Mario Batali writes a great column for the New York times called ” What I am drinking now.” It comes out in the Sunday Magazine edition. One of my Sunday routines is to read the Times . It is a great newspaper. After  I check out his drink recipe , I decided to give it a try. Yesterday , I made my version of the Cranberry Collins.

First , you must make a ginger simple syrup, One part water to boil with some grated fresh ginger.Then a equal amount of sugar until it is dissolved.Cool then strain.Take some wet cranberries and roll them in sugar .Pop them in the freezer. Here is one of my twists. Two ounces of vodka, tablespoon of ginger syrup , juice of half a lime and a thin slice of lemon in a highball glass.Batali’s drink calls for bitter lemon. No such luck for that in Nashville .So we have to improvise. I put the lemon wedge at the bottom of the glass. Ice and frozen cranberries are next. Then the liquids. Since I do not have the bitter lemon , I added a little bit of Seven-up to top it off.The yellow of the lemon and the red cranberries give it a festive look and it takes great.

Making a cocktail sometimes calls for substitution of ingredients. Don’t be afraid to improvise.

Cheers