The secret to kitchen magic is being out of everything you think you need. Nothing good is going to happen until you realize mid-recipe that you don’t have the one and only ingredient you’re sure you can’t do without. When you’re standing on a chair, pulling Christmas sprinkles and pinto beans out of the cupboard, desperate for even a tablespoon more of powdered sugar, you’re ready for the muse.
Thanks to my beloved Sodastream, I recently found my simple syrup stores depleted. Of course, I didn’t realize this until I was mid-gimlet. There was maple syrup; I figured it would do. Turns out, I made something extra delicious completely by accident and I’ve made it on purpose a number of times since. The maple syrup is warm like pancakes and the gin has cool botanicals. At my imaginary cocktail bar, this drink is called the icy-hot.
Maple Lime Gimlet
Yield: 1 gimlet
Ingredients
- 1/2 oz lime juice
- 1/2 oz maple syrup, preferrably grade b
- 1 3/4 oz gin
- soda, as needed
Cooking Directions
- Combine maple syrup, lime juice, and gin in a old fashioned glass and stir. (Do not fret over these amounts. I eyeballed them on my jigger.)
- Add ice and top with soda, as needed.
 More Gimlet goodness:
- Cucumber Gimlet from Epicurious
- Gimlet recipe from Esquire
- Gin tasting notes from Home Speakeasy
Psst… I want to give you a copy of Plenty: Vibrant Recipes from London’s Ottolenghi, which was just nominated for a James Beard award. Click here to enter.
About autumn
Autumn Giles is the creator of Autumn Makes & Does and the co-host of the Alphabet Soup Podcast.
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Sounds delicious. You’re right about necessity as the mother of invention and all that. Would have never put maple syrup and lime together.
Thanks Sara! I was too surprised at how well it turned out not to share.
I have a Grade B maple syrup problem. And you are an enabler.
Me too! And speaking of enabling… I realized this past weekend how exponentially cheaper it is to buy larger quantities. For example, I usually buy a pint, which is $16, but a gallon (!) is $58, which is SUCH a better deal.
Haha, I like your imaginary cocktail bar. What a cool drink! Gin is my spirit of choice, and I always seem to have plenty of limes rolling around the fridge.
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