Believe it or not, at least for the Dirty Laundry Kitchen, it’s time to thinking about the 4th of July, and what’s a better place to start than with this Lemon Verbena Smash cocktail. This past weekend, I was forced to spend my time picnicking and drinking Lemon Verbena Smash cocktails at the dog park so that the menu would be ready for you. It was torture I tell you. First up, the questions. Where did this Lemon Verbena Smash cocktail come from? What is lemon verbena? And what do I do if I can’t find any? Good questions. I love the flavor of the herb lemon verbena. It’s perfect for Summer drinks and desserts. It’s a little hard to find at regular grocery stores (my dad has to grow it for me). But it’s amazing, and you can often find the plants even at places like home depot. When I can’t get my hands on it, I substitute a combination of basil and mint leaves. They get the job done in creating a similar flavor that make the Lemon Verbena Smash so distinctly delicious and refreshing. I love to make Lemon Verbena Smash in a giant mason jar and bring it on picnics, to the beach, or in this case, to the dog park. It’s a great compliment to my Summery 4^th of July Picnic menu. The Lemon Verbena Smash definitely goes down easy in the heat and allows whiskey drinkers like me a way to fit into the Summer drink scene, but if you prefer a mocktail, it’s great in lemonade on it’s own.

Lemon Verbena Smash

2014-11-03 12:37:46

Serves 8

Lemon Verbena Smash is made from bourbon, lemonade and lemon verbena making the smash a perfect summer cocktail to pack in mason jars for a picnic.

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Prep Time

15 min

Total Time

15 min

Prep Time

15 min

Total Time

15 min

206 calories

18 g

0 g

0 g

0 g

0 g

239 g

45 g

10 g

0 g

0 g

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size

239g

Servings

8

Amount Per Serving

Calories 206

Calories from Fat 1

% Daily Value *

Total Fat 0g

0%

Saturated Fat 0g

0%

Trans Fat 0g

Polyunsaturated Fat 0g

Monounsaturated Fat 0g

Cholesterol 0mg

0%

Sodium 45mg

2%

Total Carbohydrates 18g

6%

Dietary Fiber 0g

1%

Sugars 10g

Protein 0g

Vitamin A

0%

Vitamin C

19%

Calcium

1%

Iron

1%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your Daily Values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.

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Ingredients

1. 1 cup fresh lemon juice (I used about 8 lemons)
2. ¼ cup granulated sugar
3. lemon verbena leaves (or basil and mint leaves if you can’t find or grow verbena)
4. 2 cups bourbon
5. ¼ to ½ cup verbena simple syrup (or basil and mint…) optional- for added flavor
6. 1 liter club soda or seltzer

Instructions

1. Place sugar and verbena in a mortar and pestle (or you can use a bowl and a spoon). 
2. Mash until the leaves become broken down and the sugar tastes like verbena.
3. Juice fresh lemons and reserve the hulls.
4. Add the juice, sugar leaves, and some quarters of the hulls to a large mason jar.
5. Add the bourbon.
6. Wait to add the seltzer until you’ve reached your destination to keep it fizzy and minimize the odds of a leaking jar.
7. Don’t forget to pack the ice!

By Barrett Bridenhagen

beta

calories

206

fat

0g

protein

0g

carbs

18g

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