Ginger Syrup

I just bought the Alinea Group's newest non-alcoholic cookbook—it's amazing, btw—and found myself with some extra ginger syrup after trying out one of their cocktails. So I HAD to add it to a margarita with watermelon. And presto: Watermelon Ginger Margarita.

Ingredients

1 large hand of ginger.
granulated sugar, as needed

Directions

Peel the ginger and process through a juicer. Refrigerate the ginger juice for an hour or two to let the starch settle. Decant the juice into another container and weigh the juice. Measure half that amount of granulated sugar. [For the math-challenged, if you decant 150 grams of ginger juice, you'll need 75 grams granulated sugar.] Add the ginger juice and sugar to a blender and blend on high until all the sugar is dissolved.

Cilantro Lime Beurre Blanc

Last updated: February 18, 2026

Ingredients

1/4 c sliced garlic
1/4 bunch cilantro
6 black peppercorns
2/3 c dry white wine (150 ml)
1/3 c lime juice (75 ml)
1/4 cup heavy cream
8 oz butter, cut into small chunks, chilled
3 tbsp vegetable/chicken/any kind of stock

Recipe

1/4 c sliced garlic
1/4 bunch cilantro
6 black peppercorns
2/3 c dry white wine (150 ml)
1/3 c lime juice (75 ml)
Add to a 1.5qt saucepan over high heat and bring to boil. Reduce heat to maintain a simmer—around medium low—and simmer until liquid is down to 1 tbsp, about 20 minutes.

1/4 cup heavy cream
Add to the saucepan, increase heat to medium, simmer until it'll coat a spoon, about 5-10 minutes.

8 oz butter, cut into small chunks, chilled
3 tbsp vegetable/chicken/any kind of stock
Reduce heat to low. Add butter to the saucepan one piece at a time, whisking constantly to maintain the emulsion. Strain into small saucepan and stir in stock. Keep warm until ready to use.

Apple Cider Simple Syrup

Ingredients

250 g apple cider
250 g light brown sugar

Recipe

Microwave method:
Add apple cider and light brown sugar to a heatproof bowl and microwave on high until it boils, 3-5 minutes depending on the power of your microwave. Carefully remove from the microwave and stir until the sugar is completely dissolved. Cover with plastic wrap and cool to room temperature. Transfer to a glass or plastic squeeze bottle and refrigerate.

Stovetop method:
Note: You can also make this on the stovetop. Add the brown sugar and apple cider to a small saucepan set over high heat. Bring to a boil. Stir to dissolve all the ingredients. Cover and cool to room temperature. Transfer to a glass or plastic squeeze bottle and refrigerate.

Mint Simple Syrup

I love mint almost as much as I love adding mint to cocktails.

Ingredients

50 g mint leaves (JUST THE LEAVES)
200 g water
200 g sugar

Recipe

Add water and sugar to a saucepan and heat over medium. Or high. It doesn't matter. Once it starts boiling, remove from the heat.

OR

Add water and sugar to a pyrex measuring glass and microwave on high until it starts boiling.

Stir until all the sugar dissolves.

Add mint leaves and let cool.

Strain.