An Old Fashioned Christmas!

I was meeting my friend, Cathy, for a drink at Duo's a couple weeks ago. She was running a little late so I was perusing the cocktail list. I read the description of their Old Fashioned which included orange bitters. I recently purchased some for a rum drink, so that caught my eye in the description.

I have to tell you that I am not, generally, a bourbon drinker. When I read descriptions of whiskey drinks, I often think that they sound good, but am never really thrilled if I order one. But on impulse, I decided to order an Old Fashioned and I loved it! I liked it so much I was craving one while we decorated our Christmas tree.

I'd been making candied orange peel for my German Christmas Cookie Class at PCC so I had some orange simple syrup by default.  Since I'd thought the orange bitters were delightful, I thought adding orange simple syrup would be great too. It was! So, without further adieu, here's my recipe for an Orange Infused Old Fashioned. Ho, ho, hope you like it.

Orange Infused Old Fashioned

Makes 1 cocktail

2 teaspoons orange simple syrup (recipe below)

2 dashes Orange bitters

2 dashes Angostura bitters

1 orange slice

crushed ice

2 ounces bourbon

1 good quality jarred cherry (I use Bada Bing Cherries by Tillen Farms)

Add orange simple syrup, orange bitters, Angostura Bitters and the orange slice to a Old Fashioned/rocks glass. Muddle the orange to release the juice and orange oil.

Fill the glass with crushed ice. Pour bourbon over the ice and stir to combine. 

Garnish with a cherry. Guaranteed to make the holidays merrier!

Orange Simple Syrup

Makes 1 cups2 navel or seville oranges

1 cups water

1 cups sugar

Wash the oranges to remove any waxy residue and pesticides. Use a vegetable peeler to remove the peel of the oranges in strips. Try to remove only the orange peel. The white pith beneath is really bitter and will impact the flavor of your syrup. Set aside.

In the meantime, combine the sugar and water in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir occasionally until sugar dissolves.

Add the peel to the saucepan. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 30-40 minutes, until the syrup has thickened slightly.

Remove the orange peels, cool syrup to room temperature, and enjoy.

You can store the syrup in a covered bottle or jar in the refrigerator for up to two months.