I was throwing a weeknight dinner party for an old friend (as I am wont to do). And for the end of the meal, I had planned a special cocktail to cap off the evening.
When she showed up at my door, I was nonplussed. I quickly gave my menu a mental review: no soft cheeses, no raw eggs, no lunchmeat. Check, check, check… just in case. But it wasn’t till I saw her rub her belly that I felt safe in asking my question: “Uh, is there something you wanted to tell me?”
Here’s a rule for life: no non-pregnant woman ever rubs her stomach, except maybe if she’s eaten a really large meal, and even then probably not.
And yes, my friend was seven months pregnant, and had not mentioned it. And so my cocktail was out. That’s okay, we just had them later.
I don’t claim to be any kind of mixologist, but I did make up this cocktail especially for my sweet husband Richard, who loves orangey things, and for the novelty factor: it glows in the dark.
Did you know that tonic water glows under a blacklight? It does, if it has quinine in it. So this cocktail is a simple 1 part Cointreau and 3 parts tonic water, and it’s very tasty and very orangey. Good old G&Ts will also glow under a blacklight, if you’re feeling more conventionally summery.
You’re welcome to add more than one ice cube, for the record. They also don’t have to be shaped like stars. That’s just a bonus.
6 Comments
That is BADASS! If I drank alcohol, I’d be all over it. Can you make a nonalcoholic glowing beverage?
Of course! A clear or mostly translucent fruit juice would work well, but you wouldn’t want to use something too sugary, as the tonic water is already sweetened. Tonic water is sort of bitter because of the quinine, so a sweet mixer is a good idea. Mountain Dew also glows under a blacklight, but I have never had any and don’t plan to start.
I imagine that making tonic water ice cubes could be a big hit for any cocktail alcoholic or non-alcoholic. Never had a mountain dew?… hmmm…
Nope, no Mountain Dew ever.
I did try making tonic water ice cubes… the only problem was that they were very holey because of the bubbles. But I expect if you let the water go flat first, they’d look a lot nicer.
But why do you and Richard own a blackli- You know what? Nevermind. I don’t want to know.
This is a brilliant idea! Perhaps use white cranberry juice and tonic water to make it suitable for teetotalers and kids?
It’s actually left over from when we had a cat… you can get them at PetSmart. I’ll leave you to figure out what it’s for.
Meanwhile, white cranberry juice would probably be perfect!