Hawaiian Orange Blossom (Cocktail)

June 27: National Orange Blossom Day

Islander’s Daddy used to grow a little Japanese orange tree in the backyard of the house in Hawaii where she grew up. Bees would buzz over the fragrant flowers of the orange blossoms and the tree would produce a hardy but bittersweet, citrus fruit.

The cocktail named Orange Blossom also has a bittersweet taste. A simple recipe for this drink is to combine equal amounts of freshly squeezed orange juice and gin and pour over ice. This version of the Hawaiian Orange Blossom cocktail recipe adds pineapple juice and orange liqueur to the mix.

Get into the aloha “spirit” and have a Hawaiian Orange Blossom cocktail on National Orange Blossom Day.

Recipe

(Adapted from Spirit Drinks)

Ingredients

• 2 ounces orange juice (freshly squeezed)
• 1 ounce pineapple juice
• 1 ounce Triple Sec or Grand Marnier (orange liqueur)
• 2 ounces gin
• ice cubes

Directions

Pour the orange and pineapple juices along with the orange liqueur and gin into a shaker with ice cubes. Shake vigorously until well mixed. Pour into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with an orange slice or pineapple spear (optional).

Notes

• Daddy eventually replaced the Japanese orange tree (possibly of the daidai variety) with a guava tree as the former did not produce as much fruit as all of his other trees in the yard.
• We used Triple Sec in this recipe because of its clear color (Grand Marnier has a light golden hue) and wanted the orange drink to be as vibrant as possible. Triple Sec is also cheaper than Grand Marnier.