Thirsty Thursday - Spice Market Ginger Margaritas

If you don’t LOVE fresh ginger, stop reading now.

Okay, if I have any readers left, I had an e-mail conversation with my husband last Friday that went something like this:

Well first let me set the mood for you… it was about 3 PM, I was working from home and had the WEEKEND on my mind! He was furiously working hard trying to wrap things up at work knowing he’d be out of the office the entire next week traveling and really didn’t have the time to converse with me about important things such as cocktails.

Me: “What kind of cocktails do you want to have by the river this evening? Should we try Rachel’s recipe for Basil Martinis?” and I included the link so he could look over the ingredients, and drool over the recipe.

Curtis: “Sure”

Me: (That was too fast and too short, he obviously didn’t take the time to click on the link) “Well I have lots of fresh basil in garden but I’m not sure if I’ll be able to find Lillet and this is going to mean a trip to the store. Do we have gin? I’m also thinking about trying a recipe for Rosemary Lemon Drops”

Curtis: “We have gin”

Me: “Hmmm, what do you think? Basil martinis or rosemary lemon drops? I really want to try Rachel’s, but I also want to be ready with a tested and approved cocktail for next Thursday. Should we just try both?”

Curtis: “How about ginger margaritas? Ala NY!”

Me: “Oh yeah, good point! I’ve been wanting to recreate that drink. Let me do some research.”

Me: “Guess what!? I found THE RECIPE from Spice Market for their ginger margaritas! Can you believe this is the exact recipe? Here it is.” (I included the link).

Me: “This is awesome and we have all the ingredients on hand. I don’t need to go to the store. I’ll get the ginger/lime simple syrup going now so it will be ready when you get home.”

Me: “Hurry up and get home, I’m thirsty!”

No response

So long story short, the first evening Curtis and I arrived in New York this past April we went to Spice Market because it was right across the street from our hotel and I’d been there on a previous trip with my girlfriends and knew it was fabulous. We ordered an entire pitcher of fresh ginger margaritas and a few snacks to celebrate our first night in New York. It was one of the best margaritas we've ever had!

It sounds like a lot of steps to make the ginger lime syrup, with the blending and straining, but it was really simple and it’s so delicious! When Curtis finally arrived home (and no he hadn’t taken the time to read my last four over-enthusiastic e-mails!) we made a big batch of these margaritas and brought them down to the river. The only thing we were missing was wasabi nuts or some kind of snack to complement them.

It was the perfect way to kick off a sunny weekend!

And on a side note, on Saturday I did pick up a bottle of Lillet at the liquor store. It’s near the dessert wine and costs about $14. But apparently it’s like regular wine and once it’s open you have to drink it all or it will go bad (I was envisioning it was something we’d be able to keep on hand in our liquor cabinet). So I’m holding on to the Lillet and will make Rachel’s basil martinis as soon as we have more drinkers to help us out!



Spice Market Ginger Margarita
Food & Wine

Ginger-Lime Syrup
1. 4 ounces fresh ginger, peeled and thinly sliced (1 cup)
2. 1 cup fresh lime juice
3. 1 cup sugar

In a small saucepan, combine the ginger, lime juice and sugar and bring to a boil. Boil for 2 minutes. Let cool to warm, then puree in a blender. Pour the puree into a fine strainer and press on the ginger to extract as much syrup as possible.

Ginger Margarita
1. 1 teaspoon ground ginger
2. 2 teaspoons kosher salt
3. Ice
4. 3 tablespoons añejo tequila
5. 1 1/2 tablespoons Ginger-Lime Syrup
6. 1 tablespoon Cointreau
7. 1 teaspoon fresh lime juice
8. 1 lime wedge, for garnish

1. On a plate, mix the ground ginger and salt. Moisten the rim of a margarita glass with water and dip the rim in the ginger salt to coat.

2. Fill a cocktail shaker with ice. Add the tequila, Ginger-Lime Syrup, Cointreau and lime juice and shake well. Strain the drink into the margarita glass, garnish with the lime wedge and serve.

And we're not sure if these proportions are 100% accurate, but here's what we've been using to make a pitcher of margaritas vs. individual drinks:

PITCHER
3 cups Tequila
1 ½ cups Ginger Lime Simple Syrup
1 cup Cointreau
½ cup fresh lime juice
Lime wedge for each glass