Limeade spiked with ginger juice invigorates the senses on a torrid summer day.
The most refreshing drink I have ever quaffed was freshly squeezed kaffir lime juice over ice. It was at the Singapore Polo Club and the day was so steamy and I was so miserably hot that I almost kissed the white-jacketed steward who came bearing a tray of frosty glasses.
The second most refreshing drink was sweet limeade spiked with peppery ginger juice. It was on a sweltering day in Washington D.C., where the summer miasma easily rivals Singapore’s round-the-clock heat and humidity. (Of course if you live in Singapore, on rainy days everyone wraps up in shawls and complains about the chill.) I staggered into a branch of Teaism, not far from the Mall, drained two glasses of this elixir and had started on my third before I regained my senses.
Ginger limeade is an invigorating summer drink, guaranteed to stir your senses from a heat-induced torpor. If you are making a lot of limeade, run a pound of fresh ginger through a vegetable juicer and within seconds you’ll have a cupful of pale yellow liquid. It will keep in the refrigerator for a day. But if you just want to make a glass or two, it’s simpler to grate some ginger, wrap it in a small square of cheesecloth, and squeeze the juice into a small dish.
I like to sweeten the limeade with thick sugar syrup. I use the recipe in The Joy of Cooking, which calls for two parts white sugar to one part water. This will keep indefinitely in the back of the refrigerator, so make enough to last for a few weeks.
Ginger-Spiked Limeade
To make one glass
Ingredients:
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
2 to 3 tablespoons cold sugar syrup (see note)
2 teaspoons ginger juice (see note)
5 to six ounces of cold water
Ice
A sprig of mint for garnish
Other:
1 tall glass
Small square cheesecloth
Microplane grater
Method:
1. Chill a tall glass by rinsing it in water and putting it in the freezer for a few minutes.
2. When the glass is frosty, remove it and fill with ice. Add the lime juice, sugar syrup and ginger juice. Stir. Add cold water to taste. Then taste and adjust the flavors to your liking—you can always add more of any ingredient, or dilute the drink with more water.
3. Add the mint and serve at once.
Note: To make the sugar syrup, combine 1 cup water and 2 cups white granulated sugar in a small saucepan. Stir and boil for 5 minutes. Let cool before using.
To make ginger juice, grate 1 or 2 tablespoons of ginger using a microplane or other grater. Wrap the ginger in a small square of cheesecloth and squeeze the juice into a bowl. One tablespoon of grated ginger will yield 2 to 3 teaspoons of juice, depending on freshness.