Very Mint and Pineapple Martini

It's summer which means it's hot out there. As the weather refuses to let up, having a few really solid, chilly cocktails on rotation can help take off the edge. This is one of my favorite "trash" cocktails - I initially shook it up one incredibly hot hot hot day strictly to use up some of the dredges in my fridge before they turned. If you don't have pineapple, consider trying whatever berries you have in your fridge! Not a fan of gin? Heck - tequila, light rum, vodka, or whatever clear liquor you have on hand will work just as well. This one is super forgiving and really easy to make your own.

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Ingredients (Makes 2ish drinks)

• Mint to taste (I use about half a bunch of elderly mint, or around 40 small to medium-sized leaves)

• 1/3 to 1/2 cup of pineapple chunks or other berry of your choice

• A little bit of pineapple juice, around 1 Tbsp (or other berry juice) - optional

• 1 tsp agave (or simple syrup, maple syrup, or honey if not keeping vegan)

• 8 oz your favorite gin (or other clear liquor)

Instructions

1. Smack the mint. Literally, just put that leafy goodness between your hands and clap a couple of times. This helps to express the mint oil which no only enhances the flavor, but also the aroma, which is always a nice little perk.

2. Place the smacked mint and pineapple into a shaker or large jar with a fitted lid. Muddle everything together really well - I spend about a minute doing this to ensure that all the pineapple juice is smashed out and that the mint leaves have all been desiccated. If you don't have a muddler, you can use a spoon to mash that stuff against the side of your container - however, I highly recommend getting a muddler if you wanna make at-home cocktails. It's a solid and very cheap investment.

3. Add in the gin and agave as well as enough ice to reach the top of the liquid (Shortcut: add at least 6 decent-sized ice cubes; the ice is really important in any cocktail, but I totally get any hangups about wasting ice if you, like me, are working out of a limited number of ice trays). Place the top of the shaker on or screw on the jar's lid then shake the shit out of the mix for about 30 seconds. It might seem like a long time once you get going, but a) it's a nice little mid-day workout, and b) the importance of shaking can't be understated. This is where we mix and mash a bunch of the ingredients, ensure they're incorporated with each other, add in some little icy bits to keep the drink cool, and also get in some little air bubbles to really make the drink have a nice mouthfeel.

4. Pour into a child martini or coupe glass (pictured). If you have some leftover, smack a sprig of mint or two and drop that sucker in. The aroma will help to enhance the mint flavor, and it looks ever so fancy.

5. Sip outside while sweating bullets and cursing the repressive heat, but feel a bit better knowing that at least you have a tasty ass cocktail to take the pain away.