Recipe from my sister, Jenny - recipe inspired by the Cellar Bar at Zinc
Servings: 1serving
Ingredients
Ice
3large basil leaves
4-8ouncescucumber infused Seagram's gin
2-4ouncessimple syrup*
4-8ouncestonic water or club soda
Instructions
Fill a drink shaker, or a quart size mason jar, with ice and add the basil leaves. Add the gin and about 2 ounces of syrup and shake well. Pour into two glasses and top with tonic water or club soda, to taste. I preferred mine with club soda, while the rest of my family preferred the tonic water. However you make them, the ratio is approximately half gin to half tonic water or club soda. I liked mine a bit sweeter, with an extra splash of simple syrup as well. Garnish with a basil leaf before serving. Enjoy!
To Infuse the Gin: About a week before you want to use it, thinly slice a European cucumber and place the slices into a bottle of Seagram's gin. An inexpensive bottle of gin, such as Seagram's, works well for an infusion like this one. For 750 mil of gin, use about half a cucumber. If you prefer to infuse just a small amount, place 8 ounces of gin in a glass jar and add 5-8 very thin slices of cucumber. Place the gin with the cucumber slices in the refrigerator or in the cupboard and let it rest for about a week to ten days.
To make simple syrup for mixed drinks: Combine 1/2 cup water and 1/2 cup white sugar in a jar and shake until the sugar is dissolved. This will keep in the refrigerator until you need it again. It will be thinner than traditional simple syrup and will mix smoothly into the drinks.