Basic Bunny is my go-to brunch cocktail right now. I love that the alcohol is well-integrated because it’s softened by a brown butter and cream cheese fat wash. Also, it has a healthy ingredient, so I feel totally shameless drinking this in my yoga pants. It is reminiscent of carrot cake and chai and can easily be customized to personal taste if you prefer a carrot/orange blend or a nut milk for a dairy alternative
Ingredients
- 11/4 ounces brown butter and cream cheese fat washed vodka*
- 11/2 ounces carrot juice (I like Lakewood Organic Pure Carrot with Lemon for the little acid pop it gives)
- 1/2 ounce milk, I prefer whole (sub anything from coconut milk to heavy cream)
- 1/2 ounce cinnamon syrup**
- 1/8 teaspoon powdered ginger, pumpkin pie spice, any baking spice will do mint bouquet, for garnish
- 6 ounces vodka (I like an earthy potato vodka for this, Monopolowa or Chopin work well)
- 3 ounces unsalted sweet cream butter
- 3 ounces full fat cream cheese
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
Preparation
Combine all ingredients except mint in a shaker tin. Shake until sufficiently chilled and diluted. Strain over fresh ice. Gently smack mint and add to top of drink.
Brown Butter and Cream Cheese Fat Washed Vodka
Melt butter over medium heat in a light color pan so you can easily keep track of color change. Swirl occasionally to ensure even cooking. Butter will begin to foam, go from a pale yellow to deep tan, and smell nutty. Remove from heat. Add cream cheese to bottom of a clean Mason jar and microwave 20-30 seconds to soften (or use a hot water bath, aiming to warm cream cheese just enough to mimic the consistency of pancake batter, thin enough to stir and evenly disperse throughout the vodka). Add vodka and brown butter and cover. Leave to infuse at room temp for a few hours, then move to freezer overnight to solidify fat for easy skimming. Poke hole through top of butter cap and pour liquid through a cheesecloth-lined mesh strainer. Cover and store in fridge for one week.
Cinnamon Syrup
Add two broken up Ceylon cinnamon sticks (I like the quality from Savory Spice Shop) to two cups water. Bring to boil, then reduce heat to simmer for four minutes (the stronger the tea, the more flavorful the syrup). Strain out cinnamon sticks and add an equal amount of sugar. Stir until dissolved. Refrigerate up to one week.
