It’s the first weekend of fall, and I should be posting the Apple Cake I made today, or the jam that is sitting in my pantry setting up so it is the perfect consistency – don’t worry, those posts will come – but I had to get one more summer cocktail in before we said goodbye to warmer temperatures and long days.

When we lived in Denver, we had these very good friends that we did everything with.  This was before we had kids – and we had more time on our hands.  This was also before I knew anything about making drinks.  Our friends were from Canada, and his favorite after-work drink was a Rum and Coke.  My husband (boyfriend at the time) were more beer drinkers – but we would also have some cans of coke in the refrigerator in case he happened to be at our house on a Friday or Saturday night.

Years later, after we had our children, I took my older daughter back to Denver for a visit.  We flew in on a Friday, and as a special treat, they made me a Strawberry Margaretta.  I asked what happened to the Rum and Coke – not to worry, that was still his go-to drink, but that this was a special occasion.  I am not crazy about ultra-sweet drinks, but I had one anyway – it was like dessert in a glass.  When I saw this recipe from Cooking Light (which I adapted below), I immediately thought of that night – and decided I needed to see if this would be more my style.

I know that strawberry season is long gone, but if you are lucky, you can still find some shipped from California.  Or, if all else fails – you can always thaw some frozen strawberries.  This is still a sweet drink (omit the simple syrup if you want it less sweet), but not too sweet – it was actually perfect for me.  What a perfectly nice and refreshing drink, made with real strawberries.  So – here’s to the end of summer.  I am actually really excited for fall – it just happens to be my favorite season – for many reasons…and yes, most of them have to do with food, so stay tuned!

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup strawberries
• 1/2 cup vodka
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• 2 tablespoons simple syrup
• 1 cup of ice

Preparation

Place the strawberries in a shaker, and using the back of a wooden spoon or a muddler, smash the strawberries.  Put in the rest of the ingredients, shake well and serve, slightly strained.

For a printer-friendly version of this recipe, please click here:  Strawberry Smash