I’m back! After an unplanned (and very much need) hiatus, I’m excited to get back to this space. Thank you for allowing me to take some time to refresh! I dedicated more time for yoga and long walks, tried some meditation, and spent a lot of time laughing, eating, and catching up with friends. I feel much more creative and focused. I must also say that your kind words and encouraging notes were beyond amazing! They were so so helpful and very lovely.

But I am going to change things just a bit. I have some very exciting side projects in addition to an incredibly busy schedule at work, so it’s getting harder to stretch the creativity and attention to all things. For the blog, I had previously posted one new recipe a week, but I’m going to start slowing it down a bit. I truly believe it will keep the caliber of the posts higher and at the standard I want them to be. So instead of every week, I’m going to aim for every two weeks. Get ready for some exquisite food! And science. Of course.

But back to this post and this cocktail.

Have you ever heard of milk punch? Not the milky New Orleans variety, but the clarified old school one. The idea is that you add an acidic drink to milk causing it to curdle as the proteins denature with the acid. The proteins trap cloudy particles in the mix so that when you strain it, you’ve got yourself a crystal-clear cocktail!

There’s also a really cool flavor bit too. Tannins are astringent compounds present in such things as wine and tea (reread this baby for a refresher on astringency). They’re those things that lend a drying and puckering sensation to your mouth. The milk proteins in our milk punch bind tannins and other compounds like polyphenols that are bitter. In fact, the mechanism of astringency is a molecule binding salivary proteins, so astringent compounds are very good at grabbing onto nearby proteins. The effect is that you get a rounding out of the flavor profile as the silky qualities of milk remain while proteins and excessive tannins get filtered out.

So milk punches are kind of like the best thing especially if you’re a science nerd or food nerd like me. I’ve amped this one up with tropical pineapple because it’s been pretty evident that spring is coming soon! Fresh herbs are beginning to pop out their heads too so basil and pineapple are rushing along the sunnier days. Tequila is a natural addition with those flavors and a spirit I think gets better with this technique. More balanced. And the Fruity Pebbles? Pure Kelsey. They’re like the artificial fruity pure joy to build a fabulous flavor profile. Enjoy dear friends! And thanks again for the encouragement—let me know how you’ve been in the comments!

See you again soon!

PS if you want more science and an extremely comprehensive experimental design on the mechanisms of making milk punch, check this out!

Pineapple Basil Fruity Pebbles Milk Punch

Makes 2

Print Recipe

¼ cup whole milk

3 tablespoons Fruity Pebbles or Fruit Loops

10 pieces fresh pineapple (about 1/8^th of a pineapple)

5 basil leaves

3 ounces tequila

½ ounce Cointreau, Gran Gala, or Triple Sec

½ ounce simple syrup

¼ cup water or green tea, your choice

1. Combine the milk and Fruity Pebbles in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer. Take off the heat.
2. Muddle the pineapple and basil leaves together in the bottom of a cocktail shaker. Add a few cubes of ice, the tequila, Cointreau, simple syrup, and water/green tea. Shake vigorously for a minute. Filter the milk into a separate container. Strain the pineapple cocktail into the milk. Let sit for an hour to allow the milk proteins to curdle.
3. Line a fine strainer with cheesecloth and put over a jar/container. Pour the separated cocktail through the strainer and let filter out. Once filtered, run it through the collected milk proteins on the strainer once again. Don’t try to force the liquid through more quickly—just let gravity do the work.
4. Serve the filtered cocktail over ice and feel free to garnish with a basil leaf and some Fruity Pebbles alongside 🙂