Tag Archives: cocktail with fresh orange juice

Orange Blossom Special

1 Reply

orange blossom special cocktail

“Look a-yonder comin’
Comin’ down that railroad track
Hey, look a-yonder comin’
Comin’ down that railroad track
It’s the Orange Blossom Special
Bringin’ my baby back…” ~ Johnny Cash, Orange Blossom Special

Gin and orange juice make a great flavor combination, and I’ve begun to regularly prefer gin over vodka in my Screwdrivers. A while back, I had a spicy gin that made a particularly great combination with orange: Seattle’s Big Gin. Here’s an awesome, simple, tasty gin-and-orange cocktail you can try at home:

Orange Blossom Special

  • 1 oz gin
  • 1 oz fresh-squeezed orange juice
  • 1/4 tsp powdered sugar
  • shake with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass
  • garnish with a tiny orange wheel (I used a Cutie)

Screwdriver

2 Replies

making screwdriver cocktails

Years before I knew anything about cocktail making, I had two favorite cocktails: Vodka Martinis and Screwdrivers. The Screwdriver is a pretty great drink, particularly when you make it right- no orange juice cartons allowed! I mixed two versions of the humble Screwdriver – one with the most basic recipe and one with a little more mixology flair. Here are the two drinks:

screwdriver cocktails: fancy and fresh

Fancy Screwdriver (by Greg Mays)

  • 1 1/2 oz vodka
  • 3 oz fresh orange juice
  • 1/4 oz triple sec
  • 2 dashes orange bitters
  • shake and strain into a rocks glass filled with ice
  • garnish with an orange slice

Fresh Screwdriver

  • 1 1/2 oz vodka
  • 3 oz fresh orange juice
  • shake and strain into a rocks glass filled with ice
  • garnish with an orange slice

Both cocktails are great, particularly with that delicious fresh-squeezed juice. If you have the extra ingredients for the Fancy Screwdriver, that one is more complex and tasty than the standard vodka/orange juice mix.

 Special thanks to Jasmine Nicole, my photographer for this post.