Pineapple Persuasion
I anointed this smooth, tropical cocktail with that moniker because after one of these babies, you can get people to do just about anything for you.
Smile giddily no matter what foolish nonsense you say? Check.
Forget their worries completely? You betcha.
Invite you on a cruise around the world aboard a luxury yacht complete with private chef and spa butler? OK, maybe not. But you never know if you don’t try, right?
Admittedly, my hubby and I are mostly wine drinkers at home. But when a sample of Van Gogh Pineapple Vodka arrived in the mail, we decided it was high-time for cocktail hour in our humble abode.
We invited some foodie friends over to take a sip or two or three or….
Pineapple vodka immediately brought to mind pineapple juice and fresh pineapple. Thus was born the “Pineapple Persuasion,” a fruity, twangy, just-sweet-enough blend of pineapple juice, pineapple vodka, lime juice, and sugar. Because I had kaffir lime leaves handy, I threw them into the pitcher to infuse. Fresh mint leaves would be another nice option.
The cocktail is shaken until very cold and a little foamy, then served in a martini glass rimmed in sugar and adorned with a fresh wedge of pineapple.
Somehow, I don’t think it will require much persuading at all for you to kick back with one.
Pineapple Persuasion
(makes 12 cocktails; recipe can be halved, too)
3 cups pineapple juice
3 cups pineapple vodka or regular vodka
6-7 tablespoons fresh-squeezed lime juice
Lime wedges
About 1 1/2 cups sugar
About 5 kaffir lime leaves or some fresh mint leaves
Ice
Fresh pineapple, cored, and cut into small wedges
In a pitcher, mix pineapple juice, pineapple vodka, lime juice, and kaffir lime leaves or mint leaves. Use a wooden spoon to bruise the herbs a little so they better infuse into the cocktail mixture. Refrigerate for a couple of hours, until very cold.
Rub rims of martini glasses with lime wedge. Pour sugar into a plate; dip rims of martini glasses into the sugar. Fill a shaker with ice. Add some of the cocktail mixture. Shake vigorously, then strain into martini glasses. Garnish edge of each glass with a wedge of fresh pineapple.
From Carolyn Jung
If I could spend the afternoon pool-side, I’d want one of these in my hand! Lacking a pool, I’d still like one of these later this afternoon.
(Cue Soundtrack: Warm waves breaking gently along Kaanapali Beach on Maui)
Ahhhhhhhhh 🙂
I have a weakness for anything with kaffir in it. Up here in Seattle, I recently had chocolate kaffir ice cream that I’m still dreaming about. I’ll add this to the list.
We’ll take 2…each.
Oh gosh Carol! This makes me thirsty! 🙂
so there it is. i was waiting for your post 🙂
This sounds so good! I would love to enjoy it with a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream on the side.
It looks a perfect drink for a hot summer day!
What a wonderful sounding and looking drink. I love the way you threw out that you just happened to have kaffir leaves handy. Definitely not me, but I can see that there is a need to
Oh my…you don’t have to persuade me to try THIS drink! It looks gorgeous and absolutely thirst and spirit-quenching!
Nice Martini glass!
Leftoverist: Chocolate kaffir ice cream? That sounds amazing. I’ve had star anise-chocolate ice cream, but never any with kaffir lime leaves. How intriguing!
OysterCulture: I wish my backyard were large enough to accommodate a kaffir lime tree. I hear the fragrance it gives off is just unbelievable. This time around, I only managed to have some of the leaves around because they were leftover from another recipe. 😉
The pineapple persuasion didn’t need much persuading for me to drink. It was smoooooooth.
That looks really refreshing! I love pineapple. Now to imagine I’m somewhere tropical instead of unusually rainy Maine.
Isn’t the function of every cocktail to, uh, get people to do you favors? And with this one comment, the wholesomeness of your post is ruined.
Jude: You’ve blown my cover!!!!! 😉
This will make me go out and buy a bottle of the Vaqn Gogh Vodka!
This is my kind of drink! One of my favorites was the Knockout at Sullivan’s – a pineapple-infused vodka cocktail that was so deliciously sweet and fruity that you didn’t realize it packed a punch until it knocked you out! I wouldn’t mind a glass or two of Pineapple Persuasion this weekend.