Whew. The heat is on. Let’s beat it with a Dandy Shandy.
For today, Thirsty Thursday, if you will, another cocktail.
I know! Two in one week! Who am I?
Those of you who know me know that I’d rather consume my calories in the form of iced cream, but sometimes a girl needs a drink.
The kind that is not too heavy, not too fruity, not too sweet, but not bitter. Something with a little fizz. Something like this libation.
It’s my own version of a Shandy Dandy. Dandy Shandy? I can’t remember.
No…I haven’t had that much to drink, but neither iteration of the name seems to make much sense since to me it sounds like stringing adjectives. Anyway, a Dandy Shandy, aside from being a sort of ball game played by children in Jamaica, is also a beer cocktail. Internet searches suggest this is some sort of English stout concoction, but I pull my inspiration from The Spice Necklace, a book filled with recipes of Caribbean delights borrowed from Lettuce. And to make it more summery, I opted for a light Corona rather than a heavy Guinness. Maybe that’ll be the name of the game in two months, but for now light beverages only.
What else….so you can also make this with premade ginger beer, but I opted to make a ginger concentrate. And if you aren’t feeling the beer in the same way that I am, use sparking water for a refreshing fizzy lifting drink.
- 1 pound fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
- 8 cups water
- 3 cloves
- 1 fresh bay leaf
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 3/4 cup sugar, white or raw
- 1 whole lime, juiced
- 6 7-ounce bottle of light islandy-beer (I used Corona light)
- Add the chopped ginger, water, cloves, cinnamon stick and bay leaf to a saucepan or stock pot over medium heat. Cover and simmer 45 minutes. Turn off the heat and let steep for 20 more. Strain out the solids.
- .
- To the ginger water, add the sugar and lime juice and stir well to blend. Put in the fridge to chill. When you’re ready to serve, add about 1/2 cup of the ginger concentrate to a glass filled with ice and top off with 1/2 cup beer (or, if you're not digging alcohol, sparkling water). Garnish with lime and mint, if desired.
It might not may lift your actual body, it will lift your spirits.
Dandy Shandy
This Caribbean inspired Dandy Shandy adapted from The Spice Necklace is the perfect way to give you island vibes when you're far away from them.
Ingredients
- 1 pound fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
- 8 cups water
- 3 cloves
- 1 fresh bay leaf
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 3/4 cup sugar, white or raw
- 1 whole lime, juiced
- 6 7-ounce bottles of light islandy-beer (I used Corona light)
Directions
- Step 1 Add the chopped ginger, water, cloves, cinnamon stick and bay leaf to a saucepan or stock pot over medium heat. Cover and simmer 45 minutes. Turn off the heat and let steep for 20 more. Strain out the solids.
- Step 2 To the ginger water, add the sugar and lime juice and stir well to blend. Put in the fridge to chill. When you’re ready to serve, add about 1/2 cup of the ginger concentrate to a glass filled with ice and top off with 1/2 cup beer (or, if you’re not digging alcohol, sparkling water). Garnish with lime and mint, if desired.
- Step 3 Adapted from The Spice Necklace
Bookmarking and saving this to make this weekend! I love a good ginger drink — especially one with booze!!
Sed Bona
I hope you like it! Let me know what you think 🙂