Gingerbread Old Fashioned
Captures the holiday trend of baking spices in cocktails — gingerbread flavor, nutmeg, clove — applied to an Old Fashioned format.
Ingredients (makes ~1 drink)
2 oz rye or bourbon (rye gives a spicier profile)
¼ oz gingerbread syrup (homemade: sugar + water + ginger + cinnamon + clove + nutmeg equal parts)
2 dashes Angostura bitters
Garnish: star anise + thin ginger slice + nutmeg grate or gingerbread cookie (I buy from store)
Instructions
Prepare gingerbread syrup ahead: in a small saucepan, combine ½ cup water, ½ cup sugar, 1 Tbsp fresh grated ginger, ½ tsp each of ground cinnamon, clove, nutmeg. Simmer until sugar dissolves, cool, strain.
In mixing glass, add rye/bourbon + gingerbread syrup + bitters + ice.
Stir until chilled.
Strain into a rocks glass over fresh ice.
Garnish with star anise, a slice of fresh ginger, and lightly grate nutmeg on top.
Relish the cosy holiday spice warmth.
Tip
If you don’t have star anise, a cinnamon stick will still work nicely as garnish.
Cinnamon Stick: https://amzn.to/4p1Evhb
Gingerbread: https://amzn.to/47rSYgw
Star Anise: https://amzn.to/4oDQQs7
