

Soggy soil and what to do about it

Plant artichokes now; enjoy for years to come

It's late November, and your peach tree needs spraying

What to do with all those fallen leaves?

Prepare now for colder weather in the edible garden

Plant a pea patch for you and your garden

As citrus season begins, advice for backyard growers

Change is in the autumn air 

We don't talk (enough) about beets

Fava beans do double duty

Seeds or transplants for cool-season veggies?

How to prolong the fall tomato harvest 

SUMMER

Time to shut it down? 

How to get the most out of your pumpkin patch

Summer-to-fall transition time for evaluation, planning

To pick or not to pick those tomatoes?

: Put worms to work for you

Grow food while saving water

Enhance your food with edible flowers

Why won't my tomatoes turn red?

A squash plant has mosaic virus, and it's not pretty

Does this plant need water?

 Tear out that sad plant or baby it? Midsummer decisions

How to grow summer salad greens

 Weird stuff that's perfectly normal

SPRING

Help pollinators help your garden

Battling early-season tomato pests

Make your own compost

Where are the bees when you need them?

How to help tomatoes thrive on hot days

Your plants can tell you more than any calendar can

Maintain soil moisture with mulch for garden success

What's (already) wrong with my tomato plants?

Should you stock up on fertilizer? (Yes!)

Grow culinary herbs in containers

When to plant summer vegetables

Don't be fooled by these garden myths

Fertilizer tips: How to 'feed' your vegetables for healthy growth