Frogspawn Vodka

I made this delicious, normal beverage for a Halloween party. If you like textures, you will love frogspawn vodka!

You could also easily substitute in other ingredients like apple juice, if you wanted to make a child-friendly version. The key ingredients are basil seeds and food colouring. Yum!

1. vodka - I used Vestal potato vodka. You could also substitute in any clear-ish spirit you like
2. neon green food colouring
3. sugar
4. lemon juice
5. basil seeds
6. optional: maraschino cherry syrup
7. optional: submersible tea lights

I had a pumpkin bowl I'd previously decorated that I wanted to use for the party, so I quickly measured its capacity with water and a jug. It came out at about 600ml.

I weighed out about 50g of sugar (although I later decided I should have gone for 75 or 100g, it was better the previous time I made it), and stirred it into some boiling water. You're aiming for the minimum amount of water that will still dissolve the sugar.

Basil seeds are a bit fussy about what liquid they bloom in, so I just put them in a glass with some plain water (they definitely don't like blooming in vodka, I found that out the last time!). Again we're aiming for minimum water while still allowing the seeds to bloom.

Add a generous scoop of food colouring to the sugar syrup. There is no such thing as too much neon green. Stir stir stir, until it's all dissolved in.

Next we mix everything together. Lemon juice, syrup(s), basil seeds, and top up with enough vodka to just about fill the container. Give it a good stir, then taste to see if anything's lacking. I added a bit more lemon juice.

I switched on my tea lights, making sure they were screwed tightly shut, and submerged. It looks especially unappetising in this photo, but the basil seeds slowly took on the lovely green colour, making them look much more delicious.

I put my frogspawn back into the vodka bottle for transport, and downed the 100ml of frogspawn I couldn't fit in the bottle. It is a sensory treat.